How do men and women experience sexual arousal?

This article is in medical Reviewed by Justin Lehmiller, PhDsocial psychologist, researcher, and award-winning educator. More information:
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It’s nearly impossible to count the number of emotions and physical sensations we experience in a single day. We can go from happy to anxious, from excited to angry, from sleepy to hungry in a matter of seconds.

The most amazing thing is that our body is like a magical container that lets us know how we feel and tells us what we need and desire at that moment.

Sexual arousal is a feeling that occurs frequently. For many people, it happens every day—often several times a day. So what triggers these feelings in the first place? And how does sexual arousal differ in men and women?

What causes sexual arousal?

When we are sexually aroused, our cognition and physical functions change. Of course, this is different for everyone, but we can feel Strong sexual desire From external, internal and/or physiological stimuli.

External stimuli can be seeing a pornographic picture or video, hearing a sexy song, or even seeing an object or person that might not even be considered “sexual,” but is associated with things we find arousing.

Internal stimulation is when we have certain thoughts or Sexual Fantasy About something particularly erotic. For example, it could be anything between a doctor and a nurse. role play Having sex on the beach and pondering our obsession with celebrities. We also tend to get aroused when we are physically stimulated. This can be when blood flow to the genitals increases. It can also be when we touch ourselves or when our partner touches us, such as when your genitals or Nipple stimulation.

Male sexual arousal

Have you ever wondered why there is such an expression? “Men think only with their penis” Does it exist? Well, there is some truth to that. While everyone’s sexual desire varies greatly, in general, men usually find that they can easily be aroused by a single stimulus.

For example, seeing pornographic images, Activate now The area of ​​the brain that causes erections and sets the stage for feelings of sexual arousal.

Men tend to be more easily aroused, which may be one reason why they watch far more porn than women. But what is it about porn that turns men on?

When men watch porn, they are often more likely to focus on genitals in the pictures or videos (hence the close-ups in porn). A study It found that men were 25% more likely than women to focus on the genitals in the picture, without even looking at the face.

However, when it comes to ultimate sexual arousal, images of women experiencing sexual pleasure have been shown to be the greatest driver of heterosexual male pleasure.

Images or videos of women moaning, gasping, and visibly aroused can cause great arousal, which is perhaps why female pleasure is often “over-represented” in porn.

So what does female sexual arousal look like? What kinds of things turn women on?

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Female sexual arousal

As they say, women are great all-rounders, and this is no exception when it comes to sexual arousal.

While visual stimulation can be appealing, it is not necessarily the primary driver of female sexual desire. In fact, many women may feel threatened by images of naked men because they can trigger feelings of danger and unease.

Oftentimes, women are turned on by more than just being naked. That’s why, if you’ve ever seen Female-centric pornyou will notice that it has More intimate and romantic scenes. The point is to talk. kisshugging and other sexual acts, with fewer close-ups during penetration.

Visual stimulation does exist for women, but not necessarily in the same way as for men. Sexual arousal has a large mental component for both men and women, but this is especially true for women. In a study of men and women’s attention to pornographywomen pay more attention to the entire situation, including the background imagery, rather than just the sex itself.This may explain why romance novels appeal to women more than men. The stories in these books paint a complete picture and feature carefully choreographed sex scenes that you can imagine in detail and context in your mind, rather than just sex without context.

Sexual arousal in men and women: Conclusion

To summarize, here are some quotes from Ogas, an American writer with a PhD in neuroscience, and Gaddam, a doctoral researcher at Boston University:

“It’s really amazing how much women respond to a range of cues across many areas. Men’s looks, social status, character, commitment, emotional authenticity, confidence, family, attitude towards children, kindness, height and smell.

Unlike men, who become aroused by a single cue, women need to experience enough cues at once to cross an ever-changing threshold.

Sometimes, a few strong cues are all that’s needed to get a woman where she wants to be. Sometimes, a lot of moderate cues are needed. No single cues are necessary or sufficient for a woman.”

In this way, perhaps we’ll start to look at porn and romance novels in a new light. Perhaps social influences really do play a huge role in when and where we feel sexually aroused. It’s definitely worth pondering…

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