THC in the bedroom is gaining momentum in states where marijuana is recreationally legal. Women and couples in California and Colorado have been riding high on Foria Pleasure, the first cannabis-based lubricant for women. 

According to Brittany Confer, director of public relations and communications at Foria, the company was originally designed as a sexual wellness center, she said. Soon after, the company realized there were no female sexual enhancers, compared to the more than 26 FDA-approved sexual enhancers for men. This is when the company took an unexpected turn into cannabis-land. 

“Our mission is to increase pleasure and diminish pain in any natural way we can,” Confer said. “We stumbled into the cannabis industry and saw the incredible opportunity for sex and cannabis.” 

Confer said the company is challenging perceptions about marijuana’s psychoactive properties. The cannabis-coconut oil mix is THC-infused but does not produce the psychoactive effects, or “head high,” that people associate with marijuana. Confer said the spray gives stronger orgasms and helps with sexual dysfunctions. 

Foria began distributing the cannabis spray in Colorado—where recreational marijuana is legal—in January 2015. Organic Alternatives, a medical marijuana dispensary in Fort Collins, Colorado, was one of the first dispensaries to carry the spray, according to Maka Kalai, director of sales and marketing at Organic Alternatives. 

“We have a lot of people wondering, if it’s going to work or not,” Kalai said. 

Kalai said he believes THC-infused topicals like pain creams, oils and muscle rubs are more effective than over-the-counter products available at drug stores. 

“Something like those—that has THC-infused into a sensual lubricant—does the same things with muscles and nerves as far as pleasure-type products like Foria,” he said. 

The product is currently only sold in California and Colorado, but Confer said he hopes to expand its distribution nationwide as more states legalize recreational marijuana use. 

Marijuana dispensaries have only just begun opening in Illinois in 2015, where a pilot program for medical marijuana is being tested. 

“As the program is just getting underway, we don’t foresee products like that becoming available until more traditional products are in the market,” said Richard Park, retail consultant for Dispensary 33, a medical marijuana dispensary located at 5001 N. Clark St. 

“Absorption through the skin is a really inefficient way to get THC into your system, so we’re unsure if it’s novelty or [has] an actual value,” Park said, adding that the dispensary would sell similar products based on demand. 

Foria Pleasure is gaining in popularity, but Confer said she wants it to remain a luxury item to give women a sense of pride and worth for owning the product. 

“We want women to feel comfortable having this on their bedside table,” Confer said.