Sexual intercourse can induce altered states of consciousness (ASC), similar to those experienced during meditation or after psychoactive substances. A study of 448 participants (303 women, 145 men) found that both trait absorption—a personality tendency to experience ASC—and sexual responsiveness independently predicted intensity of ASC dimensions (Unity, Spiritual Experience, Blissful State, Insightfulness) during sex. For women, experiencing vaginal orgasm (from intercourse without additional clitoral stimulation) was an additional independent predictor of ASC. Male orgasm related to ASC but not independently of other aspects of sexual responsiveness.
Self-forgetfulness, a facet of self-transcendence linked to altered states of consciousness, is associated with sexual desire and frequency. In 261 Portuguese adults, women's self-forgetfulness correlated with their desired frequency of intercourse and noncoital sex, while men's self-forgetfulness correlated with their actual frequency of those activities. These associations remained after controlling for openness to experience and relationship status.
Altered states of consciousness involving changes in the sense of self, time, and space are linked to sexual responsiveness. In a study of 116 subjects, greater body awareness and lesser awareness of time and space were associated with higher satisfaction, desire, arousal, and orgasm occurrence. For women, satisfaction, desire, and arousal were especially tied to reduced time awareness. Female orgasms during vaginal intercourse were related to greater body awareness and less time awareness, but orgasms from noncoital activities showed no such link. The findings suggest that attentional absorption during sex enhances sexual responsiveness, particularly in women, and to a lesser degree in men.