Reclaiming Your Climax: A Guide to Deeper Understanding

Laurie Mintz, PhD, a sex therapist and author of Becoming Cliterate: Why Orgasm Equality Matters—and How to Get It, has spent her professional career assisting thousands of women who experience difficulty achieving orgasm with a partner. However, Mintz recently shared her own experience of losing the ability to climax, an event she describes as unexpected given her lifelong history of being orgasmic.

The loss of climax occurred despite the presence of sexual arousal and pleasure. Mintz reported that while she remained aroused and the sexual experiences were pleasurable, she would hit a plateau where the sensation fell flat, making it impossible to reach an orgasm regardless of the activity.

Mintz identified the cause of this change as the use of a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI). SSRIs are a class of medications commonly prescribed for depression and anxiety, but they are also known to cause sexual dysfunction as a side effect, including anorgasmia, which is the inability to reach orgasm.

To determine if the issue was situational or physiological, Mintz attempted to achieve orgasm through solo stimulation using a vibrator, but she remained unable to climax. This confirmed that the difficulty was not related to distraction, relationship conflict, or a lack of arousal.

Mintz noted that other potential factors were already managed. She has been married for 40 years and had been following a solid Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) regimen for nearly 10 years. She also reflected on her history, noting that the only previous period of difficulty with arousal or desire occurred 35 years ago after she became a mother, an experience that originally led her to pursue sex therapy.

In addressing the loss of climax, Mintz emphasized a shift in focus from the goal of orgasm to the experience of pleasure and connection. She and her husband followed the same professional guidance she provides to her clients: prioritizing sex and scheduling it, while focusing on the overall connection rather than the specific outcome of a climax.

This approach highlights a distinction between arousal and orgasm. Mintz observed that the sexual experience could still be rewarding and pleasurable even in the absence of a climax, suggesting that the pressure to achieve a specific physical result can sometimes overshadow the benefits of intimacy.

The experience serves as a case study in the complexities of sexual response. Mintz suggests that the objective for those facing similar challenges should not be limited to simply returning to a previous state of function.

The goal isn’t just to reclaim your climax, but to better understand it.

Women’s Health

By understanding the mechanisms of the climax and the factors that can inhibit it—such as medication—individuals may be better equipped to navigate changes in their sexual health without losing the capacity for pleasure and intimacy.