You’ve just finished having sex and it felt great!
Now you want to do it all over again, but there’s a problem.
Your body won't let you.
You try as hard as you can to get things going, but nothing happens.
You’re in the refractory period after sex, and although your partner may be ready to
go, there is nothing you can do but wait.
What is the refractory period and why does it happen?
After an orgasm both men and women experience what is known as the resolution stage of sex.
The body starts to come out of the high from the carnal act, and things like pulse rate
and hormone levels begin to return to normal.
This is all necessary so you don’t die from a heart attack or over exhaustion.
Your body can’t maintain the heighten physical levels during sex for long periods of time
without negative side effects.
Both sexes go through a refractory period, but women tend to come out of it much quicker
than men.
In fact, some women only need a few seconds of recovery before they are ready to go again.
Men on the other hand need much longer, which can be a bummer if your partner is ready for
round two.
But how long do males have to wait before they can have sex again?
That all depends.
It could be minutes, hours, or even days.
Let’s look at what causes the refractory period and then we’ll get into how you can
shorten the time between sex sessions.
Scientists don’t fully understand what causes the refractory period, or why it varies so
much between men and women, but they do have some ideas.
One leading theory is that there is a connection between the hormone prolactin and the time
it takes to recover from having sex.
In a 2002 study a 25-year-old man who did not experience a refractory period at all
was studied.
It was found that he did not secrete the hormone prolactin after climaxing as most men do.
This may suggest that the prolactin is responsible for turning the body's sexual drive off for
a certain period of time following ejaculation, leading to the refractory period.
However, due to the small sample size of the test we still need to conduct more research
around the function of prolactin and its effect on the refractory period.
This is especially true because women also secrete prolactin after having an orgasm and
then are ready to go again only a few seconds later.
There have been cases where men have had “dry” orgasms without experiencing a refractory
period.
This is when the male climaxes without ejaculating at all.
The dopamine and pleasure hormones are still dumped into the body as if ejaculation had
occurred, but no semen leaves the body.
This may indicate that the release of semen at the conclusion of sex might play a roll
in signaling the body to go into the refractory period and not the orgasm itself.
A final cause that could be behind the long length of the male refractory period may have
to do with the peripheral nervous system.
This is the part of the nervous system that does not include the brain and spinal cord.
Researchers have found that the peripheral nervous system tends to be much more active
following sex than normal.
It has been suggested that compounds called prostaglandins are released after sex that
affect a male’s nerve responses.
This in turn creates the refractory period, and in males the prostaglandins may last longer
than in females, which could account for the longer recovery time.
Another compound called somatostatin is also released right after ejaculation and may affect
the peripheral nervous system.
The combination of somatostatin and prostaglandin and how they affect the nervous system of
males could be the reason for the extended refractory periods when compared to females.
Or maybe it is just something as simple as women are better at sex than men.
At this point in time we just need more research and data to definitively conclude why the
refractory period occurs and its underlying causes.
But it is almost certainly a combination of hormones and interactions within the physiology
of the body that is causing the phenomena.
Even if we don’t know the precise biological reason why refractory periods are so much
longer in men than in women, we can identify some factors that affect this mysterious process.
And some of them are pretty crazy.
As would be expected, the more attracted you are to your sexual partner the shorter your
refractory period lasts.
It will probably not be a lot shorter, but a heightened libido and arousal level has
been connected to shorter refractory times.
Also, the healthier someone is, the more quickly they will recover from a sex session and be
able to go again.
These seem like obvious factors that would affect the refractory period.
But what is coming next may shock you.
The type of sexual experience plays a role in how long the refractory period lasts as
well.
For example, someone who is pleasuring themself will on average have a shorter refractory
period than if two people are copulating.
In fact, people who achieve ejaculation by masturbation tend to have a much, much, shorter
refractory period than while having sex.
Men who masturbate sometimes have a refractory period lasting only a few seconds.
This brings us back to one of the reasons why the refractory period even occurs.
We mentioned the hormone prolactin may play a role in causing the longer refractory period
in males.
