Everything about Orgasm totally explained
An
orgasm (sexual climax) is the conclusion of the
plateau phase of the
sexual response cycle, and may be experienced by both males and females. Orgasm is characterized by intense physical pleasure, controlled by the involuntary, or autonomic, nervous system. It is accompanied by quick cycles of
muscle contraction in the lower
pelvic muscles, which surround the primary
sexual organs and the
anus. Orgasms are often associated with other involuntary actions, including muscular
spasms in other areas of the body, a general
euphoric sensation, and frequently,
vocalizations.
After orgasm, humans often feel tired and a need to rest. This is attributed to the release of
prolactin. Prolactin is a typical
neuroendocrine response in depressed mood and irritation.
Ongoing research at the University Medical Center of
Groningen, the
Netherlands, studies brain events that accompany orgasm in men and women. Techniques used involve
Positron Emission Tomography (
PET) and
fMRI. Male and female brains act almost the same during orgasm. Brain scans showed that large parts of the
cerebral cortex temporarily reduced their activity.
Achieving orgasm
One of the main ways of achieving orgasm is by direct or indirect stimulation of the
penis or
clitoris. Such stimulation can come from a variety of activities, including but not limited to
sexual intercourse, manual
masturbation,
anal sex,
oral sex,
non-penetrative sex, a
sensual vibrator, or an
erotic electrostimulation. Orgasm may also be achieved by stimulation of the
nipples or other
erogenous zones. In the absence of physical stimulation, orgasm can be from psychological arousal alone, or during
dreaming (a
nocturnal emission or "
wet dream" in males).
Important in sexual stimulation are internal glands, called the
Skene's glands in women and the
prostate in men, two
homologous structures. In common use, the term
G-spot refers to these areas.
The stimulation can come from receptive intercourse,
fingering,
fisting, or penetration with a
dildo.
With sufficient stimulation, the prostatic structure can also be "milked." Providing that there's no simultaneous stimulation of the penis,
prostate milking can cause ejaculation without orgasm. When combined with penile stimulation, some men report that prostate stimulation increases the volume of their ejaculation.
Vaginal orgasm
The female body can achieve orgasm from stimulation of the
clitoris and from stimulation of the
G-spot. The
Gräfenberg spot, or G-spot, is a small area behind the female pubic bone surrounding the urethra and accessible through the anterior wall of the vagina. Many scientists believe that only certain women possess a G-spot. The G-spot orgasm is sometimes referred to as "vaginal," because it results from stimulation inside the vagina, including during
sexual intercourse. However, only stimulation of the G-spot, and not other intravaginal stimulation, results in a "vaginal orgasm."
The "two-orgasm theory" (the belief that in women there's a vaginal orgasm and a clitoral orgasm), has been criticized by
feminists such as Ellen Ross and Rayna Rapp as a "transparently male perception of the female body". The concept of purely vaginal orgasm was first postulated by
Sigmund Freud. In 1905, Freud argued that clitoral orgasm was an adolescent phenomenon, and upon reaching puberty the proper response of mature women changes to vaginal orgasms. While Freud provided no evidence for this basic assumption, the consequences of the theory were greatly elaborated, partly because many women felt inadequate when they couldn't achieve orgasm via vaginal intercourse that involved little or no clitoral stimulation.
In 1966,
Masters and Johnson published pivotal research about the phases of sexual stimulation. Their work included women and men, and unlike
Alfred Kinsey earlier (in
1948 and
1953), tried to determine the
physiological stages before and after orgasm. One of the results was the promotion of the idea that vaginal and clitoral orgasms follow the same stages of physical response. Masters and Johnson also argued that clitoral stimulation is the primary source of orgasms.
Recent discoveries about the size of the clitoris - it extends inside the body, around the vagina - complicate or may invalidate attempts to distinguish clitoral vs. vaginal orgasms. Recent anatomical research shows that there are nerves connecting intravaginal tissues and the clitoris. This, with the anatomical evidence that the internal part of the clitoris is a much larger organ than previously thought, could explain credible reports of orgasms in women who have undergone
clitorectomy as part of
female circumcision. The link between the clitoris and the vagina is evidence that the clitoris is the 'seat' of the female orgasm and is far more wide-spread than the visible part most people associate with it. But it's possible that some women have more extensive clitoral tissues and nerves than others, and so that some women can achieve orgasm only by direct stimulation of the external part of the clitoris.
Anal stimulation
Anal orgasm is an orgasm brought on by anal stimulation, such as from
anal sex, an inserted finger, or a
sex toy. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some women experience anal orgasm as qualitatively different from clitoral or "vaginal" orgasm, though for many others the distinction is less clear.
