What is Consent?
To navigate consent when using cannabis, we first need to understand the nuances of consent and what it entails. Therefore, there are a few definitions that should be recognized:
Consent is...
- Informed. Consent is an affirmative, unambiguous, conscious agreement by each person to engage in sexual activity. Everyone engaging in the sexual activity has full knowledge and understanding of what the sexual activity entails.
- Voluntary. Consent involves positive cooperation and must be freely given. It cannot be given if there is force, threats, menace, duress, or where a person’s free will has been compromised.
- Revocable. Sexual activity may begin as consensual. But, once someone says “no”, says they are uncomfortable, pulls away, or any other verbal or physical indication that they want the sexual activity to stop, consent has been revoked. Anything following the withdrawal of consent becomes sexual assault, regardless of the relationship between the people involved.
- Ongoing. Consent to one activity does not imply consent to another. Consent must be established before a different activity begins.
Consent is NOT POSSIBLE when someone is...
- Incapacitated. This means that a person is unable to care for themselves, which could be due to drugs or alcohol. Just to be clear, having drunk sex is not a crime. However, when someone’s ability to take care of themselves has been severely impacted due to drugs or alcohol, they are unable to give consent. If someone is incapacitated due to drugs or alcohol, they may be in and out of consciousness, unable to stand or walk, vomiting, slurring their words, or unable to communicate properly.
- Underage. The legal age of consent in California is 18 years old. Even if someone under the age of the 18 agrees to engage in sexual activity, they are legally unable to give consent – it is still sexual assault.
- Unconscious. If someone is passed out, asleep, or otherwise unconscious, consent cannot be given.
Sexual activity without consent is sexual assault!
*For more information on what consent means, check out Let’s Talk About It! A Guide to Consent and Sexcessful Communication.
How Cannabis Can Affect the Body During Sexual Activity
- Cannabis-use can potentially lead to a loss of motor skills, loss of consciousness, and mental confusion.
- Increases risk of engaging in risky sexual behaviors, such as, condomless sex.
- Increases risk of cognitive impairment, which decreases one’s chances of engaging in sexual consent.
Main Takeaways
- Communication regarding sexual activity needs to occur continuously both before and during cannabis use.
- While individuals may be more willing to use substances, like cannabis to increase sexual pleasure, this perceived benefit can potentially impede active consent communication. However, everyone reacts to cannabis differently. Studies that have found that cannabis can diminish one’s internal experiences and pleasure with sexual activity does not apply to everyone.
Resources
Willis, M., Marcantonio, T. L., & Jozkowski, K. N. (2021). Internal and external sexual consent during events that involved alcohol, cannabis, or both. Sexual Health (Online), 18(3), 260-268. https://doi.org/10.1071/SH21015
Hayaki, J., Anderson, B. J., & Stein, M. D. (2018). Dual use of alcohol and marijuana and condomless sex in young adult men and women: A within-subject day-level analysis. The American journal on addictions, 10.1111/ajad.12738. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.12738
https://adai.uw.edu/pubs/pdf/2017mj_sexualassault.pdf
https://shcs.ucdavis.edu/health-and-wellness/sexual-well-being/sexcessful-communication