# Jamaica: The effects of ganja on sexual performance



## LdyLunatic (Apr 13, 2006)

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sidney McGill [/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Jamaica Gleamer 
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[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Wednesday 12 Apr 2006
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THE USE of marijuana (cannabis sativa) as an intoxicant is very much 
interwoven in the cultural fabric of Jamaican life. It is smoked 
initially as a socialising activity among the youth, a ceremonial rite 
and lifestyle habit among Rastafarians, a recreational activity for 
those who are part of the popular culture, and an antidepressant for 
those who feel that life has thrown them a curved ball.

So what is this sensation that gives you the vibes and makes you feel 
high? The feeling is a peaceful and sometimes euphoric state of mind. A 
feeling of 'irieness' begins approximately seven seconds after pulling 
hard on a spliff and deeply inhaling the drug, and may last two to four 
hours, depending on the potency and amount of marijuana you smoke. Too 
much can cause hallucination in some users. And, most importantly, your 
attitude, personality, expectations, fears, mood and the circumstance in 
which the drug is used determine how you interpret the experience - this 
could mean a positive or negative feeling.

SEXUAL PERFORMANCE AND MARIJUANA

The fear of making a mess of the sexual experience, especially for the 
young male, can be overwhelming. Performance anxiety has been the 
undisputed enemy of good sex. Inorgasmic sexual experiences in young 
Jamaican women, rapid ejaculations and erectile dysfunctions in young 
Jamaican men are common.

The insecure male visits his doctor for medicine that will hopefully 
reduce his anxiety and make him complete the sex act in a satisfactory 
manner. Some, who see the doctor's visit as an admission of failure, 
find other means to deal with their anxiety. Marijuana smoking is 
another option. There is widespread belief that marijuana is an 
aphrodisiac but little scientific research exists to confirm this.

One thing we do know is that marijuana enhances sexual desire and sexual 
pleasure but does not improve sexual performance. In other words, the 
sex act and the orgasmic experience may be more pleasurable but it does 
not cure inorgasmia, rapid ejaculation or erectile dysfunction. This 
makes sense if one looks at the range of experiences that the marijuana 
user may have - exaggeration of mood; greater subjective impact and 
emotional significance. Time seems slowed down, stretched out, he thinks 
more time has passed. Generally the user feels the experience to be 
nice, pleasant, enjoyable, fun, good, irie.

In regard to the potential negative effects, there is concern that the 
long-term use of marijuana may temporarily reduce sperm count in the 
male but will return to normal once marijuana consumption stops. In the 
West Indian Medical Journal, researchers, Simeon DT, Bain BC, Wyatt GE, 
LeFranc E, Ricketts H, Chambers CC, Tucker MB, from the University of 
the West Indies studied the "Characteristics of Jamaicans who smoke 
marijuana before sex and their risk status for sexually transmitted 
diseases (STD)". They found that more persons who smoked marijuana 
before sex had a history of STD than non-marijuana smokers; the 
difference was significant among men.


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