Aphrodite - 'foam born' - Greek goddess of love was believed to have emerged from the waves of the sea, bringing sexual exhilaration as her special gift to humans. Her cult still persists today in our old-new fervent search for aphrodisiacs - specific sexual stimulants. Folklore abounds with tales of these pursuits by alchemists, shamans, magicians and witchdoctors. Frequently these special love potions were sought for administration to a desired maiden so that she might be irresistably drawn to the desirous lover. Ingredients of the aphrodisiac may have included desiccated sharks' fin, rhinocerous' horn, mandrake root, or miscellaneous unknowns.
The sexual effect of the ingested draught depended then, as now, heavily upon the suggestibility of the subjects and the prestige of the potion-peddler. Anecdotes of success abound in legends as well as in today's magazines. How much of the claimed aphrodisiac effect was due to the possible pharmacological effect of the actual content has become the task of researchers of the 1970s.
Today, new myths have arisen around alleged unique sexual ecstasy with certain youth culture drugs. Scientific research in this area is virtually nil. Since expectation is so important an aspect of personal experience, such claims of sexual help must be refuted or repeated in objective studies in order to be of value to the medical community. Therefore, any intervention whether (a) giving suggestions, (b) a pill, (c) doing research with observation/questionnaires/laboratory tests (blood, urine and other) each needs careful documentation as a sexually therapeutic factor in, and of, itself.
Powerful placebo effects will operate and these need to be considered and evaluated, usually by double-blind studies. However, in sexual response research, double-blind studies will find it hard to evaluate 'anticipatory adrenalization' due either to: (a) excitement (pleasure) about being observed, which in itself could be sexually arousing, regardless of the age and sex of the researcher who may be present, or even known to be secluded; (b) inhibitory anxiety about being heard or observed during sex, which could be a counter-erotic factor and may indeed cause female impotence, and (c) transient placebo effect (30%) due to any intervention in suggestible persons.
The brain and mind are of far greater sexual importance than the penis or clitoris. Enhancement of sexual feelings may be gained by tactile sensual contact (petting); pleasant sounds (sweet music, loving words); visually attractive persons and a comfortable open attitude toward sexual enjoyment. Sexual arousal may frequently be inhibited by many non-sexual stimuli: noise; visual distraction; fatigue; anger; anxiety;shame; inhibition;depression; deliberate control and disassociation of sexual feelings. These are the important factors to explore when sex therapy is done with a couple.
When there are female impotence, can medications help? Accurately used, the term pharmacotherapy might include both self-prescribed as well as physician-prescribed chemicals. So called aphrodisiacs and medications that have been used to assist women enhance sexual enjoyment or overcome sexual difficulties, include: (1) alcohol; (2) hormones; (3) stimulants; (4) antidepressants; (5) tranquilizers; (6) hypnotics and sedatives; (7) lithium; (8) L-dopa and PCPA; (9) street drugs - marijuana, psycho-delics, narcotics; (10) bromocryptine; (11) miscellaneous - perfumes, placebos, etc.
Common female impotence are: (A) No sexual desire (parasympathetic and higher brain centers involved); (B) anorgasmia - primary or secondary (sympathetic and higher centers involved); (C) dyspareunia (local or higher centers involved), and (D) vaginismus (local or higher centers involved).