Is sex really good for your mental health?

We’ve all been told by someone that sex is great for your mental health. Or that sex helps relieve stress. It boosts your mood. Helps you sleep. But what actually happens to your body during sex and do any of these claims stack up?

Short answer: Yes, sex is good for your mental health. Stick around to find out how.

The sex hormones that boost your mental health

You know how sex and orgasming makes you feel good in your body? The swell of anticipation in your body as you move closer to release. The build up of pleasure that rushes forth to tip you over the edge. How your entire body just melts after you come. Your body released a range of hormones during and after sex that give you all these feelings. And for our purposes, the big ones are oxytocin, dopamine, serotonin and endorphins.

 

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Oxytocin, sex, and mental health

Oxytocin is often called the ‘love hormone’ because it makes us feel closer to our partners – in our case we’re talking about sexual partners, but obviously it can be released outside of sex too. Our brains release oxytocin as we get aroused, and it’s the reason why good sex feels so amazing. Oxytocin is also released during cuddling, so if you’re basking with your partner in the afterglow or engaging in aftercare you’re also getting dosed up.

Studies suggest oxytocin can help combat stress and anxiety, and while it’s not clear that orgasms are enough by themselves to deal with a chronic mental illness, you’re still getting some stressbusting effects with every O.

Dopamine – your little reward

We call dopamine your feel-good chemical, which is true, but also not fully correct. Dopamine connects the feeling of a reward with an activity. So if you feel a surge of pleasure and desire when he calls you a good girl, it’s not all dopamine, but dopamine is enhancing that pleasure link between the feeling and whatever it is that got you that reward, along with the reward itself.

While some dopamine is released during sex, most of it’s released during orgasm. Which is probably why we love them. On a neurochemical level at least. When it comes to mental health having good dopamine levels help you sleep better, not be anxious or moody all the time, and help you feel more energised during the day.

Serotonin – the happy, calm you

Everyone who knows anything about depression is currently screaming, but if you’re lucky enough not to know this – low serotonin levels are a big symptom of depression. Serotonin is released during exercise, as well as sexercise if you go for long enough, but it’s also released into your body after orgasm making you feel contented and blissed out. You might think about Serotonin as the thing making you feel good after sex, and dopamine your brain’s way of linking that good feeling to sex.

And just to say it so that it’s clear: Higher serotonin levels help guard against a lot of mental health issues like depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, OCD… look it’s a long list.

Endorphins – your built-in pain relief

Endorphins are hormones that help you deal with pain and stress – by turning them off. Thinks of them as your body’s way of helping you feel good about doing something physically taxing – and helping you do it for longer. They’re released during exercise – and sex. And yes, this is why you only feel the aches, pains, and possible scrapes from sex sometime after the afterglow fades.

In terms of your mental health endorphins can help reduce symptoms of depression – although that’s mostly been studied in the context of exercise. They decrease stress and anxiety, and can help boost your confidence and self-esteem. And who doesn’t feel better after a long sweaty session in the sack?

Does masturbation boost your mental health too?

Yes. The hormones released during orgasm are also released during masturbation. Your mileage may vary as to how happy and sated you feel after masturbation versus partnered sex, but that’s going to come down to your individual circumstances.

It’s also the orgasm, rather than the sex specifically, that helps with things like period cramps. It’s just about how you want to get to that orgasm.

Read more: The best sex toys for period pain by Jay Davies.

Can orgasms replace medication?

Wild Secrets sells amazing sex toys, we aren’t trained doctors, so our completely unqualified answer is please don’t. At the very least, please talk to your doctor, psychiatrist or healthcare professional before starting any experiments with your brain chemistry. Even fun ones.

Everything we’ve read on how these four happy hormones affect your mental health is full of caveats. Most of the research isn’t on sex or masturbation specifically, so we can’t be certain you’ll see the same effects as exercise. Sorry. Plus your unique circumstances mean that your milage will absolutely vary. So please enjoy a wank, a mazz, or an earth-shaking indulgence with your lover and know that it’s going to be good for your mental health. Just don’t expect it to ‘fix’ a mental illness or be a substitute for medication.

But a boost of feel-good, confidence raising neurotransmitters is a good thing to have in your life. And it’s just one of the benefits of having a good orgasm.