An antidepressant called Flibanserin is being hailed as the ‘Female Viagra’ after it has been shown to increase libido in women (here on BBC). The drug was ineffective as an antidepressant, but the women in the clinical trials reported “significant improvements in their sexual desire and satisfactory sexual experiences.” And… they were still depressed? What more do they want, a pill that cleans bathrooms? A pill that gives them equal pay for equal work?
Flibanserin may come to market in two years, no doubt re-branded with a sexier name that conjures lust pills rather than insecticidal chemicals, and with a flashy ad campaign featuring a middle-aged cougar innocently toying with her prey for the camera as she and we imagine all of the hot sex that will commence when… um, turn off the television, I have to go barf.
The serendipitous discovery of Flibanserin is being compared to the discovery of Viagra, which was originally intended to be a heart medicine until its aphrodisiac effects were observed. Or so the story goes. We all know that the discovery of Viagra was a triumphant cumulation of hundreds of years of modern science, which was founded solely for the purpose of allowing men to attain hours-long erections. Is it a coincidence that Isaac Newton died an 84-year old virgin, and 400 years later we have a pill that cures erectile dysfunction?
According to the article, some doctors are “skeptical about the need” for pills to boost female sex drive. And judging by the women in the Viagra/Cialis/Levitra commercials, I’d have to concur. They’re unflaggingly rearin’ to go, spurred by the mere idea that their partner ingested an erectile dysfunction drug 15 minutes to 36 hours ago that may or may not land him in the emergency room with a boner that just won’t go away. It makes her feel wanted… deeply, almost pathologically wanted.
Indeed, women are often told that their sexuality is all in their head and that any dysfunction is psychological, like “you don’t want to have sex with your husband because he doesn’t help with the housework.” And some researchers say that a woman’s flagging sex drive may be “normal.” Well, just because a woman’s loss of sex drive may be mental or age-related doesn’t mean that there is no need for a pill that will enable her to see past her partner’s inadequacies or transcend her ebbing estrogen! For what is science for if not to enliven our plight with consistent, pleasurable sexual encounters?
