It turns out that many of my friends have enjoyed taking Viagra, either on its
own or in combination with other recreational drugs. If you are used to taking
illegal substances at the weekend, the prospect of popping something medically
approved shouldn't be very daunting.
My friends have a few cautionary tales, though. One says Viagra stops him from
sleeping properly. Another complains of a blue haze affecting his vision
whenever he takes it. And my friend Rahul once found it an embarrassing
inconvenience. 'I popped it one time and failed to get laid,' he tells me. 'I
walked back from the girl's house the next day, and the mere chaffing of my
boxer shots against my penis as I walked turned me on.'
If I am being offered Viagra, then there must be a large market for it on the
recreational scene. I decide to investigate.
Viagra was initially designed as a heart drug, but clinical trials showed it
was no more effective than cheaper medicines already on the market. When Pfizer
tried to abandon the trial, the male patients refused to stop taking it. It was
only then that the side effect that has made Viagra famous was discovered.
Dr Graham Jackson, a consultant cardiologist at Guy's hospital, was part of the
original research team when Pfizer developed Viagra. He explains that there are
actually three different drugs on the market: Viagra, Cialis and Levitra.
Levitra and Viagra work in about an hour and last around six hours, but Cialis
takes two hours to work and lasts up to 48 hours.
'There's a recreational circus going on with these drugs,' he says. 'You can
get Viagra from any cab driver now. Nothing much would happen if someone
without erectile dysfunction took Viagra, although they might think they feel
better, psychologically. But it would make a difference if you took it along
with other drugs. Cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy, alcohol, nicotine, crystal meth
- they all can cause erection problems. Viagra dilates the blood vessels and
allows blood to flow into the penis when these drugs are stopping it.'
Little is known about the effects of Viagra on women, and Dr Jackson thinks
results will never be proven clinically. Pfizer set up a female sexual
dysfunction unit a few years ago, comparing Viagra in women to a placebo, but
the study had to be stopped because 85 per cent of the women responded to the
placebo. It seems that even the very idea of Viagra is enough to make some
women aroused.
'There's no documented evidence of any major catastrophe with people taking
these drugs recreationally, but it's not the sort of thing that's reported,' he
says. I'm surprised when he tells me Viagra could even make certain illegal
drugs safer: 'Cocaine is a very dangerous drug because it causes coronary
arteries to shut down and can give you a massive heart attack. It's dreadful.
And in a funny way, Viagra can actually help a cocaine user, because it does
the opposite thing to the blood vessels.'
The danger with Viagra comes when users buy it online or from dealers instead
of going through a doctor. 'Men with erection problems and no cardiac symptoms
are cardiac patients until proved otherwise. They should get their drugs from a
doctor and be evaluated. But for most young people, taking Viagra won't do any
harm. Nothing much would happen.'
With this in mind, I think there can be no harm in trying it once. I've heard
that you can now get Viagra over the counter at Boots, but only if you are a
man aged between 30 and 65, and the idea of explaining myself to a pharmacist
is distinctly unappealing. Instead, I browse through my junk mailbox to see
what's on offer. All the junk mail directs me to the same single website: a
Canadian online pharmacy promising Viagra, Levitra and Cialis for upwards of $7
a tablet. Dr Jackson had warned of buying Viagra this way: you can never know
if the right ingredients are in the pills, and in what quantities.
My best option is to buy some from my friend Andy, a regular user who gets his
supply from a dealer he trusts. He is pleased to oblige, and produces a bulging
wrap of clingfilm containing at least 15 tablets. For a man who claims to have
taken Viagra 'only eight or nine' times, he has a very healthy supply. He
charges me a tenner for two chunky pills and sends me on my way with a wink.
When the big night arrives, I'm not really in the mood, and my boyfriend is
reluctant. He has never had any problem performing before, no matter what
substances he has taken, and he's worrying about what the extra encouragement
might do to him. I'm a little concerned about that, too - what if it does
nothing to me but turns him into a priapic pest all night?
We sit awkwardly on my sofa, waiting for the pills to take effect. After about
45 minutes, I'm feeling a little flushed. Boyfriend has gone a bit red in the
face, too. Dr Jackson mentioned this was a possible side effect, but I've
cranked the heating up in my flat, so maybe I'm just imagining things.
Boyfriend says he still feels nothing.
But 15 minutes later, I'm as red-faced as a clown, and certainly relaxed.
There's a comforting buzz going through me, even though my heart is racing.
Boyfriend looks up at me. 'I think it works,' he says. 'See what you think.'
And the evidence before me seems to suggest that it does - for him, at least. I
begin to notice a slight difference in myself, too - perhaps a heightened
sensitivity? I can't be sure.
After three hours of not being sure, we pass out, exhausted.
In the cold light of day, I wonder if I'll do Viagra again. It's not an
aphrodisiac. It doesn't make you more aroused; it just distributes blood around
your body in a certain way, and in my boyfriend's case, a particularly welcome
way. Dr Jackson isn't quite right when he says Viagra won't have any effect on
a healthy young man - my boyfriend certainly had some added exuberance - but
the difference is mechanical, rather than emotional.
It's the idea of Viagra that is powerful. The idea is enough for women to
become aroused even if they are taking a placebo pill. It's enough for my
friends to believe they can be porn stars for a night. But the truth of Viagra
is that it is a failed heart drug with an unusual side effect. It's a drug
manufactured for people that have syndromes and conditions. And that idea just
isn't sexy enough for me to want to take it again.
My boyfriend says never say never, though.
The Observer
