By Ashley Manta
I’ve covered many ways cannabis can help enhance your sexual experience, but what happens when you experiment with different consumption methods before diving under the sheets with your partner? Do specific consumption methods impact pleasure? I decided to find out and have compiled a summary of how different sexual encounters felt when paired with various cannabis consumption methods.
Before we dive into my unofficial findings, overall, regardless of the method, I prefer sativas and hybrids for pleasure, so you might want to try those out if you’re thinking of combining cannabis with sex. Most indicas I’ve tried are too sleepy for the high energy sex that I prefer, but they’re not bad for a quickie before bedtime.
Of course, having said that, everyone experiences cannabis differently. The strain that causes you to feel creative, euphoric, and productive might make the person next to you feel anxious, uncomfortable, and paranoid. As with all cannabis consumption, your mileage may vary. Experiment on your own, try out different methods (or combinations of methods), and keep a journal or spreadsheet that allows you to track what worked best for your body. Make sure to include variables, like “I was stressed after a long week at work,” or “I’d just finished having hot phone sex with my partner” — that way, you can refer back to your notes to see how a particular combination made you feel under certain situations.
Flower (Smoked)
Smoking flower is definitely my most common method of imbibing cannabis. There’s something meditative about selecting your strain, grinding up the bud, packing the bowl, lighting the hemp wick, and taking that first long, slow hit of green. Smoking is great for anytime sex–you don’t need a lot for setup and, depending on your tolerance, the effects can wear off between 20 minutes and 2 hours.
The pleasurable effects of flower vary by strain, as one might expect, but overall smoking flower tends to give a nice combination of spacey head high with increased tactile sensations. For example, Big Sur Holy Bud, Blue Dream, Jillybean, and Juicy Jack are among my favorites for sexy time consumption because they inspire creativity, vivid fantasy experiences, and a marked increase of body awareness and decrease of mental distractions.
Pros:
- Quick and predictable onset of effects
- Most customizable in terms of amount of consumption
- Tends to evoke feelings of being present and grounded in one’s body
Cons:
- Tends toward dry mouth, arguably more than the other methods
- Not always conducive to smoking inside if there are neighbors, hotel policies, or just those darn smoke detectors
Flower (Vaped)
I only have one vaporizer, the Hot Box, which doesn’t allow temperature controls. As such, all I’ve really noticed in terms of the differences between smoked and vaped flower effects is improved flavor and a slight tendency toward a head high with fewer body effects. However, after reading Bailey Rahn’s piece on customizing your high with temperature, I hypothesize that testing out vaping at different temperatures and evaluating the sexual effects would be a useful way to figure out what temperature settings and strain combinations work best to produce the effects you’re looking for.
Pros:
- Some vapes take up to 10 minutes to warm up, so you’d better set a timer or you might forget to go back and vape after you’ve initiated foreplay
Cons:
- Desktop vapes with whips can be a bit unwieldy for bedroom use, so consider using a handheld vape or a vape like the Herbalizer that comes with a squeeze valve balloon that you can take hits from throughout your sexual encounter
Dabs
I experienced my first dab-fueled sexual experience while away with a lover last month. It was exhilarating. The onset was immediate and profound, and so much more efficient than smoking flower. Every tactile sensation was magnified and it felt like we were melting into each other. My head was completely present and firing on all cylinders, while my body floated in a pleasure cloud that brought erogenous zones online that I didn’t know I had. There was a moment where we were staring into each other’s’ eyes and both of our bodies started spasming in unison as we rode the waves of pleasure together. So hot. Huge thank you to WVapes for letting me try their new product, WDabs, a CO2 concentrate that comes in at 85% THC.
Pros:
- Clear head
- Intense body sensations
- Promotes feelings of intimate connection when done with a partner
Cons:
- Easy to over-consume, especially for beginners, and find oneself in a paranoid and decidedly unsexy head space
- The blow torch setup can be intimidating for new users
Edibles
Unfortunately, edibles are definitely my least favorite consumption method for sex. They’re so hit and miss, where one product’s 10mg serving might send me orbiting into next week and another product’s 25mg serving barely registers. However, if you find an edible that works for you and gives you the effects you’re looking for, they’re highly conducive to marathon sex. There’s no need to re-up when you use an edible that lasts 6-8 hours.
Pros:
- Improved staying power
Cons:
- High variability
- Difficult to consistently dose
- Large time commitment
Topical/Internal (Foria)
Oh, Foria. Between the original Pleasure spray and their new product, Explore, there are many benefits to exploring sex-specific topicals. You’ve heard about Foria Pleasure in Leafly’s lube comparison and my piece on cannabis and erections. Prior to June 1st, Foria was primarily intended for vulvas. Now there’s a new product offering, Explore, an anal suppository designed to enhance pleasure and promote muscle relaxation.
With 60mg THC and 10mg CBD per capsule, Explore allows users of any gender to heighten their anal experiences without numbing or desensitizing. For people with prostates, this product is a must, as there is a high concentration of nerve endings back there and the prostate gland is a magical pleasure center that can lead to orgasms you have to experience to believe. Additionally, the G-spot and internal clitoris can be stimulated anally, which makes this a great product for all bodies. The effects feel like a warm blanket of pleasure wrapping around your entire pelvic region.
Pros:
- Cannabinoids absorb readily into the rectum at 50-75% bioavailablity, more than oral or inhalation
- Increased pleasure with limited psychoactive effects–tends toward a body high versus a head high
Cons:
Explore is potentially incompatible with latex condoms*, especially if used in conjunction with Pleasure (use nitrile or polyurethane condoms instead)
Do you have a preferred consumption method for pairing with sex? Share your experiences by leaving a comment! Also, do you have a sex, relationships, or intimacy dating question? Send it to tips@nullleafly.com and I may address your request in a future article! (Don’t worry, we’ll keep your queries anonymous.)
*Foria Explore is formulated with jojoba extract instead of coconut oil, which some lube companies claim is safe to use with latex because jojoba is a “wax ester” and not an oil in the chemical sense. However, my sex educator brain says until I see a few peer-reviewed studies with significant sample sizes, I’m erring on the side of caution and treating it like any other oil, meaning I avoid using it with latex.
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