Researchers found that prolactin levels were 400% higher after ejaculation from sex than
ejaculation from masturbation.
So there seems to be some kind of connection between having sex with a partner and a lengthened
refractory period.
The refractory period in men does vary from person to person.
It might take a few minutes, a few hours, or even a few days to recover and be ready
to go again.
Since everyone’s body is different, it kind of just depends on who you are.
But there are some factors that lengthen the time of the refractory period, the most consistent
are age and health.
Younger men tend to only need a few minutes of recovery.
They may not be able to ejaculate right away, but after a five or ten minute break, they
might be able to get an erection again.
Although other problems may arise, which we will talk about later.
Older men on the other hand will have a longer refractory period, which could last between
12 and 24 hours.
It has even been reported that men in the later stages of life can need days to recover
and reset their body before the next round of sex can begin.
If you are having sex at this age bravo to you, but also, refractory periods probably
aren’t your biggest concern as much as staying healthy and keeping the heart strong enough
to make it through each sexual encounter.
You may be wondering if the refractory period can be shortened.
And if you’re not, your partner might be.
Our understanding of the refractory period of the human body is tenuous at best.
This means we are not entirely sure how to shorten it, but there are some methods that
may work.
Let’s start off by saying there have been no drugs specifically approved for shortening
the refractory period in males.
However, it is generally reported that men who have higher testosterone levels have shorter
refractory periods.
This is one of the reasons why older gentlemen tend to need longer recovery times than men
in the earlier stages of life.
Like erectile dysfunction a refractory period may be helped by the same little blue pill.
Some men claim that using drugs like Viagra has helped shorten their refractory period,
so they can have more sex more frequently.
However, in studies conducted around erectile dysfunction medication and its effects on
the refractory period, researchers concluded there is no evidence that the pill shortens
the refractory period.
So, men who claim otherwise may just be experiencing a placebo effect.
Overall, medical professionals agree that better health normally leads to better sexual
stamina.
This means that taking care of your body and exercising frequently may shorten your refractory
period.
The more healthy you are, the quicker your body can recover, the faster you can get back
to having sex.
Or at least that’s the theory.
Some people claim that doing pelvic floor muscle training such as Kegels may also reduce
refractory period length.
There is no scientific proof for this, but it has been suggested that the stronger those
pelvic muscles are, the better your sexual function will be.
So, it couldn’t hurt to try.
However, there may be more fun ways to reduce the length of the refractory period.
Switching up how often you have sex could help reduce recovery times.
You could try having sex less frequently to see if that makes a difference, or you could
have more sex and see how that affects your body.
For a good time, the second option is probably the way to go.
It has been suggested that you and your partner could try different positions to mix things
up.
This can cause different feelings and sensations, which may entice the body to respond differently
during and after sex.
Really the only way to reduce the refractory time at this point is through trial and error.
You should stay healthy and physically active, but also experiment with timing and sex positions
to see if you can reduce the time your body needs to recover between sex sessions.
Now we just want to clarify some things.
Women do have refractory periods.
They just don’t seem to be nearly as long as men’s.
But there are definitely some effects on the female body during the refractory period that
males don’t experience.
For example, during the female refractory period the clitoris can become too sensitive
to continue having sex.
Females sometimes need to wait for the body to reset before engaging in sex again.
Also, there is the psychological side of the refractory period that occurs in both males
and females.
Physically females recover from sex much more quickly than males.
However, both males and females can experience a psychological refractory period where they
just don’t want to have sex again.
This is most commonly felt through the sensations of being tired or satisfied
The female genitalia will often stay lubricated even after achieving orgasm.
This allows them to continue having sex after they reach completion, or even if they are
no longer aroused.
However, just because their body can have sex, doesn’t necessarily mean they want
to.
The refractory period is much longer in men than in women.
This most likely has something to do with body chemistry and physiology.
However, both males and females do experience a refractory period.
So next time you're ready to go and your partner needs a moment, be patient.
They might need a little longer to recover, but you can just take it as a compliment.
Now watch “What Exactly is an Orgasm?”
Or check out “How Do Countries Around The World Make Love?”