Last month, the New York Times Magazine published a story touting two new pills in the pipeline to boost a woman’s low libido. The article made it seem as though this was an imminent possibility, and so sex therapists’ phones have been ringing off the hook ever since; from patients desperate for heightened sexual wellness.
However, this excitement for, well, more excitement may have been premature. According to Lorri Brotto, a psychologist at the University of British Columbia who was quoted in the article, ‘My patients who read the story have been asking me about these drugs, but the study data so far have found that the pills aren’t effective for everyone with low desire – only a subgroup of women.’ These pills tend to enhance your sexual wellbeing if you have trouble experiencing sexual pleasure due to a lack of sensation, rather than simply a lack of desire.
Each of the two new experimental drugs – Lybrido and Lybridos – have been tested in about 200 women, and so will both need to be tested in longer studies containing 1,000 or more women to even be considered for approval by the US Food and Drug Administration. Even if the drugs were to gain FDA approval, they would be indicated only for women with a psychiatric condition, such as the newly named sexual interest/arousal disorder. The DSM-5 recently categorised this condition to reflect not just a lack of interest in sex but also difficulties with the mechanics of it.
Brotto, who helped develop the new definition, explained, ‘This change was based on a fair bit of research showing that sexual fantasies aren’t necessarily a good indicator of a woman’s level of desire.’ She noted that while a desire-boosting drug may offer real solutions for problems that are likely physiological, more women may have sexual health problems which may not be fixable with a pill. Brotto commented, ‘Some experts see monogamy as the ultimate killer of desire. Distance, intrigue, mystery, and romance all dramatically decline as two people become more familiar and secure.’
An important element that can heighten a woman’s sex drive is being present in those moments of foreplay. Brotto suggested ‘Their minds may be elsewhere during sex; thinking that it’s just something they want to get over with.’ Brotto teaches her clients to tune into their bodies using mindfulness exercises, such as eating a raisin slowly: ‘I guide them through noticing its texture, shape, and smell, how it feels resting on their lips or sitting in their mouth, and how it tastes.’
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