Before, during and after
What happens during sex
Asya Popova, Atlas
It seems that falling in love is an unearthly feeling that is difficult to explain in the language of science. In fact, what we experience during falling in love and intimacy can be explained in terms of chemical processes that occur in the brain. Atlas tells us what happens in the minds of men and women before, during and after sex in terms of hormones and neurotransmitters.
Desire
Sexual desire arises spontaneously or in response to a stimulus, which can be a partner or different events (touching, watching an erotic movie and pictures).
Spontaneous desire most often occurs with a new partner during the period of falling in love. In long-term relationships, attraction often begins with an erotic stimulus or a desire to be closer to a partner physically and emotionally.
The choice of a partner depends on various factors: the structure of society, the influence of culture, economic conditions and even a set of genes. Of course, we don't walk around with a pocket device for DNA analysis, but we do it unconsciously. According to the smell and physical attractiveness of the partner, we prefer those people whose genes responsible for the work of the immune system are as different as possible from ours.
Excitement
Arousal and desire are difficult to distinguish, but researchers prefer to separate them. Most often, arousal is understood as the physiological response of the body. For example, changes in the genitals due to exposure to a sexual stimulus. And arousal can occur even if a person initially had no desire to have sex.
The peripheral nervous system receives a signal during touching, kissing and other stimuli and sends it to the brain. The hypothalamus reacts to arousal – the area of the brain that controls the hormones of the entire body. It transmits a signal to increase testosterone production. It is more difficult for women and men with low levels of this hormone to get excited and get an orgasm.
In men, arousal is affected by the secretion of vasopressin, a hormone of aggression, memories and concentration in both sexes. However, in women, an increase in vasopressin, which is accompanied by anger and anger (for example, due to hassle and stress), on the contrary, discourages the desire to have sex. Vasopressin also narrows blood vessels, which is why it has such a name: vaso – vessel, press – to press.
In the female body, luteinizing hormone has a positive effect on arousal, the peak of which falls on ovulation – the period when the egg is ready for conception. Some studies claim that before ovulation, a woman's gait, voice, and even body odor change.
It is not yet clear how women's sexual desire is affected by taking contraceptives. A review of studies showed different results: most of the women did not feel any changes or noted an increase in libido, while some reported a decrease in desire.
Why do we want to have sex? Procreation is an evolutionary strategy of any kind. And for a person to have sex, it is enough to mark him with a sense of pleasure during and after this process, which is what the neurotransmitter dopamine does. The brain cells that produce it begin to work more actively in response to the stimulus, and the person feels pleasure. By the way, dopamine is associated not only with intimacy, but also with delicious food, study, music, gambling and drug use.
Arousal leads to the release of nitric oxide and norepinephrine. These substances increase blood flow to the genitals – an erection is triggered in men, the release of lubricant and an increase in the labia in women.
Plateau
The plateau phase is what happens between arousal and orgasm. If there is no orgasm, resolution comes after the plateau. In another way, the plateau phase can be called the highest degree of excitement. At this stage, the pulse and breathing continue to increase, the pressure and tension of the muscles increases, the clitoris becomes more sensitive, and the bartholin glands in the vagina secrete more lubricant.
The activity of different areas of the brain increases. One of them is the amygdala. It is responsible for the perception of visual images and emotions. During the plateau phase, activity in the brain area where memory is stored decreases. Probably, this is because at this moment we do not care about memories and emotions associated with them at all.
Orgasm
The most pleasant and shortest phrase. Women are a little more lucky, they have an orgasm, as a rule, lasts longer than men, besides, they can experience multiple orgasms, but men do not. But men have another advantage: it is easier for them to get an orgasm than for girls.
During orgasm, the hormone oxytocin is released, which leads to rhythmic muscle contraction and ejaculation. And the stronger the orgasm, the more oxytocin will be released in the body. After that, the nucleus accumbens in the brain rewards us with a good portion of dopamine – and we experience pleasure.
MRI of the brain showed that during orgasm, different areas of the brain turn on one after another – the amygdala (memory and emotions), the hypothalamus (unconscious control of the body), the anterior cingulate cortex (impulsivity and empathy) and the nucleus accumbens (feeling of euphoria). In total, about 30 brain regions are involved in orgasm.
Sex can be considered an analgesic. According to research, during vaginal stimulation and orgasm, sensitivity to pain decreases. Scientists claim that this mechanism facilitates childbirth.
Immediately after ejaculation, men need time (a refractory period) to have an orgasm again. During this period, neurons are simply not able to allocate the right amount of neurotransmitters. Women do not have to wait, they can have an orgasm many times in a row.
Permission
The muscles relax, the heart rate and breathing return to normal, and a pleasant fatigue spreads through the body.
After orgasm and ejaculation, a man cannot get excited again – the body needs to rest first. The recovery time (refractory period) is individual. Someone may get excited in a couple of minutes, someone may need several hours or a day. It depends on various factors. At the moment, it is known that the stronger the release of oxytocin and prolactin during orgasm, the longer the body will recover.
The release of oxytocin causes a sense of trust and makes us miss our partner. However, people with high testosterone levels may not feel the rapprochement, as this hormone suppresses the action of oxytocin. This is probably why there is an image of a "bad" guy who does not pay attention to a girl after sex.
Sources:
- Neurobiology of Sexual Response in Men and Women. Cambridge University Press, 1 Nov 2014.
- Gender differences in sexual motivation. The Journal of Men’s Health and Gender. Sep 2005.
- The endocrinology of sexual arousal. Society for Endocrinology, 1 Sep 2005.
- Endocrine Aspects of Women’s Sexual Function. NCBI, Jan 2010.
- Dopamine and Sexual Behavior. Elsevier, 1995.
- Neurochemical Aspects of the Sexual Response Cycle. Cambridge University Press, 1 Nov 2014.
- Pathways of Sexual Desire. The journal of Sexual Medicine, 30 Apr 2009.
- Prolactinergic and dopaminergic mechanisms underlying sexual arousal and orgasm in humans. Nature, Dec 2004.
- Functional MRI of the Brain During Orgasm In Women. The State University of New Jersey. 2005
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