Just to name Philippe Brenot (Psychiatrist, Director of Sexology Education at the University of Paris-Descartes and among others President of the International Couple Observatory), « He is beautiful, good, good, pleasant, suitable, simple, excellent, commendable, meritorious, useful, habitual, stimulating, exciting, unsettling, exhilarating, fair, comfortable and natural, to masturbate. »Masturbation has positive effects on health!
Table des matières
History of masturbation
So where does this taboo come from that we hardly dare talk about, even in the greatest privacy? 20 centuries of Judeo-Christian culture are no strangers to it, with theories denying the existence of female pleasure or even highlighting the waste of precious seed! To continue to go back to the origins, the word masturbation comes from the Latin word masturbatio, Manus meaning hand and Stupratio, action of defiling. Quite a symbol!
In the West, most doctors and sexologists from the 18th to the beginning of the 20th century believed that masturbation was a disease and that it resulted from a moral vice or a disorder of the sexual instinct. During this period, the medical profession was unleashed against this practice, responsible, according to him, for early deafness, dizziness, even mental retardation in men, and leading to hysteria in women. A hysteria that was cured by imprisonment with a straitjacket, surgical excision, cauterization of the clitoris with silver nitrate, a method recommended in 1886 by the Academy of Medicine itself.
The speech has softened a bit since then. Long considered taboo, degrading, it is nevertheless a completely natural act. Masturbation is a stimulation of the genitals making it possible to have pleasure to achieve orgasm, using the hands or objects such as phthalate-free sex toys.
Since the end of the 20th century, scientific research has shown that masturbation is « biologically normal » and that it does not result from illness or psychological disorders.
Moreover, masturbation develops from intrauterine life. Several authors have observed, thanks to ultrasound, genital stimulation from the 26th week. Analysis of the results shows that after thumb or hand sucking, it is the manu-genital contact that is most often observed. These genital stimuli sometimes seem to lead to states similar to orgasm.
It continues with childhood where stimulation of the genitals begins as soon as the motor reflexes are functional. On average, stimulation begins around 6 or 7 months in boys and 10 or 11 months in girls. However, it is only around 2 or 3 years that masturbation performed with the objective of causing an orgasm is observed.
The frequency is highest in the period of adolescence, on average from the age of 12 years (2 to 3 times per week in boys and 1 to 2 times in girls) and decreases with age, however periods when it becomes frequent again due to the absence of a partner, or of a sexually incompetent partner. 90 to 95% of men say they have had recourse, at least once in their life, to masturbation compared to 80 to 85% of women.
Current practices of masturbation
In the 1990s, an NHSLS (National Health and Social Life Survey) conducted in the United States highlighted the factors that influence the frequency of masturbation in adults:
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Sex: men masturbate more than women.
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Age: young people masturbate more than old people.
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Marital status: unmarried people masturbate more than married people.
In 2006, the CSF (Context of Sexuality in France) survey on the sexuality of French people showed that 60% of women aged 18 to 69 had already practiced masturbation. Finally, the CSF survey shows that while the regular practice of masturbation concerns 43% of those who have known at least 10 partners, this is only the case for 11% of those who have only had one. .
Masturbation techniques
First of all, it should be noted that masturbation is not only mechanical stimulation; the excitement goes above all through the head. Fantasizing, imagining a scenario is an integral part of the masturbation process. In humans, this phase of « mental » excitement is also essential for erection.
Researchers William Masters (Gynecologist) and Virginia Johnson (Psychologist) observed and measured with specialized devices over 10,000 sexual responses in 694 men and women. They have shown that the male penis and the female clitoris are the main areas of the body that provide sexual pleasure. It is for this reason that the clitoris and the penis are the most stimulated erogenous zones during masturbation.
At the physiological level, several studies show that the sexual reactions between women and men are relatively similar. During masturbation, female sexual reactions are not much slower than those of men. The average woman reports having an orgasm just under four minutes after the start of self-stimulation, and some reach orgasm in just under 30 seconds. This relatively small difference between man and woman increases during coital stimulation. In general, a woman takes longer than a man to achieve an orgasm during coitus, probably because the direct stimulation of the clitoral region is more intensive during masturbation than during coitus.