In both sexes pleasure can be derived from the nerve endings around the anus and the anus itself. Hence,
anal-oral contact can still be pleasurable without stimulation of the clitoris. Jack Morin has claimed that anal orgasm has nothing to do with the prostate orgasm, although the two are often confused.
Breast and nipple stimulation
A
breast orgasm is a female orgasm that's triggered from the stimulation of a woman's breast. Not all women experience this effect when the breasts are stimulated; however, some women claim that the stimulation of the breast area during
sexual intercourse and
foreplay, or just the simple act of having their breasts fondled, has created mild to intense orgasms. According to one study that questioned 213 women, 29% of them had experienced a breast orgasm at one time or another, This shows that it isn't common, but it's possible. An orgasm is believed to occur in part because of the hormone
oxytocin, which is produced in the body during
sexual excitement and arousal. It has also been shown that oxytocin is produced when an individual's
nipples are stimulated and become erect.
Spontaneous orgasms
Orgasms can be spontaneous, seeming to occur with no direct stimulation. Occasionally, orgasms can occur during sexual dreams.
The first orgasm of this type was reported among people who had
spinal cord injury (SCI). Although SCI very often leads to loss of certain sensations and altered self-perception, a person with this disturbance isn't deprived of sexual feelings such as sexual arousal and erotic desires. Thus some individuals are able to initiate orgasm by mere mental stimulation. Some non-sexual activity may result in a spontaneous orgasm. The best example of such activity is a release of tension that unintentionally involves slight genital stimulation, like rubbing of the seat of the
bicycle against genitals during riding, exercising, when pelvic
muscles are tightened or when
yawning or
sneezing.
It was also discovered that some anti-depressant drugs may provoke spontaneous climax as a side effect. There is no accurate data for how many patients who were on treatment with antidepressant drugs experienced spontaneous orgasm, as most were unwilling to acknowledge the fact.
Multiple orgasms
In some cases, women either don't have a
refractory period or have a very short one and thus can experience a second orgasm, and perhaps further ones, soon after the first. After the first, subsequent climaxes may be stronger or more pleasurable as the stimulation accumulates. For some women, their clitoris and nipples are very sensitive after climax, making additional stimulation initially painful.
There are sensational reports of women having
too many orgasms, including an unauthenticated claim that a young British woman has them constantly throughout the day, whenever she experiences the slightest vibration.
It is possible for a man to have an orgasm without ejaculation (dry orgasm) or to ejaculate without reaching orgasm. Some men have reported having multiple consecutive orgasms, particularly without ejaculation. Males who experience dry orgasms can often produce multiple orgasms, as the
refractory period, is reduced. Some males are able to masturbate for hours at a time, achieving orgasm many times. In recent years, a number of books have described various techniques to achieve multiple orgasms. Most multi-orgasmic men (and their partners) report that refraining from ejaculation results in a far more energetic post-orgasm state. Additionally, some men have also reported that this can produce more powerful ejaculatory orgasms when they choose to have them.
One dangerous technique is to put pressure on the
perineum, about halfway between the
scrotum and the
anus, just before ejaculating to prevent ejaculation. This can, however, lead to
retrograde ejaculation, for example redirecting semen into the
urinary bladder rather than through the
urethra to the outside. It may also cause long term damage due to the pressure put on the nerves and blood vessels in the perineum. Men who have had prostate or bladder surgery, for whatever reason, may also experience dry orgasms because of retrograde ejaculation.
Other techniques are analogous to reports by multi-orgasmic women indicating that they must relax and "let go" to experience multiple orgasms. These techniques involve mental and physical controls over pre-ejaculatory vasocongestion and emissions, rather than ejaculatory contractions or forced retention as above. Anecdotally, successful implementation of these techniques can result in continuous or multiple "full-body" orgasms. Gentle digital stimulation of the prostate, seminal vesicles, and vas deferens provides erogenous pleasure that sustains intense emissions orgasms for some men. A
dildo device (the
Aneros) claims to stimulate the prostate and help men reach these kinds of orgasms.
Many men who began masturbation or other sexual activity prior to puberty report having been able to achieve multiple non-ejaculatory orgasms. Young male children are capable of having multiple orgasms due to the lack of refractory period until they reach their first ejaculation. In female children it's always possible, even after the onset of puberty. This capacity generally disappears in males with the subject's first ejaculation. Some evidence indicates that orgasms of men before puberty are qualitatively similar to the "normal" female experience of orgasm, suggesting that hormonal changes during puberty have a strong influence on the character of male orgasm.
