For sexual purposes, you might wonder why microdosing matters, and how to incorporate a microdosing practice into your sex and cannabis experience.

For a bit of background, I chatted with Dr. Nick Karas, a sexologist and creator of The Passionate High whose work revolves around education and coaching for clients. “Microdosing is one of the most important and often overlooked aspects of using cannabis to improve sexuality and intimacy,” says Karas. “Master your unique combination of strain, dosage and intention. Detach from the outcome and expectations and enjoy the journey.” In a sense, dosage is just another knob you can fiddle with in order to dial in on the perfect elevated sexual experience for you and/or your partner.

When to Use Cannabis Microdosing for Sex

Some scenarios that might benefit from microdosing include:

• Parents or caregivers who cannot commit the time to “being high” in case of interruptions, but still want to incorporate cannabis into their sex lives. Most parents I know can barely find time to use the restroom by themselves much less scrape together five minutes for sex, but having the flexibility of being able to take a small hit and spend even a few brief moments really being with one another (eye gazing, taking a couple of breaths together) can feel connective and start creating sparks to return to later.
• Folks who are new to cannabis or have a low tolerance, and have concerns about feeling out of control during sex. Having the freedom to try cannabis in a very safe and controlled way can help alleviate the worry about having effects that are too much in some way: too strong, too lengthy, and so on. Especially for new users, it’s helpful to employ the golden rule of edibles—start low, go slow—across the board. You can always consume more if the effects aren’t doing enough of what you want, but it’s hard to dial it back once you’ve gone further than you intended.
• Anyone who is prone to anxiety (which THC can cause or exacerbate at higher doses)—this can make it very difficult to experience pleasure!
• People who find that too much cannabis causes them to zone out or experience couch lock. Obviously these effects are not ideal for sex, so if certain products make you sleepy or lethargic at their suggested doses, it’s very possible that at a microdose level they will simply make you feel cuddly and intimate. Give it a try!

With all of that said, microdosing can be pleasurable for anyone! Try it out to see for yourself, here's how:

How to Microdose Cannabis for Sexual Pleasure

In the context of sex, what does microdosing look like? Andrew Mieure, owner of Top Shelf Budtending, suggests staying under 5mg and ideally under 2.5mg for microdosing. Admittedly, everyone’s tolerance is different, but the idea is to use such a small amount that you don’t notice psychoactive effects. At that point, you’re reaping benefits without the buzz—think subtle relaxation and almost-imperceptible heightening of your senses.

After microdosing, your body won’t feel like it’s the cannabis getting you in the mood, and yet that slightly heightened sensation and relaxation can go a long way. Meanwhile, you’ll be fully mentally present without any distracting cannabis-induced psychoactivity, allowing you to fully experience sensation for maximum satisfaction, connection, and pleasure.

Theoretically, any cannabis consumption method could be microdosed, although dabbing THC doesn’t lend itself particularly well to microdosing. If you chose to go that direction, you’d want to use an amount about the size of the head of a pin. I suggest sticking to smoking, vaping, or using tinctures for microdosing. Some edibles are also good for microdosing, like To Whom It May Chocolates or Nature Nurse’s Cocoa Cannabinoids, both of which are available in California and come in 2.5mg doses—just make sure you’re buying from a reputable company that actually batch tests the potency of its products.

Tinctures, I’ve found, are the easiest for microdosing. Medicine Box, another company in California, makes a series of whole-plant extracted oil tinctures (including one called Sensual Healing, designed for sexy times) that has 7mg THC per mL, which is a dropper full. Knowing that ratio, it’s easy to dial your tincture dose down to a fraction of that, even just a few drops, to test out microdosing.

Have you tried microdosing for sex? What was your experience like?

This article was first published on Leafly.com in 2017.