If you’re looking to enhance your bedroom experience, cannabis might be a helpful tool. Among the plant’s various benefits, it can also be used as an aphrodisiac. Weed can help you relax, get out of your head, and more in touch with your body. It can also make you more sensitive to touch, and more in the moment — all good things when it comes to sex. But using cannabis as an aphrodisiac isn’t always as simple as smoking a joint before things heat up. For starters, men and women may react differently to cannabis. And meanwhile, a number of cannabis products will offer a varied range of experiences. Whatever you’re looking for, here are a couple tips to get you and your partner started.
If you’re toking up, he should stop smoking before she does
Cannabis has different effects on the sexes. “As many older {heterosexual} couples find, half an hour before intimate time, she should keep smoking and he should stop,” says cannabis researcher and author Lex Pelger. That’s because if a man gets too high, he might risk being able to get or maintain an erection, while for women, the weed may simply get her to be more sensitive.
If you want to get in touch with your body, try an indica
Indica strains provide a more relaxing, soporific effect, especially for women, says Stephen Kerford, chief executive of lady Chatterley’s Lover, a San Francisco-based cannabis delivery service focusing on women’s needs. A medium THC level indica could be comparable to about a glass of wine, he adds. “Something that won’t knock your socks off, but makes you loosey goosey or open to suggestion.” If you’re taking an edible instead of smoking or vaping, be sure to wait enough time before it completely kicks in so that you can get the full effects.
Start with an infused massage
Before things get too heated, try using cannabis-infused oil or cream to exchange massages with your partner. Cannabis is well known for its pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory qualities, which helps if you have any aches and pains to get rid of. The massage won’t really get you high, but it will make your skin tingle. “A {cannabis topical} helps the muscles to relax a bit easier,” says massage therapist Sarah Rodgers from LoDo Studio in Denver. “It has a tingling sensation to it when you first apply it…it’s mostly felt in the muscles, that’s as far as it goes. It helps the client kind of sink in. I notice people are able to relax with deeper pressure and they’re not even as sore as they would be without it, if I was just using a regular cream.”
Try weed lube
Cannabis-infused lubricant, like Foria, is meant to “enhance sensation, increase desire, improve lubrication, heighten awareness, deepen orgasms, and relax your body.” Those who have tried the product rave about its effects. According to writer Maria Yagoda, “every surface felt relaxed and super-sensitive to touch.”
