Women who want to talk about sex can’t do much better than Dr. Maureen Whelihan. An enlightening conversation with one of her 70-year-old patients led me to seek out the Wellington gynecologist and sex counselor.
That in turn led to an interview at a neighborhood Friendly’s, where I learned why the good doctor encourages many of her patients to keep a battery-operated toothbrush in their nightstand.
As one of three partners at the Center for Sexual Health and Education (www.bestsexualadvice.com), Maureen, 46, is always on the lookout for creative ways to enhance sex, and is a big proponent of thinking outside the box with fun and adventurous options.
But it was her husband, Cody Brown, who first suggested the dual use for battery-operated toothbrushes.
“He’s always buying all the fancy products for teeth,” she told me. “I guess as he was brushing his teeth one night he thought, ‘hmmmmm . . . I know where I’d like to try this.’
“So he says, ‘I got a little something, something for us to try,’ and shows me the Oral-B Pulsar toothbrush. He said, ‘now there’s a bristle side . . . but this other side, let me show you.’
“I’m like, ‘That’s fantastic! How much?’ ”
When Maureen discovered you can buy a three pack at Costco for around $10, she immediately got samples for her partners at the sexual health center.
“You gotta try this thing that Cody found,” she said. “Back of the bristle, see?”
Because the toothbrush has a similar frequency to a woman’s vibrator, Maureen now recommends it to many of her older gynecological patients.
“The older you get, the more intense the stimulation you need,” she said. “Nerve endings dull as you age, and also just the blood flow.”
Though charmed by Maureen’s outspoken views, I couldn’t help wondering if the young families having breakfast at nearby tables were wishing we’d gone elsewhere.
But, so be it.
“I ask all my patients if they’re having sex,” Maureen said with gusto. “Many of them just need permission to talk about the subject.”
True enough. The patient who told me about Maureen is also my friend, and she reported that’s exactly what happened to her. Though shocked and somewhat embarrassed by the doctor’s question, she was glad afterward.
“She helped me get in touch with something deep inside that I was told was bad,” my friend said. “She gave me permission to feel good about something I should have felt good about all along.
“When I left her office and got into my car, I cried. I cried because I realized it’s OK to have feelings of . . . wanting to masturbate. It’s OK to think about these things. She gave me permission.”
Women’s networks are far-reaching, so I wasn’t surprised when my friend said that Barbara, a friend her age from Boynton Beach - who accompanied her to the doctor and ran out and got the toothbrush as soon as she heard about it - would be willing to talk to me about it.
“It works,” Barbara told me when I asked why she liked it. “And I get satisfaction from it. Unfortunately my husband can’t do these things anymore.”
For Barbara, the toothbrush is preferable to other vibrators she’s tried. Maureen points out it’s handy to pack when you travel, but Barbara wasn’t concerned with that.
“The doctor says a woman should have an orgasm three times a week; I use it once a week,” she told me. “I really need this. I need it more now than I did when I was younger. I guess because I was so involved with my children back then, I was working, I was busy. I’m still busy, but now, now I find I need this.”
A quick look online shows that other innovative lovers have discovered the dual nature of pulsing toothbrushes. But so far the manufacturers don’t seem ready to capitalize on the possibilities.
“I called a manufacturer’s representative to ask for samples, because I had a talk planned to a group of doctors and I thought it’d be great PR for them,” Maureen told me. “The guy called me back and said, ‘Now, what kind of dentist are you?’ ”
When Maureen said she was a gynecologist and explained what she was recommending the toothbrush for, the rep started chuckling.
But he wasn’t about to send her any samples.