Do I masturbate too much?

Have you ever found yourself wondering whether you masturbate too much? Throughout my years of work in sexual health, this is a question that a lot of people want to ask, but are often afraid to discuss.

Many years ago we were led to believe that too much masturbation would lead to blindness in males, whilst other organisations claimed that masturbation was a violation of moral law. It is attitudes like this which fuel concerns that if you masturbate too much, bad things will happen to you. So, this begs the question. Why do we masturbate, and is it possible to masturbate too much?

Why do people masturbate?

Masturbation is one of the safest ways to experience sexual pleasure and it is enjoyed by people of all ages, gender and ethnicity. There are no risks of pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections or the awkward ‘morning after’ conversation. In fact, self-pleasure is an excellent way for someone to understand their body a little better so that they have a more fulfilling sex life with a partner. After all, if you already know exactly what turns you on you can better communicate this to a sexual partner.

That’s not to say that masturbation stops when you enter a relationship. People who are both single and in relationships may choose to indulge in self pleasure because it feels good and offers lots of different benefits. In short, we masturbate because it’s completely normal to do so, it’s fun and it doesn’t cost a penny.

Can you masturbate too much?

People masturbate for lots of different reasons and because we all have different sex drives, there are no set amounts for masturbation. Some like to masturbate once or twice a day, others a couple of times a week and some don’t masturbate at all. It’s completely normal.

Quite often, people feel a sense of shame or embarrassment about their masturbation habits, but masturbation is a perfectly natural way to explore your sexuality. However, if you find that masturbation is causing you problems because is affecting your relationships, your mental health or causing problems at work, it might help to speak to your GP or a therapist for some advice.

Benefits of masturbation and spicing things up

When you orgasm, your body releases endorphins, otherwise known as the feel-good hormones. These hormones are released whether you orgasm alone or with a partner.

Lots of studies have shown that masturbation can:

• Improve your sleep
• Release sexual tension
• Reduce stress
• Improve your body image
• Help you to understand your sexual needs
• Help treat sexual problems
• Strengthen pelvic tone
• Relieve menstrual cramps

Masturbation is a great way to help you understand your sexual desires too. For example, figuring out where and how you like to be touched and what feels good. When you learn to orgasm alone it can make it easier to orgasm with a partner, because you can tell them what kind of techniques you enjoy.

Sex toys are a great way to spice up masturbation because each product creates a range of different sensations. Some of the best male masturbators in the industry offer additional benefits to sexual pleasure by teaching other techniques such as better stamina in the bedroom, longer lasting erections and can even help those struggling with erectile dysfunction to achieve an erection. Using sex toys for both male and female masturbation is a great way to explore your sexuality and for some people, achieve an orgasm for the first ever time.