Vibrators: Can They Dull Sensation?

I’d like to try a vibrator, but part of me worries that it’s “unnatural” stimulation and could create dependency.

You might have written to the wrong people, or maybe the right ones? Sure, we could seem biased, which tells us either you really trust us or secretly hope we’ll say yes. Truth is, running a store full of sex toys - or, as we prefer to call them, pleasure toys (note that for later) - we’ve spent some time thinking about this question. It turns out it’s a very common, deeply rooted fear.

Let’s start here: the idea that “real” pleasure should be natural, while technological pleasure is somehow fake, is cultural. A story written over centuries by morality, medicine, and the media, framing the body, especially the female body, as something to regulate, not explore. We wouldn’t think that driving a car isn’t a natural movement, or that using exercise machines is somehow a problem.

Nature isn’t rigid: the clitoris is made for pleasure. And if vibrations can help celebrate it even more, then hooray for the alliance between biology and a rechargeable battery. The key is not relying on just one way to experience pleasure, or linking it to a single sensation. Exploring different types of stimulation (and yes, there are non-vibrating toys too!) helps us discover the enormous potential for pleasure in our bodies. Research shows that the vast majority of people who use vibrators experience no side effects, and when they do (slight numbness or irritation) they’re minor and temporary. Intense pleasure is not a drug; it’s an experience!

Here’s the main point: a vibrator can make orgasms come more easily, which might make us forget that pleasure isn’t a race. The risk isn’t dependency: it’s impatience. The solution? Shift your focus. Don’t aim for orgasm as the finish line; aim for pleasure as the journey.

In the end, a vibrator isn’t an intruder, it’s a companion. And if it opens up new perspectives on sexual autonomy and the right to explore yourself without shame, then yes, it’s a “natural” stimulation: the kind that comes from curiosity.

Every month, we answer a question about sexuality in the Florentine magazine Lungarno. Write to us at info@laclit.com or DM us on Instagram to send your question!

Dolci curve, (Firenze, colli fiorentini) di Benedetta Micheli
Sweet curves,
(Firenze, Tuscan hills)
Benedetta Micheli