True self-love includes sexual satisfaction, and sometimes that means masturbation. Here’s how often women should masturbate and why it’s worth considering an ongoing self-pleasure practice. If your current regimen feels good to you, keep at it. It’s also not necessary to masturbate if it’s not pleasurable to you or if you only feel like it every once in a while. The numbers vary, but in general, regular masturbation among women is common: You can also consider cycle-syncing your self-pleasure to capitalize on your body’s natural endocrine ebbs and flows. The best path to orgasm changes depending on which phase of your cycle you’re in and what’s happening with your hormones (your sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone are higher around your ovulation phase). Tracking will help you know the info that can lead you to better Os. The hormones produced during orgasm (oxytocin and nitric oxide) are power players when it comes to maintaining hormonal balance, healing adrenal fatigue, and maintaining regular ovulation. Here are just a few benefits of masturbation: Set the mood and get centered with some relaxing music or mood lighting. Then, spend 15 minutes circling the areas you’d normally go to for direct stimulation (nipples, areolae, and clitoris); instead, focus on your inner thighs, hips, abdomen, and upper chest. Then take the time to build your orgasmic sensation by stimulating your inner labia and areas around your clitoris with your hands, and when you’re ready to climax, use your hands to get you there. When it’s all said and done, take the time to feel the cortisol-flush-calm after you climax; this is called the resolution phase. Put one hand on your heart and the other on your belly, breathe, and relax. Some of you vibrator devotees may be shocked, but it’s true: Battery-operated toys shorten one of the most important phases of your orgasm—the plateau phase, cheating you of some monumental benefits. Here’s why: Your orgasm isn’t just a one-dimensional shebang; it’s made up of several important phases including arousal, plateau, climax, and resolution. The longer the plateau, the more nitric oxide and oxytocin you build up in your body, and this is where the real hormone balancing payoff is. While your vibrator may send you straight to climax fast, it bypasses the beautiful benefits of a full orgasmic experience. Why cheat yourself of all that good stuff? If the thought of abandoning your power tools leaves you anxious, trust me: You can get the big O on your own, and when you learn how to pleasure yourself manually, you’ll be on your way to reaping all the big-time benefits. One vibrator technique to consider to still get yourself that extended buildup: Use it on the lightest setting over your panties. This will protect your delicate clitoral nerve endings from overstimulation, ensuring you maximize that amazing orgasmic plateau every time. You may be less likely to need extra lubrication during ovulation and luteal phases if your hormones are healthy. These are also the times to really rely on your hand to get you to climax, since more of those sex hormones are flowing. Here’s more on how to make masturbation feel better, plus how to make yourself orgasm. Happy self-loving!
