The first time María (not her real name) had an orgasm was when she was 43. And it wasn’t with just any partner, but with a clitoral sucker. At that time, she had already been with her husband for years and had two children: “At first, I thought it was normal not to have an orgasm, that it was more difficult for women, and I came to think that that was the pleasure we feel for a few moments. When I purchased the vacuum device, I discovered that this was not the case.
This discovery took place three years ago and was motivated by boom of a very specific type of sex toy: suction cups which, for the first time, offered pleasure through an object which had neither a phallic shape nor was designed to penetrate, but rather to stimulate the clitoris. They did this using new sonic wave technology, now a decade old. Their popularity made these toys a social phenomenon that helped break the taboo of female masturbation, bring women closer to their pleasure and bring the clitoris out of the closet.
“Ten years ago, I didn’t sell a single one.” The saleswoman (and sexologist) from an erotic store in a large Spanish city speaks. In a decade, she says, clitoral suckers went from being an outsider in her sales repertoire to becoming a “commodity.” “It took me about two years to start selling it. People didn’t see it clearly, because when you try it in your hand you barely notice anything, and because in the social imagination a sex toy was something that penetrated,” he says. When suckers started becoming popular on social media and word of mouth spread, the boom.
“It took me about two years to start selling it. People couldn’t see it clearly, because when you try it in your hand you hardly notice anything, and because in the social imagination, a sex toy was something that penetrated,” explains an erotica store clerk. When suckers started becoming popular on social media and word of mouth spread, the “boom” began.
The first brand to market a suction cup was Womanizer. The company bought the patent filed by Michael and Brigitte Lenke who, a few years earlier, had undertaken to create technology guaranteeing orgasm to anyone with a clitoris. Her Pleasure Air Technology It consists of generating air waves that stimulate all the nerve endings of the clitoris without even needing to touch its most external part, the hood. Later, other brands applied similar technologies to create their suction cups. This was the case of Satisfyingthe brand that has achieved the most popularity.
“We detected a significant gap in the market for products designed to increase women’s sexual pleasure through direct stimulation of the clitoris. Suction technology was born from the desire to create a contactless experience mimicking oral sex, by stimulating the clitoris with pulsations of air rather than direct vibrations.
We detected a significant gap in the market for products designed to increase women’s sexual pleasure through direct stimulation of the clitoris. Suction technology was born from the desire to create a contactless experience mimicking oral sex, by stimulating the clitoris with pulsations of air rather than direct vibrations.
Elisabeth Neumann
— Womanizer Product Manager
This approach has made stimulation more precise, gentler and deeply pleasurable for many women,” the product manager of WomanizerElizabeth Neumann. The brand launched its first suction cup in 2014 and, since then, has expanded its offerings to include technological updates and new features. Currently, he points out, they have nine models on the market and suction cups represent “the majority” of their sales and revenue.
Open the conversation
Yania Concepción Vicente, psychotherapist and sex educator, is convinced that sucking has opened a new conversation about pleasure and helped to overturn the idea that “orgasm is in the vagina.” “By opening this conversation about the fact that we have an organ designed solely for our pleasure and that we can also enjoy it alone, through sexology we have been able to help many women learn more about their sexuality and see this private part as something powerful, something that belongs Although taboos and modesty remain “in self-exploration,” Concepción notes that many women now talk naturally about something that was previously rare. now the protagonist.
Yania Concepción Vicente, psychotherapist and sex educator, is convinced that sucking has opened a new conversation about pleasure and helped to overturn the idea that “orgasm is in the vagina.”
In her workshops, sexologist Pitu Aparicio saw this shift in the conversation about masturbation and the clitoris: “Sucking gave visibility and space to eliminate the shame that existed before. Now there are women drinking beers or attending family meals and talking about masturbation, what they like or don’t like, or considering giving a friend a sex toy store. . In these workshops there are women who share the amazement of their first orgasms alone after years of being a couple and the stories of others who talk about the skepticism of their boyfriends or those who introduce them into their relationships as an element which adds excitement and fun. also appear.
