This story is from the fall 2025 issue of VICE magazine, THE BE QUIET AND DRIVE ISSUE, a Deftones special. It has now sold out—but you can subscribe to get 4 print issues of the mag each year here.
It’s one of those eternal questions, right up there with “Is there a God?” and “What’s my fucking problem?” To get answers, VICE went to Birna Gustafsson, a university instructor on sexuality in clinical practice in NYC.
Cocaine
Birna Gustafsson: It lowers your inhibitions, but it can also numb you, both emotionally and in your genitals, as it’s a vasoconstrictor. People usually think that means just penis dysfunction but vulvas have erectile tissue, too.
Crack
You’re gonna hear me say this over and over, but a little bit can make everything better. People doing crack tend to have more extreme sensations and moodswings: they might suddenly be super into impact play or something they haven’t liked before, then moments later want to crawl out of their own skin. Also, the high’s so quick, the comedown can start before your sex is done. It would suck to go from that euphoric sensation to extreme aggravation while getting pounded.
Ecstasy
It increases the feeling of wanting to be touched, or engage in a really long makeout session, but doesn’t necessarily make you horny for penetrative sex. It usually causes problems with erectile function, but it’s not much of an issue because the other stuff feels so good.
Ketamine
If you’re the type of person who wants to get fisted in the ass, ketamine is fantastic. It’s an anesthetic that can make you incredibly horny and helps relax the smooth muscles, like the inner sphincter, so it’s used by a lot of people who enjoy receiving anal. On the other hand, it leaves you more susceptible to injury because you won’t have any control. For me, it’s not worth it, because the threshold between an enjoyable experience and a K-hole is so minimal.
Meth
Meth is the perfect cocktail: It increases your sexual desire and removes your inhibitions—like, you’re down for whatever—and then boosts your pleasure reception by flooding your brain with dopamine. Dopamine isn’t just about feeling good; it’s also responsible for wanting. Often, people don’t want to have sex anymore because they already had an orgasm. Meth floods your brain so much you’ll keep wanting more. For people who are into really long marathon sessions, meth is an incredible thing to be on during sex.
VICE: I sense there’s a ‘but.’
Birna Gustafsson: With frequent long-term use, it’ll reduce your sexual satisfaction and you can develop anhedonia [a medically diagnosed inability to enjoy anything about life], which will fuck up your sex life potentially for years after you get clean.
Heroin
It’s more of a cozy, warm feeling—people say heroin feels similar to having just had an orgasm, so you’re less likely to seek out sex. Also, it’s an opiate, so if you are having sex, you’re maybe not going to know if you’re being hurt.
LSD
Being able to relax makes some people extremely horny. For others, something stimulating makes them extremely horny. Psychedelics do both, so they can make people extremely horny—but in a way where they’re not connected to their body or sense of self, necessarily. It’s a great erotic experience, but are you having sex on it? That’s a different story.
Mushrooms
There’s a sweet spot: a little bit can give you really intense full-body orgasms. But it impairs judgment. If you’re going to have sex on mushrooms, wait until after the psychedelic peak.
Weed
Weed can make you really great in bed. It can increase your stamina and focus and make you a little more creative, too. People tend to take their time more. But if you’re doing a larger dose, people say they get so high they feel like they’re “breathing on manual mode,” or they’re like, ‘Am I peeing myself?’ That’s obviously not a state you want to have sex in.
GHB
I do not recommend it for sex. It can make you super horny, but also really aggressive. The threshold is the danger factor, because a millilitre can be the difference between you being like, ‘I love this. I’m horny,’ and lying on the ground, unconscious. It’s not worth it.
VICE: Okay, so what’s actually the best?
Birna Gustafsson: I would honestly say it’s a tie between cannabis and MDMA. And I think the third runner-up would be mushrooms.
This story is from the fall 2025 issue of VICE magazine, THE BE QUIET AND DRIVE ISSUE, a Deftones special. It has now sold out—but you can subscribe to get 4 print issues of the mag each year here.
The post What’s the Best Drug for Sex? appeared first on VICE.
