The Dangers of the "NoFap" Community

Article by Maya Vukovska

In Denmark, there is something called “Ædruary”, also known in English as “White January”, “Dry January”, or the “Dropless Month.” Basically, it is about abstaining from alcohol consumption in order to cleanse your body after the heavy-drinking period during the ho-ho-ho-holidays. So, when I heard for the first time about No Nut November, or NNN, I was curious: What exactly are you supposed to give up during that month? Walnuts? Peanuts? Almonds, perhaps? Wrong guesses. For those of you who are just as blissfully unaware as me of the internet tradition that goes by that name, it’s an annual challenge of male sexual abstinence during the month of November. It started in 2010, and due to social media, it's become huge. Originally, this internet challenge was intended to be satirical, a fun thing, but then, people started taking it seriously. In fact, far too seriously! The Reddit-hosted NoFap community, which actually inspired the movement, grew from 16,000 subscribers in 2018 to 52,000 in just one year. Soon, similar groups started popping up encouraging men to become “fapstronauts” by abstaining from jerking off and watching porn for a certain period of time. Abstinence, they claim, helps you reboot your sexual energy and, what’s more, helps you control and even end your porn addiction. Thus, you will become a better version of yourself - more self-confident, more desirable, and more sexually potent. Everything that “Reboot” movement is “selling” to its followers sounds amazing, but does abstinence really does the wonders that are being attributed to it? Clinical studies have shown that it, in fact, has quite the opposite of the beneficial effects on body and mind. Brand new research published in the reputable journal Sexualities earlier this year suggests that, contrary to the intention of “rebooting” to decrease distress, it paradoxically causes more distress. 257 of all the recruited participants in the research confessed to have tried abstaining with the purpose to “reboot” themselves. Of special interest to the researchers were, however, those men who have relapsed. They were asked how they felt after breaking the oath not to masturbate. Surprisingly, or not surprisingly at all, those “guilty as charged” fapstronaunts reported feeling overwhelmingly ashamed, sad, and even suicidal! So, instead of listening to people who talk bull about abstinence’s “miraculous power” to cure erectile disfunction, porn addiction, and whatnots, give yourself a hand. Literally. Because masturbation has long proven its benefits on one’s physical and mental health. Remember when, in your early teen years, there would always be some grouchy old aunt who’d kindly remind you that touching yourself down there “in an ungodly way” will cause you to grow hair on your palms, or to go blind? Many ridiculous myths, such as these two, come from back in the days when people believed sex was only meant for procreation. But everyone who’s tried it аt least once keeps coming back for more. And that's perfectly understandable given that masturbating releases feel-good neurochemicals that boost your mood in a way a whole bucket of chocolate couldn't. In addition to feeling heavenly pleasurable, masturbation also makes you harder. Let me elaborate a bit on this one. As you age, your muscle tone lowers, and the process affects every inch of your body. Regular sex or masturbation, though, is the perfect workout for your pelvic floor muscles. What’s more, keeping your penis busy prevents erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence. Other health benefits of masturbation are lowered prostate cancer risk, improved skin condition, and… wait for it!… increased lifespan. Welsh researchers dedicated twenty years of their lives to testing that last hypothesis. The conclusion they eventually came to was that men who had two or more orgasms per week died at half the rate of men who would permit themselves that pleasure only once or twice per month. The bottom line is: Anyone in their right mind should avoid nonsensicle and not scientifically-grounded body challenges promoted by social media. Instead, listen to your body because it knows best what is good for it. And one of the things that are really good for it is beating the beaver. Choking the chicken. Flogging the dolphin. Milking the cow. The best part is that no animals are actually hurt in the process.