Orgasm

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This is an article about Human Anatomy

Male Orgasms

The period of emission and ejaculation is called the male orgasm. Penile erection involves a complex interaction between three systems of the body: the vascular system, the nervous system, and the endocrine system.

  • Erection

Although much research has been done on erectile function and dysfunction, many aspects of function still remain unclear. (Even with the invention of those pretty blue pills that you have seen advertised on TV.)

Erection results from dilation of the arteries in the penis and an increase in arterial blood under high pressure -- to simplify things a bit. This causes the erectile tissue in the penis to become engorged. Erection also most likely involves several neurotransmitters.

  • Orgasm

With increasing intensity of the sexual stimulus, the reflex centers of the spinal cord begin to emit impulses that leave the cord to the genitals and initiate emission, which is the forerunner of ejaculation. Fluid from the vas deferens, the prostate, the ampulla, and the seminal vesicles (and even more tiny glands) are propelled into the internal urethra by contractions of the groin muscles*. The filling of the internal urethra elicits signals that are transmitted through the pudendal nerves from the spinal cord. Increases in pressure in the urethra cause the semen to be propelled to the exterior, resulting in ejaculation! The period of emission and ejaculation is termed male orgasm. After ejaculation erection ceases within 1 to 2 minutes in most males.

  • Hormonal Roles

It is apparent that sexual desire and performance depend on some threshold level of testosterone, however, this level varies from man to man. One of the greatest inhibitors of sexual functioning in males is loss of or low self-esteem and the development of a negative self-image.

Bulbocavernous muscles & ischiocavernous muscles. (for those that want to know). Bulbocavernous muscles are at the very base of the penis, the others are deeper in the groin around the penis.

Female Orgasms

"You'll know it when you have it" - by Plato

An orgasm is defined as the release of sexual tension built up during sexual stimulation such as masturbation or intercourse. It is a feeling of intense pleasure. Contractions of muscles in the vagina and uterus occur, although many women are not aware of them. About 15 percent of women never experience an orgasm. Orgasms are one of those things that are difficult to describe, but if you have one, you'll know it.

  • Physical Changes

After a woman becomes sexually aroused, her heart beats faster while her breathing quickens. Often, she'll tighten various muscles all over her body. Her breasts usually enlarge somewhat, the nipples tend to stand out while the areolas become noticeably enlarged. Some women flush red on their face, neck, and chest. The visible part of the clitoris also swells slightly.

Secretions occur inside and at the opening of the vagina. Her labia flatten and open. The vagina lengthens and widens internally, changing what was a potential space into more of an actual space. These vaginal changes are mainly a result of a rush of blood to the pelvic area -- called engorgement -- which provides a generally pleasurable warmth in a female's genital area.

As her arousal increases, so does engorgement as well as most of the changes mentioned above becoming more pronounced. The one area that doesn't follow this pattern is the clitoris. Instead of continually swelling, it actually begins to retract under the clitoral hood and decreases in length by about 50%. This is a sign that orgasm is imminent for most women, as long as optimal stimulation continues.

The orgasm itself begins with strong muscle contractions. These contractions can be finished within four seconds or last up to about 15 seconds. They tend to occur at intervals of 0.8 seconds. Also, the inner two-thirds of the vagina usually open up even more, while the uterus contracts.

During orgasm, skin flushing generally reaches its maximum. Muscles may keep contracting, and blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate continue to rise. Some women make sounds reflecting the pleasure they are experiencing.

  • Signs confirming orgasm

Rhythmic muscle contractions occur in the outer third of the vagina, the uterus and anus. The first muscle contractions are the most intense, and occur at a rate of about 1 per second. As the orgasm continues, the contractions become less intense and occur at a more random rate.

A mild orgasm may have 3 -5 contractions, an intense orgasm 10 -15.

The "sex flush" (redness) becomes even more pronounced and may cover a greater percentage of the body.

Muscles throughout the body may contract during orgasm, not just those in the pelvic area.

Some women will emit or spray some fluid from their urethra during orgasm. This is often called female ejaculation.

A woman's facial expression may indicate that she is in pain when she is having a pleasurable orgasm.

At the peak of orgasm the entire body may become momentarily rigid.

  • What does orgasm feel like?

