When I talk to my heterosexual friends about orgasms, they often go straight to dildos: the different types, speeds, and textures. They rarely mention their male partners. And I don’t think there’s much of a secret there.

However, if you try to talk about sexuality or pleasure with Latinas, the silence and discomfort can feel deafening. Latinas have been raised under the “Madonna Whore” complex, which Freud described as men being unable to see women as anything other than one of those two. Latinas are either saints or whores, but we are always “for” someone else. Never for ourselves.

In fact, this thinking runs so deep in our culture that exploring pleasure as a health issue can feel unheard of. OBGYNs are for pregnancies. Little else. But no one has told us that orgasms can help with pain relief, better sleep, enhanced immune function, heart health, reduced stress, and even improved pelvic floor health, supporting bladder control and overall reproductive and sexual health.

That’s why, when I bring up the subject as the good lesbian tía that I am, the scandal of indecency makes everyone look the other way, without even thinking about the importance of pleasure for health. And when I ask them if they know there are more than ten types of female orgasms, they look at me with a mixture of amazement, embarrassment, and curiosity that confirms my hypothesis.

So maybe it’s best to start there and explain the types of orgasms women can have. After all, Valentine’s Day is this weekend. Maybe curiosity will pique enough that some people will want to explore a little more.

First, a quick reality check about “types”

The science makes one thing clear: researchers still debate how to classify orgasms, and women’s experiences don’t always fit into neat boxes. In a University of Zurich mixed-methods study, some participants could clearly differentiate orgasmic experiences, while many could not. And some felt unsure whether what they experienced “counted” as an orgasm. Still, women described a wide range of orgasmic experiences beyond the usual clitoral versus vaginal framing, which is exactly why that binary falls short.

Other platforms echo that uncertainty from a research perspective, noting disagreement among sex researchers about classification and cautioning that evidence is limited for the claim that different stimuli reliably produce distinct “types” under experimental conditions.

With that in mind, here’s a consolidated list of orgasm types I think everyone should know.

The types of female orgasms

1) Clitoral orgasm

Clitoral stimulation is “probably the easiest way for most people to experience an orgasm.” Many women report needing clitoral stimulation for orgasm during heterosexual sex, or that it improves orgasms.

Researchers describe clitoral orgasms as “localized, sharp, bursting, and short-lasting.”

The Zurich study adds an experiential layer: when women rated clitoral orgasms, they were described as “sharper, easier, and more controllable.”

2) Vaginal orgasm

A vaginally stimulated orgasm is one that occurs through intentional stimulation of only the vagina. This is oftentimes considered one of the hardest ones to achieve. In fact, in the U.S., fewer than 1 in 5 women report orgasming through vaginal stimulation without clitoral stimulation.

The Zurich study’s participants, when rating vaginal orgasms, described them as “wilder, deeper, more pulsating, and extending.”

3) G-spot orgasm

Sexologist and sex counsellor Alice Child describes G-spot orgasms as a type of internal vaginal orgasm linked to stimulation of the upper wall of the vagina, and notes that this stimulation can feel intense for some people. She also notes it may trigger squirting or female ejaculation, which she frames as a “peak pleasure experience” that is not always an orgasm, but it’s heaven for those who have experienced it.

Vaginal orgasm is connected to the elusive (for men) G spot, that corrugated region roughly located a few inches inside the vagina on the upper wall.

4) Cervical orgasm

The Zurich qualitative findings list cervical orgasms among the orgasmic experiences women described.

Alice Child includes cervix orgasms, describing them as “very powerful and intense” internal orgasms, while also noting many people associate the cervix with pain due to accidental deep contact. She explicitly reminds readers that sex should never be painful and to listen to the body and slow down.

5) Blended orgasm

Zurich participants described “mixed clitoral and vaginal orgasms” among the range of experiences women reported.

Alice Child defines blended orgasms as orgasmic energy coming from stimulation in two or more erogenous zones, giving examples like penetrative sex with external clitoral stimulation, or penetrative sex with an anal plug.

6) Anal orgasm

The Zurich qualitative findings explicitly include anal orgasms among the experiences women described.

While there is less research on orgasms caused by stimulation of non genital body parts, some studies have found that the anus is among the body parts from which women experience pleasure. And a few of my friends confirm this.

Alice Child also includes anal orgasms, describing the anus as a sensitive erogenous zone both externally and internally, and describes anal orgasms as potentially powerful and full-bodied.

7) Whole body or full-bodied orgasm

The Zurich qualitative findings include “whole body” orgasms among the experiences women described, and notes that uncertainty sometimes appeared in how women interpreted or labeled their experiences.

Alice Child includes “full-bodied orgasms,” framing them as possible when the whole body becomes part of arousal and stimulation, and emphasizes exploring beyond genitals, with attention to breath, movement, sound, and deep breathing.

8) Mental orgasm

The Zurich qualitative findings include “mental orgasms” as part of the range of experiences women described. Some women describe it as “pleasure without being touched,” using only your imagination. Talk about mental power.

9) Nipple orgasm

Some research lists nipples and breasts among non genital body parts that some studies suggest can lead to orgasm.

Alice Child includes “nipple gasms,” describing nipple stimulation as potentially orgasmic for some people.

10) Sleep orgasm

Many people experience sexual arousal or orgasm during sleep, which explains that researchers have difficulty pinning down exactly how it happens, since dream reports can be unreliable, and studies have not fully isolated factors like unconscious stimulation during sleep.

Alice Child also includes orgasms in sleep, describing them as common for women and people with vulvas and noting they can happen without touch, sometimes due to dreams or fantasies, sometimes not.

11) Exercise-induced orgasm (coregasm)

For those who love sport, let me inform you that exercise, especially weight training, cardio, and abdominal-focused exercise, can induce orgasms, sometimes called coregasms.

Alice Child includes “core gasms,” describing them as orgasms that happen during exercise, particularly through core and glute exercises.

12) Breathgasm or energetic orgasm

Alice Child includes “breath gasms” or energetic orgasms, describing them as orgasms that some people can build toward without touch, using breath, movement, imagination, fantasy, and mindfulness, and notes this can also be a form of tantric sex. I would say this is also a mental orgasm, but several sources insist on separating them.

13) Multiple orgasms

Alice Child includes multiple orgasms, defining them as having more than one orgasm one after another, and notes that men can achieve these too with practice.

Others call them “blended” and describe the mechanism as simultaneous stimulation.

The part nobody tells us: many women can’t neatly label what they feel

I know. This might sound like homework more than pleasure. And there’s an explanation for that.

In the Zurich study, when asked directly, a portion of women said they could not differentiate between orgasmic experiences, and qualitative accounts showed that in many responses, differentiation was not clearly visible. Some women reported uncertainty about whether they experienced different kinds of orgasms, and some expressed uncertainty about whether what they experienced counted as a “proper” orgasm.

However, one can only experiment, right?

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