Why is there still no Viagra for women?

We might all need a little help sometimes when it comes to great sex. While men have been enthusiastically popping their little blue pills for over a decade now, where are we at when it comes to something like a Viagra for women?

First of, the very same little blue pill might do the trick*. The way Viagra helps men to get it up is by increasing the blood flow to the sexy bits. The same process can work for the ladies as well as it can make lubrication easier and directing the blood flow directly to the clit can enhance pleasure and make it easier for her to come. However, using Viagra for females is not fully approved by the medical community and the results vary. Viagra might prove useful in cases when side effects of another medicine, such as an anti-depressant, is making arousal difficult. If the problem is the lack of sexual desire, Viagra will not fix that for women any more than it does for the guys – it only helps in the physical process. If you are not horny to begin with, Viagra will not make you horny. It is essentially designed for men’s needs and since women’s needs tend to differ quite a lot, we need to look at other options.

Viagra for women: what's on the market?

Anything that is designed specifically to help women with sexual dysfunction, be it medical or herbal supplement, tends to be dubbed “pink Viagra”. One of the examples on the pharmaceutical front is Flibanserin. This medicine is designed to work in a totally different way than Viagra, actually causing sexual desire through correcting an imbalance in the levels of certain neurotransmitters. So instead of fixing the direction of the blood flow, we are going straight to the woman’s main sex organ, the brain, to get her in the mood. In order to get your juices going, so to speak, you need to take the medicine daily, not just in anticipation of sex as is the case with Viagra. However the results have been inconclusive and so far there is not enough evidence the drug is actually effective so it remains to be seen when it will become available on the market.

At present there are no officially approved drugs for female sexual dysfunction on the market, however you can try going herbal instead. One example of our herbal friends is Lady Prelox tablets that claim to improve blood flow – much like Viagra – not only down there but also to your brain (your biggest sexual organ), in order to improve overall energy and therefore also libido. It markets itself as the “female pleasure enhancer” (now that sounds fun!)

There is no magic pill for sex

As we are dealing with the blood flow again, even if it does work the desire needs to be there to begin with – the pill will not make you horny. (And besides, that would really inconvenient: these pills need to be taken every day, twice a day. Not just before fucking.) Then again, if the issue is mainly the lack of overall energy and the libido is just hidden underneath all that, it might just do the trick. As it is a herbal supplement you can buy it without a prescription, but it also means it has not gone through the sort of extensive testing actual medicines have to go through.

Some might argue that we are trying to fix a non-existing medical problem with drugs. People are pretty complex creatures in general, no less so when it comes to sexual desire, arousal and orgasm. There are many emotional and psychological issues at play rather than just physical ones when it comes to sex.

While waiting for a miracle drug to come to the rescue, maybe you can try some good old-fashion ways of boosting your sex drive: watch a dirty movie, read an erotic novel, enjoy foods known to be aphrodisiacs, or maybe engage in some role play with your partner. In any case, no pill will fix possible emotional and/or psychological reasons behind sexual dysfunction. For some serious, deep-rooted problems you need to look for another cure.

Caitlin is a writer, sex educator, consultant, and product reviewer who focuses primarily on issues of sex toy and accessory safety, pleasure, sexuality, gender, and more. You can learn more, or ask any questions, at their website- www.sex-ational.com

*We here at Popcorn.dating are most definitely not doctors. Please don't take our advice as such, and consult a doctor before taking any prescription medication.

Image by Felix E. Guerrero via Flickr with CC BY 2.0 licence