Sex plays a role in happiness
Scientists and anthropologists generally agree that sex tends to play a role in our overall happiness. Studies show that sexual satisfaction plays a role in happier marriages, and happier marriages play a role in greater sexual satisfaction. But what about when we’re solo? What about our sense of wellbeing when we’re on our own? If healthy intimacy with a partner is a marker of happiness, does being intimate while alone have the same long-term effects?
Many experts in the field of sex and human behavior will tell you that any type of intimacy is good for the human brain, and it doesn't have to be sexual. Just catching someone's eye from across the room or holding hands can flood your body with happy hormones like dopamine and oxytocin. Intimacy can be a powerful tool when it comes to reducing stress.
Self-care and stress management are not luxuries, and regularly releasing hormones like oxytocin is a great way to help manage a hectic schedule, as this bonding hormone buffers against stress hormones like cortisol that can make you tired, old, and overweight.
In fact, new research tells us that the majority of people choose to try and reduce stress by either taking a walk, taking a nap, meditating, having sex or masturbating. Self-touch presents so many health benefits including boosting your body's feel-good hormones, regulating the nervous system and releasing tension for stress relief.
And masturbation doesn't just help with soothing anxiety. Sexual thoughts and feelings, physical touch, and orgasms also have other superpowers, providing mental clarity, better brain and body function, and a better relationship with self-confidence, boundaries, and partners. In short, the benefits of reality are limitless. Here are some ways self-love can help you live a healthier and more balanced life.
Pleasure can reduce pain
When we experience sexual pleasure, the pituitary gland is activated and endorphins like oxytocin and vasopressin spike. Promote pain reduction, intimacy, and bonding. Oxytocin and dopamine not only create a good feeling, they can also reduce pain in the body. Researchers have found that regular sex can help relieve headaches and period cramps.
Dopamine responds to rewards like food and orgasms encouraging the brain to seek out more and oxytocin is known as the 'cuddle hormone' that encourages bonding and connection. If you 're struggling with issues like chronic pain and sex or conditions like vaginismus, these two chemicals, along with serotonin and vasopressin, released after sex, can both relax the body and ease pressure and pain.
Orgasms can lower anxiety
Vasopressin is the hormone responsible for the chilled, contested feeling we experience after sex or masturbation. It lowers cortisol levels and improves sleep quality, especially in people assigned to males at birth. Orgasms also produce oxytocin, and the more of this hormone you have in your body, the better, because it makes you feel calm and connected to yourself and others. A study of rats showed that a rat with high oxytocin levels remained calm when surrounding rats were anxious.
The logical part of your brain responsible for judgment and decision-making – the lateral orbitofrontal cortex – essentially shuts down during sex. That's why you might feel bolder and less inhibited during sex or masturbation. Deactivation of this part of the brain is also associated with decreased fear and anxiety, so naturally self-touch and sex can reduce the effects of anxiety and depression.
Orgasms can help you sleep better
An orgasm signals the parasympathetic nervous system to start down-regulating and the prefrontal cortex, which was previously activated up to orgasm, also becomes down-regulated. This causes a state of calm that is topped off by oxytocin spiking and cortisol – the stress hormone – dipping in. Remember vasopressin? This accompanies the release of melatonin, which is also known as the sleep hormone.
If you're struggling with insomnia, burnout, or experiencing perimenopause that can cause problems with sleep, you might want to consider practicing self-love before bed. This is also why the majority of people enjoy watching erotic content or listening to audio porn before bed, rather than first thing in the morning for example.
Pleasure promotes body function
The benefits of an oxytocin spike are endless and you don't need to experience an orgasm to feel the benefits. Self-touch can reduce inflammation in the body by keeping cortisol levels down – cortisol can increase oily skin production that can clog pores and cause inflammation and breakouts. Masturbation can also help regulate and reset the nervous system, encouraging healthy cell turnover and better circulation, which keeps the body functioning healthily and distributes nutrients and hormones where your body needs them most.Having an orgasm can also modulate your immune system by reducing stress and inflammation in the body. Studies have shown that having more orgasms more regularly can shift a woman's immune system to be conception ready, a state that carries on throughout pregnancy. So you can essentially boost your immunity by practicing self-love regularly.
Orgasms may help you live longer
And among these magical hormones, we also have dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) which is essentially an anti-ageing hormone that helps regulate muscle strength, bone density and body fat. It naturally begins to decline in your twenties. However, sexual excitement helps increase DHEA levels. So indulging in a daily or even weekly self-love session could in fact, help you live longer. In fact, one study among middle-aged men found a 50 percent lower mortality rate among those with high orgasmic frequency compared to the low-orgasm group. Does this mean it's time for health care professionals to recommend sex toys? It certainly couldn't hurt.
The physical and mental health benefits of masturbation both boost bodily health and leave space for you to experience calm and focus on what's important to you. An overwhelmed mind can be one of the worst things for your general well-being and will manifest throughout your body and all areas of your life. So check in with yourself, make sure you stay aware of how your body feels, your anxiety levels, and your relationship with yourself, and maybe set aside twenty minutes a day for deep breathing and self-love practice. You don't have to have an orgasm, just a light touch can be enough to self-regulate and boost those feel-good hormones.