Orgasmic meditation: Everything you need to know

Presence matters for orgasm. Mindfulness and meditation are well-studied tools for sharpening focus and heightening sensation during sex, and plenty of people already use some version of them.

You may have heard of one specific version: orgasmic meditation, or OM, a partnered practice built around consent-based touch. This article covers what OM is, where it came from, and what the research does and doesn't show.

If you want the benefits people describe without OM's commercial baggage, Mojo's Find Your Orgasm course, built by a sex therapist and an OB-GYN, takes a more evidence-rooted approach. We'll come back to that at the end.

What is orgasmic meditation?

Orgasmic meditation is a partnered practice: one person strokes the other's clitoris, usually for around 15 minutes, with attention on physical sensation rather than on reaching orgasm. People sometimes shorten the name to "OM" or call the act "OMing."

OM follows a fixed structure, with its own steps and vocabulary, taught by instructors trained in the technique. It's one specific, structured form of partnered meditation that uses sexual stimulation as the focus of attention, part of a broader idea: using presence and meditation to change how sex and orgasm feel (Newberg et al., 2024).

We're explaining what OM is because people search for a clear answer, and a lot of what's online either skips the history or treats the practice uncritically. We are not teaching the technique, walking you through how to do it, or pointing you toward where to learn it. Mojo is not affiliated with OneTaste, the Institute of OM Foundation, or any OM-branded product, and nothing here is a recommendation to seek them out. The reasons for that get clearer in the next few sections.

Where orgasmic meditation came from

Nicole Daedone created orgasmic meditation. She founded the company OneTaste in San Francisco in 2004 to teach it commercially (U.S. Department of Justice, 2026).

That's the origin story in its plainest form. What happened at OneTaste over the next two decades is the part that actually matters for anyone deciding whether to trust this practice, or the people who built it.

It's worth saying clearly here: OM is not the only mindfulness-based practice involving touch. Mindful masturbation, for example, is a similar idea applied to solo touch, with no company, technique, or founder behind it. We'll come back to that distinction later in this article.

The OneTaste conviction: what happened and when

In June 2025, a federal jury convicted OneTaste founder Nicole Daedone and former head of sales Rachel Cherwitz of forced labor conspiracy tied to the practice. Both were sentenced in March 2026, and the court ordered significant forfeiture and restitution to victims (U.S. Department of Justice, 2026). If you've heard OM called "a cult," this conviction is almost certainly the story behind that. Read the full DOJ press release for the case details.

Research at a glance: what the science actually shows

There are three studies particularly relevant to this question, and none of them shows that OM treats any condition. Read the caveats before the findings.

The first study used fMRI scans to look at brain connectivity in 20 pairs of experienced OM practitioners, and found changes in regions linked to meditation (Newberg et al., 2021). The participants had all practiced OM before, so the results may not apply to beginners. The study measured brain activity, not orgasm frequency, satisfaction, or any psychological outcome, and the authors called it exploratory themselves. The finding shows something measurable happens in the brain following OM, which is a long way from evidence that OM treats anything.

The second study looked at OM as a practice for people with PTSD symptoms and reported a large drop in self-reported symptom scores over four weeks, from an average of 60 to 28 on a standard scale (Kriegman et al., 2025). Read the fine print before you read too much into that number. The study had no control group. It was funded by, and designed at the request of, the Institute of OM Foundation, the nonprofit that grew out of OneTaste and now teaches the practice commercially. Three of the four authors were trained to teach OM themselves. A result like this could reflect the specific technique, or it could reflect attention, relationship support, or ordinary meditation, none of which are unique to OM. This is not evidence that OM treats, cures, or is a validated therapy for PTSD.

Does mindfulness itself have research support, separate from OM?

Yes. One randomized controlled trial found that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy improved sexual desire and arousal, and reduced sexual distress, in 148 women with sexual interest and arousal difficulties, with the gains still holding at 12 months (Brotto et al., 2021). About half the group received mindfulness-based therapy and half received supportive sex education. Both groups improved. The mindfulness group showed a bigger drop in distress specifically.

This trial is the evidence base worth paying attention to. It's independent, it's controlled, and it's about mindfulness broadly, not a proprietary technique sold by a company whose founder is now serving a federal prison sentence. It's also just one study, though it sits within a broader body of evidence on mindfulness and sexual function.

Is orgasmic meditation safe?

The technique itself, consent-based touch following a set structure, is not inherently dangerous. The organization that built and sold it was run in a way a federal court found coercive. Those are two separate facts, and blurring them either way misses the point.

Safety here depends on consent, context, and who you're doing this with, not on the mechanics of the technique alone. Any practice involving touch between partners needs consent that's ongoing and freely given. It also needs to happen outside of any structure where one party holds power over the other, whether that power is financial, professional, or social. That second condition is exactly where OneTaste's federal case centered. A technique can be neutral on paper and still cause real harm when the organization teaching it operates the way a federal court found this one did.

A safer, evidence-based path to the benefits people describe

General mindfulness and body-focused practice, without any OM-specific technique or commercial program attached, can support arousal and orgasm for many women. You don't need a company, a certification, or a licensed script to build that.

If your orgasm has changed over time, mindfulness may possibly be a part of why it can change back. In 2023, 11.4% of U.S. adults took prescription medication for depression, and women (15.3%) were more than twice as likely as men (7.4%) to do so (Elgaddal et al., 2025). Antidepressants, particularly SSRIs, can cause sexual side effects, including difficulty reaching orgasm (Jing & Straw-Wilson, 2016). More than 1 million women enter menopause each year in the US (Carlson & Vadakekut, 2026), and menopause can affect sexual function, with reasons including hormonal, physical, and psychological changes (Heidari et al., 2019).

Add ordinary stress to that list: research shows females indicated higher levels of stress than their male counterparts (Graves et al., 2021), and research shows high levels of chronic stress significantly reduces physical arousal (Hamilton & Meston, 2013). These changes come down to many factors, including biology and circumstance, not a personal failing, and this might shift again with the right tools.

That's the exact territory Mojo's Find Your Orgasm course covers. Dr. Laurie Mintz built it, and Dr. Suzette Johnson collaborated on modules specifically for women who have lost their orgasms. In fact, both Laurie and Suzette lost their orgasms themselves, so they have firsthand experience in addition to their expertise. Module 5, "Everyday and sexual mindfulness," teaches body-focused mindfulness practice, without any of OM's history or commercial ties, to help women get out of their heads and back into their bodies during sex. The course pairs that with practical, evidence-based tools women can use on their own.

If your orgasm change feels more physical than mindfulness-related, arousal and orgasm creams are another evidence-based option worth reading about. Your doctor can also help you determine the cause of your orgasm struggles and point you toward the right support.

You can read how the course has worked out for other women, including how Yasmin rebuilt her desire after a year of feeling lost and how Katrina changed her relationship with foreplay and desire.