What is masturbation?

Masturbation is the self-stimulation of your genitals or other sensitive areas of your body for sexual arousal or pleasure. It’s a common behavior among people of all sexes, genders and ages. Masturbation plays an important role in healthy sexual development. It’s a normal, natural way to explore your body, feel pleasure and reach the point of sexual release (orgasm).

Masturbation may involve the use of your hands, fingers, sex toys or other objects. You may touch, press, rub or massage your genitals. You may insert your fingers or a sex toy such as a vibrator into your vagina or anus. You may also use a sex toy or another object such as a pillow to stimulate your penis, vulva or clitoris.

You may also find pleasure in touching, pinching or rubbing other erogenous zones such as your nipples or testicles. You may find the use of a lubricant helps reduce friction while manually stimulating yourself. You may enjoy reading or watching explicit material or thinking about sexual fantasies during masturbation, which can often lead to orgasm. Different people masturbate in different ways. It’s a personal decision, and there are many ways to do it.

Masturbation may be a solo act or it may involve a partner. In addition, it’s normal to masturbate whether you’re sexually active with other people or not. You may think masturbation is only something you do if you’re single. But both single people and people in sexual relationships masturbate.