Lelo is another of the brands that opted for erotic toys in 2004, at a time when “sexuality and female pleasure were very taboo subjects in society,” recalls Adriana di Ipolito, spokesperson for the brand. Since 2019, however, they have noted “an exponential evolution” linked to the boom suckers. “From that point on, many barriers were broken down, normalizing conversations, bringing value and information about sex education and self-knowledge that had been virtually non-existent until now, and opening new doors so that sexual well-being can occupy a relevant place. place in the lives of women and in public opinion, without shame or taboos,” says Di Ipolito. Over the past decade, its four best-selling products have been suckers.
Doubts and certainties
How does the technology behind cupping work? Pitu Aparicio explains that the name of the toy can be confusing, because they do not suck in but expel the air, “these very frequent waves generate the effect that you are being sucked in, as if your hood is moving back, but in reality it is is that the air makes your clitoris swell faster.
Experiences with suckers are varied. There are those who talk about it as a turning point in their sex life or in their self-knowledge. “It helped me explore sexual pleasure more deeply through the clitoris and have faster, more intense orgasms,” says Ana, who says partnered orgasms were difficult for her and she didn’t masturbate not usually either: “It was thanks to the use of such a product that I began to know my body better in the sexual sense. She was 34 years old and it was the first time she had an orgasm But there are also those who, after trying them, prefer other types of toys “It didn’t really convince me,” says Loles, the stimulation of the nozzle is too intense, even annoying: “I’ll stick to my vibrator.”
Sexologist Pitu Aparicio emphasizes that it is essential to understand that there are different arousal processes and that it is not realistic to hope to achieve orgasms in the same way and in the same time with a cocksucker as you do. with a partner. Let’s bet, yes, not to feel guilty because something is used for pleasure and enjoyment
“Many women who are particularly sensitive to clitoral stimulation do not like or cannot use a suction cup because the power is too strong or there are people who prefer the hand because it gives them the rhythm they can maintain. But there are also those who like to use it during penetration of their vagina or anus, or do stimulation only of the clitoris directly with different powers, or double penetration plus clitoral stimulation… There is everything and everything is valid, the good thing is that “all people with a clitoris know each other,” explains sexologist Yania Concepción Vicente.
The use of suction devices has also given rise to certain doubts and fears. Do they cause the clitoris to lose sensitivity? Can they generate a certain dependence? and other similar questions have made their way among friend groups, sexologists and social media accounts. “It can create a certain dependence because of the power they have,” explains Yania Concepción, which is why she invites people to explore different stimuli – hand, mouth, different toys – so as not to become desensitized. Women come to your consultation worried because they can’t reach orgasm without cupping or because they are conditioned that if they don’t have toys, they won’t be able to reach one. Varying the stimuli and recognizing different types of pleasure are part of the exercises that the expert “prescribes”.
Pitu Aparicio believes that it all depends on how many times these toys are used. “If you only masturbate this way, you will notice that it may be difficult for you to reach orgasm later because the stimulation from your partner’s tongue or hand or your own has not this intensity.” The sexologist emphasizes that it is essential to understand that there are different arousal processes and that it is unrealistic to hope to achieve orgasms in the same way and in the same time with a cocksucker as with a partner:
“We are looking for the same sex that we have when we masturbate, with the same impulse and the same speed and that cannot be the case.” Aparicio of course undertakes not to feel guilty because something serves pleasure and enjoyment. “I would take that into account more, just like during the week you’re trying to measure not eating the same thing all the time, do the same thing here,” he adds.
As in other areas – menopause, endometriosis, vaccines and menstrual cycle… – studies on women’s bodies are lacking. The Lelo brand, which began marketing suction cups at the end of 2017, was the first to commission medical research to analyze the impact of these toys, in particular one of its models.
“These women, who had never used a toy, were asked to use it frequently for three months (2 or 3 times a week) in order to study whether there were indeed any effects and what were- them, positive or negative. In summary, and above all, no anatomical changes were observed in the physiognomy of the clitoris, sexual desire and response as a couple increased, as well as the intensity of the orgasm,” explains Adriana di Ipolito. The sample consisted of 101 women. Di Ipolito emphasizes that while each person may have a different experience, there is a basis for demolishing “myths and false beliefs.”