A number of studies have pointed to the hormone
prolactin as the likely cause of male
refractory period. Because of this, there's currently an experimental interest in drugs which inhibit prolactin, such as
cabergoline (also known as Cabeser, or Dostinex). Anecdotal reports on cabergoline suggest it may be able to eliminate the refractory period altogether, allowing men to experience multiple ejaculatory orgasms in rapid succession. At least one scientific study supports these claims. Cabergoline is a hormone-altering drug and has many potential side effects. It hasn't been approved for treating sexual dysfunction. Another possible reason may be an increased infusion of the hormone
oxytocin. Furthermore, it's believed that the amount by which oxytocin is increased may affect the length of each refractory period.
A scientific study to successfully document natural, fully ejaculatory, multiple orgasms in an adult man was conducted at
Rutgers University in 1995. During the study, six fully ejaculatory orgasms were experienced in 36 minutes, with no apparent refractory period. It can also be said that in some cases, the refractory period can be reduced or even eliminated through the course of puberty and on into adulthood. Later, P. Haake
et al. observed a single male individual producing multiple orgasms without elevated prolactin response.
Definitions of "orgasm"
There is some debate whether certain types of sexual sensation should be accurately classified as 'orgasm', including female orgasms caused by
G-spot stimulation alone, and the demonstration of extended or continuous orgasms lasting several minutes or even an hour. The question centers around clinical definition of orgasm.
Orgasm is usually defined in a clinical context strictly by the muscular contractions involved.
In these and similar cases, the sensations experienced are subjective and don't necessarily involve the involuntary contractions characteristic of orgasm. However, the sensations in both sexes are extremely pleasurable and are often felt throughout the body, causing a mental state that's often described as transcendental, and with vasocongestion and associated pleasure comparable to that of a full contractionary orgasm.
For this reason, there are views on both sides as to whether these can be accurately defined as orgasms.
Evolutionary function of orgasms
Most male orgasms expel
sperm from the body during vaginal intercourse, which can result in conception.
Evolutionary biologists have several hypotheses about the role, if any, of the female orgasm in the reproductive process. In 1967,
Desmond Morris first suggested in his popular-science book
The Naked Ape that female orgasm evolved to encourage physical intimacy with a male partner and help reinforce the pair bond. Morris suggested that the relative difficulty in achieving female orgasm, in comparison to the male's, might be favorable in Darwinian evolution by leading the female to select mates who bear qualities like patience, care, imagination, intelligence, as opposed to qualities like size and aggression, which pertain to mate selection in other primates. Such advantageous qualities thereby become accentuated within the species, driven by the differences between male and female orgasm. If males were motivated by, and taken to the point of, orgasm in the same way as females, those advantageous qualities wouldn't be needed, since self-interest would be enough.
Morris also proposed that orgasm might facilitate conception by exhausting the female and keeping her horizontal, thus preventing the sperm from leaking out. This possibility, sometimes called the "Poleax Hypothesis" or the "Knockout Hypothesis," is now considered highly doubtful.
Other theories are based on the idea that the female orgasm might increase fertility. For example, the 30% reduction in size of the vagina could help clench onto the penis (much like, or perhaps caused by, the
pubococcygeus muscles), which would make it more stimulating for the male (thus ensuring faster or more voluminous ejaculation). The
British biologists Baker and Bellis have suggested that the female orgasm may have an "upsuck" action (similar to the
esophagus' ability to swallow when upside down), resulting in the retaining of favorable sperm and making conception more likely. They posited a role of female orgasm in
sperm competition.
A 1994
Learning Channel documentary on sex had fiber optic cameras inside the vagina of a woman while she'd sexual intercourse. During her orgasm, her
pelvic muscles contracted and her
cervix repeatedly dipped into a pool of semen in the
vaginal fornix, as if to ensure that sperm would proceed by the
external orifice of the uterus, making conception more likely.
Elisabeth Lloyd has criticized the accompanying narration of this film clip which describes it as an example of "Sperm Upsuck", saying that it depicted normal orgasmic uterine contractions, which have not been shown to have any effect on fertility.
The fact that women tend to reach orgasm more easily when they're ovulating suggests that it's tied to increasing fertility.
Other biologists surmise that the orgasm simply serves to motivate sex, thus increasing the rate of reproduction, which would be selected for during evolution. Since males typically reach orgasms faster than females, it potentially encourages a female's desire to engage in intercourse more frequently, increasing the likelihood of conception.
