Marijuana may be a “gateway,” but not in the stigmatized way it’s been portrayed by prohibitionists as a stepping stone to other drugs. Rather, a growing body of scientific literature signals cannabis is a “gateway to women’s orgasm” that could hold significant therapeutic potential in the treatment of female orgasmic disorder/difficulty (FOD), a new research paper says.
For the analysis, published in the journal Current Sexual Health Reports last week, clinical sexologist Suzanne Mulvehill discussed how, even though FOD affects an estimated 72 percent of premenopausal women, there are currently no drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat the condition. And cannabis represents a novel therapy that could fill that treatment gap.
“Psychiatrists have traditionally been trained to define legitimate prescribing primarily through formally regulated pharmaceutical pathways, even while routinely prescribing medications off-label. For FOD, cannabis falls outside this conventional framework,” the report says. “Recognizing its therapeutic value therefore asks psychiatry to broaden its understanding of what constitutes medicine and evidence-based care, particularly for conditions that lack effective conventional pharmacologic options.”
“Five decades of convergent evidence…demonstrate a consistent association between cannabis use and enhanced orgasmic function.”
Mulvehill emphasized that incorporating cannabis into sexual medicine “will require openness to recognizing it as a therapeutic ally and developing clinical competence in its responsible use,” while rejecting antiquated framing that’s regarded marijuana as a “gateway” to dangerous drugs that must be “avoided at all costs.”
“This stigma shaped society as a whole, as well as the training of psychiatrists and therapists,” Mulvehill, founder of the Female Orgasm Training Institute, said. “Yet cannabis today should be reframed: not as a gateway to illicit drug use, but as a gateway to women’s orgasm—and, more broadly, to restoring women’s sexual agency.”
“Female Orgasmic Disorder/Difficulty remains one of the most prevalent yet least adequately treated conditions in women’s health,” the paper says. “The absence of FDA-approved pharmacological treatments, combined with the limited effectiveness of existing psychological and behavioral interventions, reflects a fundamental mismatch between the complexity of orgasmic difficulty and the scope of most current treatment models. The evidence reviewed demonstrates that cannabis occupies a uniquely promising position within this gap.”
The analysis points to five decades of research into cannabis that’s demonstrated “consistent associations with improvements in orgasm frequency, ease, and satisfaction, while simultaneously reducing anxiety, inhibition, cognitive distraction, and bodily disconnection, which are core barriers to orgasmic function.”
“Integrating cannabis into sexual medicine represents both a clinical and cultural shift,” the author wrote. “What distinguishes cannabis is not merely its ability to improve a single symptom, but its capacity to therapeutically influence multiple orgasm-facilitating and orgasm-inhibiting processes simultaneously, aligning with the multidimensional nature of Female Orgasmic Disorder/Difficulty.”
“Moving forward will require an expansion of clinical perspective beyond traditional treatment frameworks, alongside interdisciplinary collaboration, provider education, and clear clinical guidance on dosing and administration to ensure safe, evidence-based care. Together, these developments position cannabis as a legitimate therapeutic ally in advancing equity, effectiveness, and innovation in women’s health care.”
A previous scientific review Mulvehill coauthored last year pointed to ample evidence that cannabis is associated with improvements in symptoms of FOD.
The research involved an analysis of one randomized controlled trial and 15 observational studies, using data from a total of 8,849 women. Based on the findings, study authors determined that marijuana “appears to be a promising treatment option for FOD/difficulty, with the majority of studies reviewed reporting improvements in orgasm function and satisfaction among women who use cannabis.”
Relatedly, another study published last year determined that marijuana use is linked to increased sexual desire and arousal, as well as lower levels of sexual distress.
In 2024, a study found that cannabis-infused vaginal suppositories seemed to reduce sexual pain in women after treatment for gynecological cancer. Combining the suppositories with online exercises in “mindful compassion” offered patients even more substantial benefits.
“The outcomes favoured the [combined] group,” that research said “in which sexual function, levels of sexual arousal, lubrication, and orgasm increased, and the levels of sexual pain decreased.”
Earlier research also found that administration of a broad-spectrum, high-CBD vaginal suppository was associated with “significantly reduced frequency and severity of menstrual-related symptoms” as well as the symptoms’ negative impacts on daily life.
As for sexual fulfillment, a separate study last year found that while alcohol might be effective to “facilitate” sex, marijuana is better at enhancing sexual sensitivity and satisfaction.
While alcohol increased some elements of sexual attraction—including making people feel more attractive, more extroverted and more desirous—people who used marijuana “have more sensitivity and they are more sexually satisfied than when they consume alcohol,” authors wrote.
A broad scientific review of academic research on cannabis and human sexuality published in 2024 concluded that while the relationship between marijuana and sex is a complicated one, use of cannabis is generally associated with more frequent sexual activity as well as increased sexual desire and enjoyment.
That article, published in the journal Psychopharmacology, also suggested that lower doses of marijuana may actually be best suited for sexual satisfaction, while higher doses could in fact lead to decreases in desire and performance. And it suggested effects may differ between men and women.
Some advocates have cited the potential for cannabis to improve sexual function in women as a reason to add conditions such as FOD as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana.
A 2020 study in the journal Sexual Medicine, meanwhile, found that women who used cannabis more often had better sex.
Numerous online surveys have also reported positive associations between marijuana and sex. One study even found a connection between the passage of marijuana laws and increased sexual activity.
Yet another study, however, cautions that more marijuana doesn’t necessarily mean better sex. A literature review published in 2019 found that cannabis’s impact on libido may depend on dosage, with lower amounts of THC correlating with the highest levels of arousal and satisfaction. Most studies showed that marijuana has a positive effect on women’s sexual function, the study found, but too much THC can actually backfire.
Separately, a paper last year in the journal Nature Scientific Reports that purported to be the first scientific study to formally explore the effects of psychedelics on sexual functioning found that drugs such as psilocybin mushrooms and LSD could have beneficial effects on sexual functioning—even months after use.
“On the surface, this type of research may seem ‘quirky,’” one of the authors of that study said, “but the psychological aspects of sexual function—including how we think about our own bodies, our attraction to our partners, and our ability to connect to people intimately—are all important to psychological wellbeing in sexually active adults.”
Photo courtesy of Max Jackson.
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