Cannabis has a long and storied history dating back thousands of years. What was originally praised for its many natural and medicinal uses has since become one of the most stigmatized drugs of the past 100 years. This has begun to change as more and more states legalize cannabis, but a cloud of disapproval still hangs over the plant.
The pleasure products industry faces a similar stigma. The undeniable parallels between the cannabis industry and products focused on sexual pleasure are hard to ignore. Just like “stashing” or hiding cannabis products in a shoe box underneath the bed, sex toys and lube are furtively tucked out of sight. Meanwhile, honest discussion of how often we may use cannabis to help anxiety can cause the same kind of awkwardness and discomfort as acknowledging that masturbation is part of our daily routines.
If conversation and information help to break that stigma, I believe in empowering that conversation, exploring the things that make us feel good and encouraging others to do the same.
It’s easy to stigmatize something that we aren’t 100% informed on. If conversation and information help to break that stigma, I believe in empowering that conversation, exploring the things that make us feel good and encouraging others to do the same.
So, how do sex and cannabis really tie together? You can’t break the stigma on cannabis until you truly understand this link. A 2017 study in The Journal of Sexual Medicine surveyed 50,000 participants and found that marijuana use led to increased sexual frequency and drive. Additionally, research conducted through a gynecology office in a study titled “The Relationship Between Marijuana Use Prior to Sex and Sexual Function in Women,” published in Sex Med, found that female cannabis users had increased sexual drive, improved ability to orgasm and decreased pain during sex. The women in this study who used cannabis were more than twice as likely to report satisfaction with their orgasms.
Cannabis works to improve sex and increase pleasure through a variety of biological systems. The endocannabinoid system, or ECS, is made up of cannabinoid receptors called CB1 and CB2. The ECS system is active in all of us naturally and plays a role in many processes affecting almost every system in the body. THC is the main component of cannabis and is the part that gets you high. THC interacts with the ECS by binding to CB1 and CB2 receptors throughout the body, just like the natural endocannabinoids. There are cannabinoid receptors in parts of the brain that regulate the release of oxytocin, a compound that causes intense feelings of pleasure, and gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which plays multiple roles in sexual functioning. You may have heard of dopamine and serotonin, the neurotransmitters that are important feel-good substances in the brain. It is thought that activation of the CB receptors in the brain increases dopamine levels, which is the key to increasing female sexual excitement. THC delivered directly to the vagina or anus, such as in the form of a lubricant, may also increase dilation of vessels and blood circulation, leading to increased sexual excitement, heightened perception of touch and improved orgasm.
All of this ties back into the natural beauty of both cannabis and sex products designed for pleasure. Just as cannabis was originally introduced as a natural medicinal substance used in healing, pleasure is one of the natural wonders our bodies can experience. “Natural” and “stigmatized” typically don’t belong together, but they are both words used to describe cannabis and pleasure. Another commonality that cannabis and sex share is the lack of education surrounding how best to enjoy them. To fully destigmatize both cannabis and pleasure, education, understanding, empowering and encouraging conversations are a must. Before you judge consumers of cannabis products, consider the sex toy end users that are also constantly looked down upon for embracing their sexuality. Embrace the parallels between these markets — and bank on the crossover opportunities.
Katie Enright is the founder of Lavinia, the neurotransmitters that are maker of oh.hi cannabis lubricant.
