The Most Common Female Sexual Complaints
Low sexual desire and arousal are the most common female sexual complaints. While there are a trove of great options for men, women struggle to find available suitable options. Just because the subject is largely ignored by mainstream media doesn’t mean it doesn’t have profound effects on quality of life metrics. Desperate to find some type of solution, many women turn to off-label prescriptions for testosterone. There are over 4,000,000 such prescriptions written per year for women in the United States alone. https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(17)31851-9/fulltext
Flibanserin (Addyi)
Flibanserin was approved by the FDA for the treatment of hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD.) It is the only pill approved for use of this common condition in women. Sadly, only 10% of women found that it produced meaningful improvement compared to a placebo. Fatigue, insomnia, and dry mouth are potential side effects. There was an increase in some types of cancer in lab studies on mice, and it is unknown if this has any bearing on humans. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6198608/
Unfortunately, some insurance carriers will not cover Addyi, and it may cost up to $550/month.
Bremelanotide (Vyleesi)
Women inject Bremelanotide under the skin at least 45 minutes prior to sexual intercourse. Potential side effects include nausea, vomiting, flushing and headache. It is FDA approved for low sexual desire in premenopausal women. Vyleesi should not be used in patients with uncontrolled hypertension, or those at high risk for cardiovascular disease. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-new-treatment-hypoactive-sexual-desire-disorder-premenopausal-women
The most recent cost for 4 auto-injections of Vyleesi was $879.00. There are no generic variants available.
Viagra (Sildenafil)
Viagra is not FDA approved for use in women, although some providers will subscribe it off-label. Viagra does not treat low desire. It works by increasing blood flow. Blood flow is important to vaginal and clitoral responses , and Viagra may increase sensitivity and stimulation in some patients. That means that Viagra may help some patients with arousal disorders. Potential side effects include headache, nasal congestion, nausea, flushing and visual disturbances. Patients who use nitroglycerin containing medications are strictly forbidden to use Viagra because of the risk of profound hypotension.
Sildenafil is available as a generic medication, and as such, can be obtained for as little as $9.00 per pill. Viagra is taken on an as-needed-basis, but not more than once per day.
Potential Natural Solutions
Low intensity shockwaves (radial waves) have recently gathered popular support in multiple areas of medicine. Acoustic waves work by helping to clear blood vessels, and also encouraging the release of growth factors at a cellular level. These processes help attract stem cells, encourage new blood vessel formation, and attract stem cells. Most recently this innovative technology has been used to treat women with sexual complaints. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S174360952031050X
The HerWave allows patients to benefit from radial wave therapy in the privacy of their own home. There are no doctor’s appointments, no prescriptions needed, and all of our products come with a full money-back guarantee. The HerWave is a registered medical device designed by a urologist, that is safe, and based upon technology that has gained widespread approval in multiple medical fields. HerWave is surprisingly affordable. The treatments are easy and discrete. We recommend treatments twice per week for 15 minutes. Although you may notice improvements right away, we recommend six weeks of therapy. If you need more treatments, don’t worry! You own your own device, and can safely administer treatments again, after a 3 week recovery period.