If you ask ten men what an orgasm feels like, you’re likely to get ten different answers. However, most of them will agree that it’s a very pleasurable experience.
Most guys say that things start feeling better as you approach climax and that everything gets amplified once you hit the point of no return.
The Pleasure
A man’s orgasm is a euphoric feeling of pleasure, often accompanied by pulsing contractions in the penile and pelvic muscles. These sensations can last for a couple seconds to a few minutes and can radiate around the whole body. They are caused by the sudden release of brain chemicals. Serotonin is one of the primary neurotransmitters involved in this process. It affects how the brain manages mood, sleep, emotion and sexual desire. Low levels of serotonin can decrease the time to climax and lead to premature ejaculation (PE). Taking medications that increase serotonin can help reduce PE.
During an orgasm, men may also experience muscle spasms, vocal sounds and other body movements. These movements do not help the ejaculation process, but they do contribute to the pleasure of the orgasm. Some men can even separate orgasms from ejaculation and just enjoy the euphoric feelings. Some men with spinal cord injuries can even give themselves orgasms that do not involve their penis at all.
When a man reaches a point of “ejaculatory inevitability” or “the point of no return”, he begins the second phase of orgasm: ejaculation. During this part of the process, the prostate and seminal vesicles add their seminal fluid to the urethra. This combines with the sperm that has traveled from the testes through the vas deferens. Then, the urethra is pushed out with rhythmic muscular contractions. The semen that is ejected can contain up to 500 million sperm.
The Intense Sensation
For many men, the orgasm is the peak of sexual arousal and feels extremely good. This is because during the orgasm, your body suddenly releases sexual tension and pressure. As a result, the muscles in your genitals and anus contract rhythmically for several seconds. This is followed by a release of hormones like dopamine and oxytocin, which make you feel happy and relaxed. These hormones counteract the stress hormone cortisol and increase feelings of happiness. The orgasm usually lasts a few seconds, but it can be longer. It also varies from person to person, so it is important to find the right amount of stimulation for you.
Ejaculation is the release of semen from the penis. It is controlled by your brain, and when you are sexually arouses, signals are sent up your spinal cord to your reproductive organs. Once the signals reach a certain threshold, they tell your genitals to “go!”. During a man’s orgasm, you will experience heightened sexual sensations and powerful pelvic muscle contractions, including the ischiocavernosus, bulbocavernosus and rectal sphincter.
While orgasm and ejaculation occur simultaneously, they are separate physiological processes that can happen without one another. However, when they do happen together, they create a sensation of intense pleasure, relaxation and connection that is unmatched by any other feeling in life. If you have problems reaching orgasms, it’s likely because your brain is not receiving the correct nerve messages from your spinal cord, which can be caused by conditions such as multiple sclerosis.
The Point of No Return
The point of no return is associated with the sense that an action or decision cannot be reversed. The idiom first appeared in an English novel published in 1947 and later adapted into a Broadway play in 1951, making it an established part of our language. The term is also used in the physical world, where it may refer to a limit beyond which sexual stimulation can no longer prevent ejaculation.
During orgasm, a man’s nervous system signals the bulbospongiosus and pubococcygeus muscles to contract with rhythmic intensity. This causes a fluid to be emitted from the penis, which is then mixed with sperm that traveled from the testes through the vas deferens. The result is semen, which is then deposited in the urethra during ejaculation. A 2014 source reports that people typically release 1 teaspoon of semen during a typical male orgasm, which lasts several seconds.
While most men have control over when they ejaculate during sex and masturbation, a condition known as premature ejaculation (PE) may occur when these sensations are difficult to control. PE can be caused by psychological and/or biological factors, and it is often exacerbated by stress or anxiety. Behavioral therapy can help reduce PE. A sex or relationship therapist can teach couples how to delay the arrival of climax by using exercises such as the squeeze method. Some integrated care boards offer sex therapy on the NHS, while the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists can help you find a private therapist near you.
The Euphoria
After an acclaimed and controversial debut, HBO’s technicolor teen soap Euphoria exploded this season. It became the network’s most tweeted-about show, with an average of over 16 million tweets per episode in 2022—second only to OG HBO juggernaut Game of Thrones (which averaged more than 44.2 million viewers per episode).
In this case, the euphoria associated with ejaculation is actually a feeling of connection and intimacy—which can feel especially intense when the experience happens unexpectedly or after a period of isolation or rejection. This euphoria is often described as being “light-headed” or “giddy.” It also can include feelings of relaxation, relief, and even numbness.
For males, ejaculation is the release of semen from the penis—which occurs when the bulbospongiosus and pubococcygeus muscles contract in rhythmic, cyclical motions under the control of the nervous system during orgasm. These contractions are triggered by G-spot stimulation and may last for several seconds. It’s not uncommon for men to orgasm without ejaculating, which can happen when the body has reached its maximum point of stimulation.
Euphoria is a teen drama that follows a group of high school teenagers as they navigate love and friendship in a world of drugs, sex, and trauma. It features an ensemble cast of actor and singer Zendaya, Maude Apatow (Girls), Angus Cloud, Eric Dane, Alexa Demie, Jacob Elordi, Barbie Ferreira, Nika King, Storm Reid, Hunter Schafer, and Sydney Sweeney (Sharp Objects). It depicts a certain sector of American youth culture that would make Harmony Korine blush and, at times, makes viewers uncomfortable. Families can use this topic to discuss whether it is OK to depict teen sex and drug abuse on television, and what the real-life consequences of such behavior might be.