Purpose of female orgasm
The clitoris is
homologous to the penis; that is, they both develop from the same embryonic structure.
Stephen Jay Gould and other researchers have claimed that the clitoris is
vestigial in females, and that female orgasm serves no particular evolutionary function. Proponents of this hypothesis, such as Dr.
Elisabeth Lloyd, point to the relative difficulty of achieving female orgasm through vaginal sex, the limited evidence for increased fertility after orgasm and the lack of statistical correlation between the capacity of a woman to orgasm and the likelihood that she'll engage in intercourse.
Science writer
Natalie Angier has criticized this hypothesis as understating the psychosocial value of female orgasm.
Catherine Blackledge in
The Story of V, citing studies that indicate a possible connection between orgasm and successful conception, has criticized the hypothesis as ignoring the ongoing evolutionary advantages that result from successful conception. The
anthropologist and
primatologist Sarah Blaffer Hrdy has also criticized the argument that female orgasm as vestigial, writing that the idea smacked of
sexism.
Evolutionary biologist Robin Baker argues in
Sperm Wars that occurrence and timing of orgasms are all a part of the female body's unconscious strategy to collect and retain sperm from more evolutionarily fit men. An orgasm during intercourse functions as a bypass button to a woman's natural cervical filter against sperm and pathogens. An orgasm before functions to strengthen the filter.
Genetic basis of individual variation
A 2005
twin study found that one in three women reported never or seldom achieving orgasm during intercourse, and only one in ten always orgasmed. This variation in ability to orgasm, generally thought to be psychosocial, was found to be 34% to 45% genetic. The study, examining 4000 women, was published in
Biology letters, a
Royal Society journal. Dr.
Elisabeth Lloyd has cited this as evidence for her Fantastic Bonus Theory.
Medical aspects of orgasm
Physiological responses
In men
During orgasm, a
human male experiences rapid, rhythmic contractions of the
anal sphincter, the
prostate, and the muscles of the
penis. The
sperm are transmitted up the
vas deferens from the
testicles, into the
prostate gland as well as through the
seminal vesicles to produce what is known as
semen. The prostate produces a secretion that forms one of the components of ejaculate. Contraction of the sphincter and prostate force stored
semen to be expelled through the penis's urethral opening. The process takes from three to ten seconds, and is generally considered to be highly pleasurable.
Normally, as a man ages, the amount of semen he ejaculates diminishes, and so does the duration of orgasms. This doesn't normally affect the intensity of pleasure, but merely shortens the duration.
After ejaculation, a
refractory period usually occurs, during which a man can't achieve another orgasm. This can last anywhere from less than a minute to several hours, depending on age and other individual factors.
Sensation
As a man nears orgasm during stimulation of the
penis, he feels an intense and highly pleasurable pulsating sensation of
neuromuscular euphoria. These pulses begin with a throb of the
anal sphincter and travel to the
tip of the penis. They eventually increase in speed and intensity as the orgasm approaches, until a final "plateau" of pleasure sustained for several seconds, the orgasm.
During orgasm,
semen is usually ejaculated and may continue to be ejaculated for a few seconds after the euphoric sensation gradually tapers off. It is believed that the exact feeling of "orgasm" varies from one man to another, but most male human beings agree that it's highly pleasurable.
In women
A typical woman's orgasm lasts much longer than that of a man. It is preceded by erection of the
clitoris and moistening of the opening of the
vagina. Some women exhibit a
sex flush, a reddening of the
skin over much of the body due to increased
blood flow to the skin. As a woman nears orgasm, the
clitoral glans moves inward under the
clitoral hood, and the
labia minora (inner lips) become darker. As orgasm becomes imminent, the outer third of the vagina tightens and narrows, while overall the vagina lengthens and dilates and also becomes congested from engorged soft tissue. The
uterus then experiences muscular contractions. A woman experiences full orgasm when her
uterus, vagina,
anus, and
pelvic muscles undergo a series of rhythmic contractions. Most women find these contractions very pleasurable. Recently, researchers from the University Medical Center of
Groningen, the Netherlands, showed that it's possible to objectively recognize orgasms just by the specific frequencies of these contractions
(abstract)
. After orgasm, the clitoris re-emerges from under the clitoral hood, and returns to its normal size, typically within ten minutes.
Orgasm and health
Orgasm, and indeed sex as a whole, are physical activities that can require exertion of many major bodily systems. A 1997 study in the
British Medical Journal based upon 918 men age 45-59 found that after a ten year follow-up, men who had fewer orgasms were twice as likely to die of any cause as those having two or more orgasms a week. A follow-up in 2001 which focused more specifically on
cardiovascular health found that having sex three or more times a week was associated with a 50% reduction in the risk of
heart attack or
stroke. (Note that as a rule,
correlation doesn't imply causation).
