Female Viagra is not an actual drug name. The term "Female Viagra" is commonly used as a label for any medication aimed at treating female sexual dysfunctions. Addyi is the brand name of the first medication developed to increase arousal and enhance sexual pleasure in women. Sprout Pharmaceuticals created and introduced Addyi, which received FDA approval in 2015.
Drug Description
Active ingredient: flibanserin. Brand name: Addyi.
Flibanserin often is called Pink Female Viagra. Generic names include Fliban, Flibanserin.
Inactive ingredients: lactose monohydrate, hypromellose, microcrystalline cellulose, croscarmellose sodium, magnesium stearate, macrogol, talc, and the coloring agents (iron oxide and titanium dioxide).
Form: Oral tablets 100 mg of oval shape, pink and film-coated.
Storage: Store at temperature from 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F) in a dry place.
Indications to use
Flibanserin is a medicine assigned for:
- women of reproductive age (premenopausal women) with HSDD (hypoactive sexual desire disorder);
- those, whose low desire is not a result of bad relationships or unattractiveness of a partner to women;
- women, who have had a desire in a past but now have not;
- women, whose lack of desire is not caused by mental problems;
- those, who do not take any drugs suppressing libido.
To understand who is a candidate for using of “Female Viagra”, it is better first to get an idea what female sexual dysfunction is.
Female Sexual Disorders and Flibanserin
Let us agree of the terms.
- FSD (Female sexual dysfunction). It is a term covering a wide range of sexual disorders in women including HSDD, FSAD, anorgasmia, dyspareunia and some others (see the details below).
- HSDD (hypoactive sexual desire disorder) is a term related to lack of sexual desire both in male and female It is also sometimes called inhibited sexual desire (ISD). When it is related to women, you can also find a term “luck of sexual response”.
- FSAD (female sexual arousal disorder) is a branch of HSDD which deals with inability of a woman to reach a state of sexual arousal during sexual activity. It does not equate to a lack of desire and involves mostly physiological issues as not sufficient lubrication and “little genital sensations” (DSM-5).
- As women sexual functioning is interrelated with a psychological and emotional side of sexual act, in 2012 another formulation was suggested: Sexual Interest–Arousal Disorder.
- Anorgasmia is inability of a woman to rich a climax during sexual activities.
- Dyspareunia is a disorder when a woman experiences a pain during sexual intercourse.
Female Viagra (Addyi) is used to treat mainly 2, 3 and 4 of the above diseases that are related to luck of desire and sexual response, although number 4 is quite tricky as it involves both psychological and physical aspects. Flibanserin could not help stimulate sexual interest, if a disorder has social or emotional roots.
According to statistics based on targeted researches in US, about 10% of women have persistent problems with low desire and 40% experience HSDD occasionally. You are a candidate for therapy with Flibanserin, if you and your partner feel discomfort of your disorder.
Flibanserin does not treat anorgasmia and enhance sexual performance.
Symptoms of HSDD and FSAD
Symptoms of hypoactive sexual desire disorder or female sexual arousal disorder:
- Decreased interest to sex and sexuality (HSDD);
- Unwillingness to be involved in sexual activity (HSDD);
- Luck of physiological sensations in genitalia (HSDD, FSAD);
- Low pleasure during sex (HSDD, FSAD).
If you have more than one of the above symptoms recurrently, probably you have HSDD.
Who is Illegible for Use
Flibansering is not to use in:
- Postmenstrual women;
- Men;
- Children;
- Breastfeeding mothers;
- Women with mental disorders.
Dosages
Unlike male Viagra, Flibanserin is not a drug for occasional use. You have to take a course to achieve the effect. You should take 1 tablet (100 mg) every day at bedtime. Recommended length of the course is 8 weeks. If you have not any improvement of your symptoms after 8 weeks, it is better to stop treatment and have an advice of your doctor.
Missed dose: if you missed a dose, do not double your dose next time or take a missed dose at improper time. You are strongly recommended to take the medicine only at bedtime.
Overdose: in case of overdose you should see your doctor immediately.
Female Viagra: Does It Work?
It is the mostly asked question on Female Viagra. Yes, it works. Flibanserin, approved by FDA after clinical trials, improves sexual response by dampening serotonin and increasing neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine. Curiously, Female Viagra initially was developed as antidepressant but, then, it was noticed the drug contributes to sexual desire and arousal. Female sexuality differs from male sexuality and it is more connected to the nervous system than to genitalia. That is why Flibanserin aims to balance chemistry in brain.
Clinical Efficacy
The participants of the trials took a 100 mg dose of Flibanserin daily and registered their changes in a dairy including changes in desire and satisfying sexual events. The women, who received Flibanserin, have reported from 30 to 50% more satisfactory results of Addyi versus placebo.
Side Effects
The most common adverse reactions (equal or more of 2%):
- Dizziness,
- Somnolence,
- Nausea,
- Fatigue,
- Insomnia,
- Dry mouth.
Less common adverse reactions (1-2%):
- Anxiety,
- Constipation,
- Abdominal pain,
- Metrorrhagia,
- Rash,
- Sedation,
- Vertigo.
Among rare reactions are reported Hypotension, Syncope and CNS Depression.
Contraindications
Use with Alcohol
Female Viagra (Flibanserin) is strictly not recommended to use along with alcohol, as it could lead to Hypotension and Syncope.
Hepatic Impairment
The higher Flibanserin concentration is registered in patients with Hepatic Impairment, which could lead to higher risk of Hypotension and Syncope.
