Female Pleasure — There’s an App for That
Women have fewer orgasms than men but technology may be able to help close the pleasure gap
--
Unfortunately, even when it comes to orgasms, inequality exists between the sexes. It’s called the orgasm gap.
Research shows that cisgender men experience orgasm during partnered sex up to 20 percent more often than cis women. There’s a handful of possible explanations: anatomy, education, stigma. Or as one study suggests, it could be the heteronormative fixation on ejaculation. But whatever the cause may be, the data shows again and again that women, regardless of sexual orientation, are having fewer orgasms than men and experiencing less female pleasure.
This orgasm gap is also commonly referred to as “The Pleasure Gap.” You can think of it as similar to the gender wage gap, but instead of making roughly 20 cents more on the dollar than women, men are having 20 percent more orgasms than their female partners. But it’s important to note that the Pleasure Gap doesn’t only affect hetero couples. I also want to acknowledge that while I will use gendered terms throughout this article, the orgasm gap also doesn’t only affect women but all people with vaginas.
To put it simply, the Pleasure Gap is more than just a byproduct of men struggling to find the clitoris. It is the result of various social, cultural and personal factors and because female sexuality and pleasure have been and continue to be heavily stigmatized, exploring and experiencing pleasure can be especially complicated for women.
Personally, I know I still have a long way to go on my sexual journey and as I’ve been following developments in the women’s health space over the last few years, I’ve become curious about how sexual wellness apps may be able to help me and women affected by the orgasm gap. To learn more, I connected with the founders of two sexual wellbeing apps to dig into how these platforms can help women become more sexually empowered and satisfied.
Wait, An App Can Help Improve My Sex Life?
While Hollywood may have you believing otherwise, many women or vagina owners have trouble climaxing. (Check out Annette Benedetti’s 365-Day Orgasm Challenge to…
