Pink helped explain the concept of consent, Padman helped drive a conversation about sanitary napkins and menstruation. And now, after the smashing success of Veere Di Wedding, the conversation has moved to female masturbation, a thoroughly sticky topic in a country where sex education is taboo and even biology teachers start sweating when discussing cross-pollination.
In fact, we as a society are so afraid of female sexuality that some of us go as far as mutilating the clitoris, the only organ that exists in the human body for the sole purpose of sexual stimulation.
In a conservative country like ours, discussing sexual agency of a woman is akin to trying to launch a rocket from a launchpad designed for a zeppelin, but it’s good that we are all talking about that epic scene featuring Swara Bhasker because female masturbation isn’t just a self-serving pleasure activity but one that is loaded with numerous health benefits.
On the flipside, there are a farrago of urban myths masquerading as facts about masturbation. Modern science is thoroughly sure that masturbation doesn’t cause blindness, colour blindness, hair growth on the palm of the hand, mental health problems, fatigue and tiredness. None of that is true, although to be fair, you’d feel a tad tired if you spent all day in the sack.
On the other hand, masturbation does have some well-documented health benefits:
It makes you happy – literally
Women have unlike most men, different ways to orgasm. There is the G-spot (a sensitive wall on the anterior wall of the vagina), the clitoris (which contains 8000 nerve-endings compared to 4000 for the penis), and even anal stimulation (which might not be for everyone).
The thing is that when a woman masturbates and reaches her climax, a host of feel-good chemicals are released.
As Dr Lauren Streicher, an Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Northwestern University points out, in the Huffington Post, “We know that pleasure makes people feel good. It's really that simple. Orgasms release the endorphins dopamine and oxytocin, which can improve your mood and create a natural high. Who needs drugs when you can make your own?”
It helps you sleep
Another delightful side-effect of masturbation for women is the fact that it helps get some shut-eye. Masturbating helps you sleep the same way exercise makes you feel better.
The reasons for this is the release of what pop-culture calls the ‘cuddle hormone’ aka oxytocin. Masturbation or sex boosts one’s oxytocin levels and lowers cortisol (a stress-hormone).
Dr Rachel Needle, co-director of Modern Sex Therapy Institutes tells CNN: “For women, oestrogen levels increase after sex, which can enhance a woman's REM cycle for a deeper sleep. In men, the hormone prolactin is secreted after orgasm and has been tied to sleepiness.”