Precautions
Although Hypotension and Syncope are not reported among the common reactions to Female Viagra, you should take precautions to prevent their negative effects:
- Do not use Flibanserin together with alcohol;
- Do not take a drug in a morning or day time;
- Do not drive at least 6 hours after taking Flibanserin;
- Do not take Flibanserin with CYP3A4 inhibitors including herbal supplements and grapefruit;
- Do not take Flibanserin while receiving antidepressants.
In 2.7 % of women received Flibanserin during trials, accident injuries were reported, that in 21% were consistent with CNS Depression. It is not recommended to use Flibanserin during clinical depression.
Flibanserin: Does It Exist?
Generic drugs are medicines that have exactly the same formulation as the original brand drug but produced without registering a brand name and sold under the drug chemical name or under the name given by manufacturer. There are some controversies on generics mostly related to patent policy and promotional aspects.
Among the advantage of generic medicine are low prices and accessibility. Disadvantages highlighted by pharmaceutical giants, patents owners are comparative illegality, not proven quality of the drugs and luck of safety of generic drugs. Being far from intention to promote illegal business, we apply the word “comparative” to illegality due to the fact that there are 227 countries in the world and, often, what is illegal in one country may be legal in another; and what is legal inside the country can become illegal when exporting/ importing to/from another country. We do not want to open a debate here but just face you in front of the fact: there are entire huge territories of generic drugs in the world.
The most known internationally recognized manufacturer of generic Addyi (Fliban) is Centurion Laboratories, India. They export the drugs to many countries including Canada, Australia, UK and European Union. The quality of imported generic drug is usually controlled with Health Care of the importing country, although there are no specific regulations for people ordering drugs online for private use. So, if there are no local suppliers offering generic medicine in your own country, you can purchase Flibanserin online but take precautions to choose a trusted supplier.
Safety Tips
When you order generic Female Viagra online you should follow some rules for your own safety:
- Choose online pharmacy in a country with strict drug regulation, which will prevent you of fake medicine.
- Pay your attention on website quality of online shop, cheaters usually use chip ready-made website on suspicious hosting.
- Pay your attention on website content quality, trusted resources always provide their customers with much information and valuable content.
- Take care of the safety of your payment. You can use resources as PayPal to keep the data of your credit card.
Controversy
We hardly can remember any other drug produced so many argue and controversies. ‘Female Vigra’ Addyi promoters had launched so extensive advertizing campaign raging their opponents – who, in turns, attacked them with heavy artillery of blaming – that a topic of Pink Female Vigra (“a little pink pill’) had become an arena of heated debates lasting for months, involving Sprout Pharmaceuticals, FDA, scientists, social organizations and the media.
Every of major news sources contributed to the Flibanserin case including ABC, CNN, The Washington Post, the specialized source Medical News Today and others. Before Flibanserin was finally approved by PDA, there were two failed attempts. After the second, the two campaigns for women’s sexual health equity were started by projects Even the Score and Women Deserve.
The main argument of opponents of Female Viagra was numerous side effects of the drug, not compensated by evident efficacy. The counter argument was a discrimination of a women’s right for equal scope of women and men to the sexual care products. The slogan of the campaigns was “26-0” as PDA has approved 26 sexual health drugs for men and no one for women.
Finally, when Flibanserin had been approved, it immediately had turned extremely difficult to obtain. The drug was allowed only for distribution via specialized medical providers and pharmacies due to its serious incompatibility with alcohol. A woman, who has approved for Addyi treatment, signs an obligation not to take alcohol during the entire treatment.
Female Viagra reviews are still mixed till now, as almost everything related to female sexuality. Some find it non-effective but many women claim their desire improvement, new experiences and even say “Addyi has changed my life”. It is not a time to make a final conclusion right now, as it is less than two years since Flibaserin had entered the market. At least, the score between men’s and women’s medicines for sexual disorders now is 26-1. 1 is better than nothing.
Cultural Barriers
After two years, it is turned that many women do not want to try Flibanserin not out of fear of side effects but because of cultural prejudices. According to Huffington Post, Professor Sharon Parish, MD says that women may reject advised medicine as they do not wish to take a drug to improve their desire because they feel this wrong. As desire could not be a subject of treatment but an abstract substance. It requires time to change this preposition in women, who, even when bothered with their HSDD, resist treatment with medicine.
Interesting Facts
A new drug treating a lack of desire produces some inspired reports and even a video on Super Bowl Commercial.
Female Viagra and Vogue
In 2015 on the wave of excitement following the approval of Female Viagra by FDA there was a publication in the famous fashion magazine Vogue about one writer who took ,as it was written, Pink Female Viagra but, in fact, Addyi “for a spin”. In a context, it was possible to think that she intended to improve her writing performance in such a strange way. “Addyi aspires to the metaphysical”, it reads. Oh, really?
Indeed it was only an advertizing trick to attract attention of readers. There was not much about metaphysic, mostly about sensuousness. It was a kind of poem dedicated to chemistry, a dance of neurotransmitters ranged by Addyi in an order just right for pleasure. It was a story of awakening of woman’s nature. It seems as we become sentimental, don’t you find? You can read that story: after almost two years, it is in the top of Google search on “female Viagra”.
Female Viagra and Ben Stiller
Ben Stiller, a star of Zoolander2 have not unveiled what pushed him to make an Ad for the Super Bowl Commercial for Female Viagra, but we guess he had a curious experience. You see, Female Viagra inspires creativeness not only in women. Probably, it is a drug of a new generation and we will know something interesting soon.