What is ejaculation?
This is the act done through the penis involved in the ejection of semen from the body. This act is initiated and controlled by the central nervous system. In a state of being sexually stimulated, signals from the body are transmitted to the brain and spinal cord, when the level of excitement reaches a certain level, the brain transmits signals to your reproductive organ, resulting in the expulsion of semen.
What is premature ejaculation?
Premature ejaculation involves the expulsion of semen from a man’s body within a few moments (could be minutes or even seconds) of sexual stimulation or activity, usually sooner than himself or his partner would like while being intimate.
Premature ejaculation can also be referred to as premature climax, early ejaculation, or rapid ejaculation.
This condition is often regarded to be psychological but it could have a biological aspect as well.
It might not be a cause to worry or mean any danger to your health but can be frustrating and hurt your relationship with your sex partner.
This is common among men, usually, 1 out of 3 have experienced rapid ejaculation.
Causes of premature ejaculation
- Psychological factors
These include
- Depression
- Guilt
- Lack of confidence in body image
- Sexual experiences
- Wild sexual imaginations
- Relationship problem
- Performance anxiety
Usually solving all emotional problems would help
- Biological factors
These include
- Infection of the prostate
- Stress
- Erectile dysfunction
- Genetics
- Abnormal hormone levels
- Abnormal levels of brain chemicals usually referred to as neurotransmitters.
Effects of premature ejaculation
- Stress
- Infertility- rapid ejaculation makes it difficult for impregnating a woman
- Complications in your relationship
Solution therapies
There are three attempts to solving the problem of rapid ejaculation, namely;
- Psychological therapy
- Behavioral therapy
- Medical therapy
Psychological treatment
This is discovering what feelings and emotions lead to relationship problems and figuring a way to work through them.
Psychological treatment involves learning the source of the problems and finding solutions helpful to premature ejaculation.
It can help in boosting your confidence in sexual functionality and performance. Psychological therapy increases the closeness and understanding between partners improving sexual satisfaction.
This method of approach can alone be the solution to premature ejaculation or done alongside behavioral treatment or medication.
Behavioral therapy
This method involves the use of exercises to improve tolerance to delay ejaculation. These exercises train your body but are not a long-lasting solution. A few of these exercises include:
- Squeezing
- Wearing a condom
- Start and stop method
- Exercising pelvic muscles
- Diverting attention
Squeezing; this involves stimulating the penis until the point closest to orgasm and then stopping to squeeze the head of the penis until the erection is lost. This can be done by either you or your partner. It should be repeated a few times before allowing yourself to ejaculate.
Wearing a condom can reduce the sensitivity of the penis during sexual intercourse, therefore delaying or extending how long you last before ejaculating.
Start and stop method; this method is similar to the squeeze method, it involves stimulating the penis as well but this time not squeezing the head at the point closest to orgasm, just stopping whatever activity stimulating the penis until the erection is lost. It can be done b you or your partner and should be exercised a few times before allowing yourself to ejaculate as well.
Exercising your pelvic muscles are important because sometimes weak pelvic muscles can contribute to premature ejaculation. Practice with your urine, try stopping it midstream, and continuing again, consecutively, each start and stop can last 3 seconds. Do this at intervals of 10 and about 3-4 times a day.
Diverting your attention; a certain percentage of men have found that diverting your thoughts or attention to something else during sex helps them last longer.
Other exercises you could try involve:
Self-stimulation/masturbation: masturbating a few moments before sex or being intimate with your partner has been found to help in boosting your control.
Counseling: regularly visiting a psychologist can help you in getting over psychological issues like stress, anxiety, or depression that are responsible for your condition of premature ejaculation.
Medical therapy
When none of the above options are solving the problem, the doctor who would first try to confirm if it is not a psychological problem might prescribe some medications for you. Although there are no medicines specifically for treating premature ejaculation, medicines for the treatment of other conditions can be helpful. Examples include; antidepressants, etc.
