The Secret History of the Vibrator

At  Funtasia, we take pride in celebrating the history of the adult toy industry. That is why we offer such a wide variety of sex toys to suit everyone's unique sexual needs. One of the toys we hold nearest and dearest to our hearts is the vibrator.

One of the oldest sex toys, the vibrator has proved an integral part of countless people's sex lives. But who would guess that vibrators were originally a medical device relied upon by doctors for helping cure the prolific epidemic known ashysteria? 

That's right. You heard us. Vibrators were considered "medical devices."

Ancient History of Hysteria

Female hysteria has a  history that goes back to the time of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. Famous historical figures such as  Hippocrates and Plato called this female effecthysteria. They believed that the uterus wandered freely around the body, causing a host of mental and physical conditions. 

The  "roaming uteri" condition caused several ill effects from insomnia, depression, irritability, agitation, sexual forwardness, and even hallucinations. 

To  treat hysteria in ancient times, they would try to remedy this by:

• Rubbing honey on their vulva
• Chewing cloves of garlic
• Prescribing marriage
• Pushing on the woman's stomach
• Fumigations
• Hot or cold baths

Progressive Hysteria Treatments of the 18th and 19th Century

The  clinical catchall diagnosis of hysteria stuck around for centuries. There were even a few cases of male hysteria. 

There were even periods that a diagnosis of hysteria meant that demons possessed you. 

Over the years, as purity and restraint became the dominant culture, physicians wiped the female orgasm and even the existence of the clitoris from medical textbooks. 

There was no such thing as sexual desire for women; there was only fulfilling your husband's needs and reproducing. 

Marriage and having regular sex with a woman's husband was the highest recommended treatment for long-term hysteria. It was thought that it would force the uterus to purge built-up fluids and that the husband's semen would pass on healing properties. 

Female Paroxysm

In the early  20th century, women began seeking a type of massage from medical practitioners to cure their hysteria. These pelvic or vulva massages induce something called ahysterical paroxysm, which we now call an orgasm. However, the predominant medical knowledge of the time rejected the concept that women could experience an orgasm. Therefore, the pleasure received from the vulva massage wasn't possible in the minds of doctors. Instead, this clitoral stimulation was a  medical treatment. 

However, as literacy increased, so did the diagnoses of hysteria. Women would line up around the block to receive pelvic massages from doctors to relieve them of their symptoms. This is the time when need becomes the mother of invention.

Doctors experienced severe exhaustion and wrist pain from performing this harsh medical treatment to woman after woman. 

During the industrial revolution, two men turned to electricity to help solve their problems. 

The First Vibrators

One of the  first patented medical vibrators was created by American physician  George Taylor.The Manipulator patients would sit on a padded table with a hole cut out to reveal their lower abdomen. Through the hole, medical professionals could apply a vibrating sphere to massage the woman's genitals. 

These machines were bulky, expensive, and tend to have many parts break regularly.

Since the Manipulator was so large and relatively unpopular, physician  Joseph Mortimer Granville invented the first portable, battery-powered vibrator in the 1880s. The first model weighed over forty pounds and resembled the wand vibrators still popular to this day. 

Women found vibrators to be an affordable and effective tool for combating hysteria. Which, by now, most women had figured out that this medical diagnosis meant that she was pleasure deprived. 

By the 1900s, many models were regularly available, powered by foot pedals, water turbines, air pressure, electricity or even a gas engine.

These inventions began being featured for sale in ladies magazines, catalogues, and even newspapers, usually under the guise of being "massagers" much as they are marketed today. 

Disappearance and Reemergence of the Vibrator

In the 1920s, as film became a more popular form of media, pornographic films started sexually featuring medical vibrators. The use in "stag films" almost immediately made the use of vibrators socially unacceptable. Sexual conservatives removed them from popular magazines, and they all but disappeared off the market. 

Then in the 1970s, the famous  Betty Dodson began openly using vibrators as sexual aides in her masturbation workshops. Around this time is when  Hitachi introduced its Magic Wand, still one of the most popular vibrators. 

Vibrators in the Modern Day

Since the sexual revolution of the 1960's female pleasure has become socially normalised. So has the use of vibrators as sexual aids. Their super powerful pleasure-inducing vibrations make them a popular choice for anyone with a clitoris. 

There are now hundreds if not thousands of different vibrators designed to suit every person and need. 

Some of the most popular styles include:

• Classic Wand Styles such as the  Le Wand or  ROMP's Flip
• Bullet or Egg Styles like  Lelo's Lyla 2 or the  Voom! RC by Screaming O
• Rabbit Styles like  Vive's Izara or  Lelo's Soraya 2
• Sucking Vibrators such as  The Womanizer Premium or  Satisfyer Pro 2

So the next time someone calls youhysterical, you can reflect on thousands of years of female sexual repression that has led to the vibrator and its social acceptance. 

And each time you walk through  Funtasia's doors, you can laugh to yourself, remembering that you're looking at a piece of medical history.

Get out there, Get in there, and Get off there!

Elaine S. Turner

Sex Coach, Sexual Wellness Brand Consultant, and Sexuality educator

www.SexWithElaine.com

Elaine@SexWithElaine.com

Instagram:@SexWithElaine