An Australian study confirms what I’ve seen clinically in my practice:  Men that chronically smoke pot can have sexual problems over time, including delayed or premature ejaculation.  Researcher Anthony Smith reported that some men seemed to be self-medicating to help retard ejaculation.

But since marijuana seems to have unpredictable effects, it’s probably not the best drug of choice.  Chronic marijuana use–usually defined as smoking pot 4 or more times a week–can affect a man’s sex drive and his ability to have an erection.  Some percentage of women that call my office about their partner’s lack of interest in sex actually have a partner that smokes pot–not just a few times a week but a few times a day.

With problems like marijuana addiction there is always a chicken-and-the-egg question of which came first, the sexual concern or the drug / alcohol escape mechanism.  In my experience, sometimes there is a lack of sexual knowledge, difficulties with self-esteem, or relationship / attachment problems that interfere with having a good sexual relationship with one’s partner.  Smoking marijuana or using other drugs can help a person deflect, rather reflect, on issues that consequently never get resolved.

Marijuana is a drug like any other.  It’s easy to minimize its effects, which actually seems to be part of the addiction.  Marijuana causes a myriad of changes.  If you’ve ever seen a SPECT scan of a pot smoker’s brain, you’ll see that the blood flow in the brain is really crummy.  And, it takes longer for pot to get out of the brain than almost any other drug.

So the next time you or your partner say, “Well, it’s just pot,” think again, especially when it comes to sexual health and relationship issues.

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