Dive into a fascinating and provocative discussion about the growing trend of women using pharmaceuticals and hormones to boost their sex drive. Hosts Simone and Malcolm Collins explore the cultural, medical, and social implications of drugs like Addyi (the so-called “female Viagra”) and testosterone therapy, referencing recent New York Times articles and real-life stories. The conversation covers: * The science behind female libido and the diagnosis of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) * The rise of medications and hormone treatments aimed at increasing women’s sexual desire * The cultural phenomenon of women openly discussing and experimenting with these treatments * The impact on relationships, marriage, and family life * The debate over whether society should encourage or question the pursuit of higher female sex drive * The generational divide in attitudes toward sex and intimacy * The risks, side effects, and ethical questions surrounding medicating for desire Whether you’re curious about the latest trends in sexual health, interested in the intersection of medicine and culture, or just want to hear a candid, humorous take on a taboo topic, this episode is for you. If you enjoy the discussion, don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more thought-provoking conversations! Also, as this was a Simone-outlined episode, here are our show notes! Episode Outline - The Women Drugging Themselves to Be Horny Women Trying to Medicate Sex Drives / hypoactive sexual desire disorder The Gist * As much as we talk about everyone becoming increasingly sexless, there is a subset of women who are ALL ABOUT sex, and they’ll even go to great lengths to stoke sex drives when they have none * Testosterone * Flibanserin * Dropping and changing birth control and other medications * The NY Times has written various articles covering elements of this subset of women * I’ll walk you through the issue * And in the end, I want your take, and I want listener’s takes, on whether the pursuit of a higher female sex drive is important, neutral, or detrimental Series of NY Times Stories on Women Pushing for Sex Viagra for Women The “gateway” article to this issue for me was about basically viagra for women—a medication called Filbanserin branded as Addyi that’s marketed as “the little pink pill” by a woman named Cindy Eckert who herself is famous for integrating pink into every aspect of her style. Here’s a 2025 documentary premiering about it: Cindy has been trying, through her company Sprout Pharmaceuticals, to promote Addyi for a decade * Her work was recently covered by the NY Times: * A Pill for Women’s Libido Meets a Cultural Moment * A decade ago, Cindy Eckert struggled to convince skeptics about a drug for premenopausal women. Lately, her business is booming. * https://archive.is/Z3BDp Why Do Women Need Viagra? Flibanserin is meant to treat Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (aka HSDD), which is a measurable condition Women with HSDD have different brain activity https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18976696 * This functional MRI (fMRI) study compared brain activation and sexual response between: * 20 women without sexual dysfunction (NHSD) * 16 women diagnosed with HSDD Participants were exposed to erotic, sports, and relaxing video segments. Researchers measured subjective sexual arousal, physiological arousal using a vaginal photoplethysmograph (VPP), and brain activation at three sessions. The differences suggest that women with HSDD may have altered encoding or retrieval of arousing stimuli and possibly devote more cognitive attention to monitoring/evaluating their responses, which might interfere with normal sexual response. This is indicated by increased activation in specific brain areas linked to attention and evaluation. So what does flibanserin do? * Slightly increases sexual desire and activity * Slightly lowers distress * Causes drowsiness and lowers blood pressure, especially when combined with alcohol * WHY NOT JUST DRINK??? The weird thing about this drug is that it’s not really effective. The FDA rejected Sprout Pharmaceutical’s application for approval for the drug (again, because WHY NOT JUST GET DRUNK). From the NY Times article: “To be turned down twice by the F.D.A. is typically a death sentence for new drugs. But for flibanserin, the decision had the opposite effect: It galvanized a movement of women who believed the rejection reeked of sexism.” The FDA eventually approved Addyi after a heavy resistance campaign, financed by Sprout Pharmaceuticals: “The F.D.A. approved flibanserin in 2015, writing later in the New England Journal of Medicine that while “the average treatment effects were small” (about 10 percent higher than placebo) “efficacy had been established.”” So what makes Addyi interesting is the discourse around it—the fact that prominent actress and influencers like Gwenyth Paltrow are writing and talking about it—and not that it’s particularly effective. What’s interesting is that women