Male techniques
In men, manipulation of the penis consists of hugging the body of the penis with the hand and performing back and forth movements simulating penetration. The man can also lie on his stomach and rub his penis against a sheet, a cushion… some men use a water jet to stimulate the penis in the shower; others wedge their penises between their legs and put pressure on it. The rhythm and the pressure of the caresses increase with the excitement until the onset of orgasm. For masturbation, the man can use a classic masturbator, a fleshlight realistic or even a tenga masturbator.
Both men and women can also masturbate the anus either only the opening or by penetration, with fingers or with a anal plug ; this pleasure is even greater for men during penetration since it stimulates the prostate.
A study done in Canada on a group of 500 male individuals, showed that 94% of men masturbate before the age of 20, with a higher frequency the more they started young and that in most cases this practice continues throughout. life, but often reduced for men who have regular sexual activity with a partner. Beyond 40 years, a certain number of men abandon this practice.
Other studies report that a healthy 18-year-old man feels the urge to orgasm about 4 times a week. This frequency gradually decreases with age, especially after 40 years. For men over 60, it is less than one orgasm per week. This figure is only an average: in practice the individual variations are important.
85% of respondents say without hesitation that the parts of the body that respond the most to their own touch or that of a partner are unequivocally the penis, testicles and the entire region around the genitals.
Feminine techniques
In women, due to the anatomy of her genitals, masturbation will be done either on the external organs (clitoris, lips) or internal (vagina) and even via caresses on the breasts. But in most cases, it is the clitoris, the true organ of female pleasure, which will be stimulated. There again, several methods exist. Lying on her back, the woman strokes her clitoris with her hand; the rhythm and pressure of the movements is very personal. Another position, the woman is lying on her stomach and stimulates her clitoris with her hand. Some people use a soft object (a pillow for example) to rub the clitoris; others squeeze their thighs together in order to excite the clitoris. Less common, massage of the clitoral area with a jet of water, a clitoris stimulator or any other sex toy have some followers.
Female guilt
Masturbation would concern nearly 85% of women and would be the best way to reach orgasm. But most of them still consider it a shameful practice.
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Guilt, shame, poor self-esteem, vulgar and dirty are words still too often illustrating female masturbation,
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The majority of women who practice masturbation still feel ashamed of practicing this act,
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However, women are gradually starting to accept the idea that masturbation can help them flourish,
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Masturbation can also help a woman feel more comfortable with her partner during sex.
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The development of sextoys now makes it easier to approach female masturbation
However, masturbation is above all a meeting with oneself. This is what Gérard Leleu (sexologist, writer and lecturer), with about thirty years of clinical experience, tries to convey: “There is an obvious link between women’s ignorance of their bodies and their incapacity. to enjoy. Suddenly, unable to guide their partner, they passively expect everything … and make him responsible when the pleasure is not at the rendezvous. I therefore advise them to caress themselves, to discover themselves quietly, then to show their partner what they like, by guiding his hand. To make them feel guilty, I explain to them that God – or nature if they are not believers – does not create anything at random. He wouldn’t have made the clitoris if he didn’t want us to use it. I also explain to them that it is good for them to explore their entire body, so as not to be limited to clitoral enjoyment for lack of having dared to penetrate each other with their fingers. «
Benefits of masturbation
It seems that masturbation can have beneficial effects on the state of health. Indeed, according to an Australian study carried out on 2,250 men between the ages of 20 and 50, male masturbation would decrease the risk of prostate cancer. The researchers found that the risk of developing prostate cancer was about 33% lower in most men who masturbated frequently (five or more times per week. This finding was confirmed by another study of 30. 000 men.
Note that masturbation is also strongly recommended in adult men who have no partner for a long enough period, in order to avoid a risk of sclerosis of the cavernous bodies. It is also recommended for men and women in order to maintain a cerebral erotic activity which may be extinguished over time.
Beyond these health benefits, masturbation is used, among other things, to discover your body and to understand your own reactions and sexual expectations. Neither taboo nor guilty, it is a normal and positive activity of human sexuality and must remain a source of pleasure.