Women who have never experienced orgasm, and women who are not sure if they have, often ask, "What does an orgasm feel like?" This is a hard, if not impossible, question to answer. Imagine trying to explain to someone what it feels like to sneeze or yawn. Not easy to do. How our senses and brain interpret physical stimuli is subjective, that is dependent solely on the individual's perceptions. Subjective reports frequently mention a sensation of tingling in the spine, brain, and genital areas. While some women relay an experience being on the verge of passing out, others report a level of enjoyment only somewhat less than that of "the earth moving". If a woman has experienced some form of nerve damage, she may not be able to tell if she has had an orgasm.

Vaginal vs. Clitoral orgasms

A distinction is sometimes made between clitoral and vaginal orgasms in women. An orgasm that results from combined clitoral and vaginal stimulation is called a blended orgasm. Many doctors and feminist advocates have claimed that vaginal orgasms do not exist, and that female orgasms are obtained only from clitoral arousal. Recent discoveries about the size of the clitoris — it extends inside the body, around the vagina — would seem to support this theory. On the other hand, other sources argue that vaginal orgasms are dominant or more "mature."

This latter viewpoint was first promulgated 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 did not provide evidence supporting this basic assumption, the consequences of the theory were greatly elaborated thereafter.

In 1966, Masters and Johnson published pivotal research into the phases of sexual stimulation. Their work included women as well as men, and unlike Kinsey previously (in 1948 and 1953), set out to determine the physiological stages leading up to and following orgasm. One of the results was the promotion of the idea that vaginal and clitoral orgasms follow the same stages of physical response. Additionally, Masters and Johnson argued that clitoral stimulation is the primary source of orgasms.

This standpoint has been adopted by feminist advocates, to the extent that some hold that the vaginal orgasm was a mirage, created by men for their convenience. Certainly many women can only experience orgasm with clitoral stimulation, either alone or in addition to vaginal stimulation, while (less commonly) other women can only experience orgasm with vaginal stimulation. The clitoral-only orgasm school of thought became an article of faith in some feminist circles. Alternatively, some feminists instead feel the clitoral orgasm robs females of the source of the womanhood.

A new understanding of vaginal orgasm has been emerging since the 1980s. Many women report that some form of vaginal stimulation is essential to subjectively experience a complete orgasm, in addition to or instead of external (clitoral) stimulation. Recent anatomical research has pointed towards a connection between intravaginal tissues and the clitoris. It has been shown that these tissues have connecting nerves. This, combined with the anatomical evidence that the internal part of the clitoris is a much larger organ than previously thought could also explain credible reports of orgasms in women who have undergone clitoridectomy as part of so-called female circumcision.

In some cases it is possible for women to orgasm through stimulation of secondary sexual organs (eg breasts), and in very rare cases, without any direct stimulation to the genitalia or the other specific erogenous zones, but instead stimulation of the non-specific zones (i.e. neck).

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 is 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.

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 is triggered from the stimulation of a woman's breast.[9] 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 is not common, but it is 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 is not 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.

Involuntary orgasms

Orgasms can happen as the result of forced sexual contact as during rape or frotteurism. The incidence of those who experience unsolicited sexual contact and experience orgasm is very low, though possibly underreported due to shame or embarrassment. Involuntary orgasms can happen regardless of gender.

Multiple orgasms

In some cases, women either do not 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, i.e. 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 is 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 is 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 has not been approved for treating sexual dysfunction. Another possible reason may be an increased infusion of the hormone oxytocin. Furthermore, it is 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

Forced Orgasms

Also known as ("Countdowns")

There are three forms:

  1. The dominant partner brings the submissive partner to orgasm, while the submissive attempts to delay the orgasm for as long as possible.
  2. The dominant partner brings the submissive partner to orgasm, while the submissive attempts climax at a preset command (also known as "Count Downs" or "Counting Down").
  3. The dominant partner continues stimulation after orgasm, which causes considerable discomfort to the submissive because of the sensitivity of their genitals. Part of the submissive's arousal is that after each orgasm, they undergo a period of discomfort knowing that more pleasure will come later.

Part of the attraction of forced orgasms is that the Dominant is controlling when, how (and sometimes where) they achieve their orgasm. (This also relieves any guilt on the part of the submissive.)

See also Countdowns and/or Female ejaculation

More information is available at [ Wikipedia:Orgasm ]
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