Last updated on August 7, 2023
Question:
Hi,
I’m 28 and I always thought that masturbation was wrong and never really struggled with it, but I do experience “wet dreams” now and again. A couple of months ago I had my first ejaculation while I was awake while reading some material and diagrams that were just explaining the process of arousal, etc. Also, I had a couple this last week. One was when I was reading a book by a Christian author that was talking about some of the junk that’s being taught to our young people in public schools. And then another one while I was reading some of the resources from your website and help for people who may have problems because of being uncircumcised. This was after reading your book. I think I can say that I wasn’t lusting or thinking about sinful acts when they happened and I fight with God’s grace to keep my mind pure. But it seems like, maybe, just thinking about the facts and process that takes place in sex has caused arousal which later led to uncontrolled ejaculations. Is this considered masturbation? And should I stay away from reading things that may arouse me because they talked about sex, etc? To make it clear, there was no porn or anything like that involved.
Answer:
Let’s talk about the mechanics first. A male produces semen constantly once he gets old enough. The seminal vesicles can only hold about 3 or 4 ejaculations worth of semen before they can’t hold any more semen. The old semen has to be ejaculated to make room for more. As the seminal vesicles get full, hormones are released that raise your arousal level which makes ejaculation more likely. Many guys experience wet dreams but not everyone is able to have wet dreams. A few guys drip semen into their urethra when aroused and it gets flushed out the next time they pee. If these methods don’t keep up with the production of semen, then the body will spontaneously ejaculate semen.
What you experienced was a spontaneous ejaculation. I would suggest that the reason you got interested in sexual topics was due to your rising arousal. A spontaneous ejaculation is not masturbation. Masturbation is using physical stimulation to trigger an ejaculation. Technically, wet dreams involve physical stimulation while sleeping but most guys don’t realize what has happened. It sounds like you weren’t involved in physical stimulation, so you had not masturbated.
What you need to also realize is that when your arousal levels rise, you will find yourself gravitating to sexual topics and even if you manage to avoid them, you will still experience either a wet dream or a spontaneous ejaculation.
Question:
Thanks for your timely response. It makes sense. I appreciate it.