Physical And Psychological Benefits Of Masturbation
The search for pleasure is one of the main objectives of human beings.. Men and women do not live by reflection and hard work alone. Pleasure, in its many facets, is associated with happiness and is (or at least should be) something we should all seek.
There are many ways to feel pleasure, including sex, whether with other people or with yourself. We will talk about this last possibility today, delving into masturbation and its multiple positive effects for our physical, psychological and physiological health
Related article: “Intelligent people masturbate more, according to a study”
Masturbation: giving yourself pleasure has its advantages
Masturbation is a sexual behavior that can be defined as any form of sexual self-pleasure obtained through any type of direct physical stimulation. This sexual behavior is widely practiced, since 95% of men and 63% of women have masturbated at some point
Masturbation as a habitual practice usually begins during adolescence, with boys starting earlier than girls as a tendency, with an average age of initiation of 14 and 16, respectively. A curious fact is that women tend to masturbate more frequently when they are in a stable relationship, on the other hand, men tend to masturbate more when they lose a romantic relationship and become single again.
This sexual behavior is not specifically human, since It is also seen in other animals especially among mammals.
Historical view of masturbation: religion and taboo
Masturbation has been condemned throughout history giving it a negative connotation and causing or attributing various physical and mental problems to people who have practiced it.
Thus, for example, the Christian religion has historically persecuted it, even considering it a sin worse than incest or rape in past times. Culturally, masturbation was considered the cause of health problems such as vision loss or sterility, something that science categorically denies. Despite this, in times where information and access to scientific sources was a utopia, people firmly believed that masturbation would cause them severe problems, and therefore they repressed their instinct to practice it.
But not only religion has transmitted negativity and generated cultural taboo towards this sexual behavior: several scientists and health professionals have written extensively about the negative effects of masturbation on the health of people who practice it. For example, Tissot in 1758, considered masturbation as a cause of brain softening
This practice was also theorized to be one of the causes of homosexuality, and Kraepelin He explained that masturbation was a symptom of various mental illnesses. Sigmund Freud also wrote about this sexual behavior, and theorized that masturbation was normal in childhood, but a symptom of immaturity in adulthood, especially in the case of female masturbation.
Physical and psychological benefits of masturbation
Clinical research has been able to show that masturbation is beneficial both physically and psychologically and in fact, it is widely used as a technique in sexual and couples therapy