Orgasmic dysfunction
The inability to have orgasm is called
anorgasmia, ejaculatory
anhedonia, or inorgasmia. If a male experiences
erection and
ejaculation but no orgasm, he's said to have
sexual anhedonia.
For a variety of reasons, some people choose to
fake an orgasm. A recent
Redbook survey shows that 52% of women regularly fake orgasms. Only 17% are likely to have an orgasm during
sexual intercourse, because the
clitoris often isn't stimulated enough by intercourse alone. 43% of women report “some kind of sexual problem,” such as inability to achieve orgasm, boredom with sex, or total lack of interest in sex.
If orgasm is desired, anorgasmia is mainly attributed to an inability to relax, or "let go." It seems to be closely associated with performance pressure and an unwillingness to pursue pleasure, as separate from the other person's satisfaction. Often, women worry so much about the pleasure of their partner that they become anxious, which manifests as impatience with the delay of orgasm for them. This delay can lead to frustration of not reaching orgasmic sexual satisfaction. Psychoanalyst
Wilhelm Reich, in his 1927 book
The Function of the Orgasm was the first to make orgasm central to the concept of mental health, and defined
neurosis in terms of blocks to having full orgasm. Although orgasm dysfunction can have psychological components, physiological factors often play a role. For instance, delayed orgasm or the inability to achieve orgasm is a common side effect of many medications.
Specifically in relation to simultaneous orgasm and similar practices, many sexologists claim that the problem of
premature ejaculation is closely related to the idea encouraged by a scientific approach in early
20th century when mutual orgasm was overly emphasized as an objective and a sign of true sexual satisfaction in intimate relationships. A focus that's brought to the subject of simultaneous orgasm raises the problem that a man becomes too concerned with
delaying ejaculation, which in fact deprives the intercourse from the necessary spontaneity and thus only making simultaneous orgasm even more difficult to reach. When partners become preoccupied with controlling and synchronizing their actions instead of enjoying the process, this may lead to sexual disturbance.
Drugs and orgasm
Certain drugs have been reported to have enhancing effects on orgasm.
Nitrite inhalants are used by both men and women to enhance orgasm.
Marijuana enhances both male and female orgasms (it should be noted that marijuana generates a general heightening of sensations), while at the same time delaying ejaculation.
GHB,
GBL and
1,4 Butanediol are commonly used to enhance orgasms.
Cocaine also increases sexual desire while delaying orgasm.
(External Link) Both male and female users of
stimulants, such as 3,4-MDMA (
ecstasy), and
psychedelics like
LSD and
psilocybin-containing mushrooms sometimes report heightened sexual pleasure. Throughout history,
recreational drugs have been used to enhance orgasm but, due to lack of research (or government-mandated research restrictions), may be unreliable or have hazardous side effects. Anecdotal evidence suggests that women have enhanced orgasms with
sildenafil (commercially known as
Viagra).
In tantric sex
Tantric sex is the ancient
Indian spiritual tradition of sexual practices. It attributes a different value to orgasm than traditional cultural approaches to sexuality. Some practitioners of tantric sex aim to eliminate orgasm from
sexual intercourse by remaining for a long time in the pre-orgasmic and non-emission state. Advocates of this, such as
Rajneesh, claim that it eventually causes orgasmic feelings to spread out to all of one's conscious experience.
Some advocates of
tantric and
neotantric sex claim that Western culture focuses too much on the goal of climactic orgasm, which reduces our ability to have intense pleasure during other moments of the sexual experience. Eliminating this enables a richer, fuller and more intense connection.
These practices shouldn't be confused with
Buddhist tantra (Vajrayana).
In other animals
The mechanics of male orgasm are similar in most mammals. Females of some mammal and some non-mammal species such as alligators have clitorises.
There has been ongoing research about the sexuality and orgasms of
dolphins, a species which apparently engages in sexual intercourse for reasons other than procreation.
See
Animal sexuality.
Books
- Gabriele Froböse, Rolf Froböse, Michael Gross (Translator): Lust and Love: Is it more than Chemistry? Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry, ISBN 0-85404-867-7, (2006).
- Komisaruk, Barry R.; Beyer-Flores, Carlos; Whipple, Beverly. The Science of Orgasm. Baltimore, MD; London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006 (hardcover, ISBN 0-8018-8490-X).
Further Information
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