Electric zaps to privates can jumpstart women’s low sex drive: study
A new treatment that sounds shocking might actually help women who experience low sex drive.
Electrical impulses on the dorsal genital nerve around the clitoris have been shown to stimulate sexual arousal in women — including patients with severe spinal-cord injuries.
The research, conducted at the University of Michigan, included nine participants in three groups: three women who had some level of sexual dysfunction, three with a spinal-cord injury and three with neither sexual dysfunction nor a spinal-cord injury.
All nine participants completed one session of clitoral stimulation, and five of them completed a second session. Each session lasted about 30 minutes.
During the sessions, when two electrodes about the size of a quarter were placed on either side of the clitoris, the participants reported sensations including “tingling,” “pulsation” and “lubrication,” but no pain or discomfort.
Before and after each session, the women rated their level of sexual arousal on a five-point scale. The women without spinal-cord injuries noted a one- or two-point increase in arousal after their sessions.
But the women with spinal-cord injuries reported a substantial two- or three-point jump in their levels of sexual arousal following clitoral stimulation.
The graph above show the increase in sexual arousal following clitoral stimulation with electrical pulses.
University of Michigan
The researchers noted that their study — which has not yet been peer-reviewed or published — was limited by the small number of participants and by the lack of audio-visual materials, which makes it difficult to compare their results with other studies that included pornography or other sexual materials.
Estimates vary, but about 27% of pre-menopausal women have some degree of low sexual desire, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Other estimates state that one in three women experience periods of low libido at some point during their lives.
A cross-section of the dorsal genital nerve, which is primarily responsible for clitoral sensation.
OHSU
Illness, surgery, use of street drugs or alcohol, prescription medications such as antidepressants, stress or fatigue can contribute to a loss of sexual desire in both men and women, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The type of nerve stimulation used in this research, often referred to as neuromodulation, has been used to treat a number of other conditions, particularly neurological and psychiatric or behavioral disorders.
Neuromodulation has shown some promise in treating movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, pain and depression, and is often used off-label for other neurologic conditions, according to a 2022 report in the journal Neurology.
How to Help Your Child Succeed at School
One easy way to invest in process is to set goals, both individually and as a family. Try to do this at the beginning of a new school year, the first of the month, or the beginning of a new season. Keep the discussion light and low-pressure. This process isn’t about getting better grades, it’s about supporting learning as a family.
Everyone (yes, that means parents, too) sets three short-term, achievable goals oriented around tasks and improvements under your control. For example, “I’m going to get all A's this semester” is too broad and too difficult to control. Instead, try “I’m going to ask for help in math more often,” “I will plan one extra help session a week,” or “I will practice my multiplication three extra times this month.”
One of those three goals should be a challenge. We can’t hope to convince our children to be emotionally and intellectually brave unless they see us do the same, so set some goals that get you out of your comfort zone. Take guitar or dance or Spanish lessons, try an activity you have never tried before, or pick up a new hobby. This is, after all, how we expand our cognitive potential and make new connections in our brains that can help us become stronger, smarter and more efficient learners.
A few years ago, one of my sons’ goals was to make a few new friends, a goal that was both challenging and important to him.
Before you set new goals, take the time to assess how everyone did on past goals. Review these goals once a month or once a semester. If you fail to achieve your goals talk about why, and what you plan to do differently next time. If you succeed, celebrate that achievement!
Model: Watching a parent set a scary, ambitious goal and talk about the process of achieving it is the most direct way to teach children that learning and striving to be better are human goals, not just school goals.
