I remember my first prostate orgasm fondly. I was in my haphazardly assembled IKEA bed using the Loki Wave (a fucking incredible prostate massager from LELO). The sex toy was bigger than I was used to, so it took some time, writhing, and enough lube to baste a Thanksgiving turkey in order to get comfortable. As I rolled my hips to get a better sense of the toy, I’d finally felt confident turning it on.
I’d never experienced anything as intense before and once I started stroking, my body tensed fruther, my toes curled until they were nearly cramped, and I’d had my very first prostate orgasm.
When I did, my eyes rolled in the back of my head almost immediately. My body seized in ecstasy and my spirit up and left my body. I’d never experienced anything as intense before and once I started stroking, my body tensed fruther, my toes curled until they were nearly cramped, and I’d had my very first prostate orgasm. After I cleaned up, I treated myself to a joint and a delicious platter of nachos.
Admittedly, the journey leading to my first prostate orgasm is a long one, wrought with internalized homophobia, fear of judgment, and misleading preconceived notions. It follows a similar path to the prostate, considering much of what has kept us in the dark about its pleasures is bigotry.
When we’re taught about the prostate in school, we’re told that it secretes and propels a fluid that both nourishes and protects the sperm in semen during ejaculation. While this is a fact, we aren’t told that the prostate is also one of the most powerful sexual organs in people born with penises. It’s so powerful, in fact, that the gland is often compared to the G-Spot in people with vulvas, hence its more colloquial term: the P-Spot.
Now, why would our schools leave out this pertinent piece of information? Well, because the prostate is primarily accessed through the anus (though it can also be accessed externally via the perineum) and butt stuff is what? GAY! While most of modern society knows that our asses don’t possess a sexual orientation, our sexual education doesn’t reflect that.
In 2019, a survey of over 80,000 American students found that only eight percent of students receive LGBTQ-inclusive sex education in school, which makes sense considering only 12 states require discussion of sexual orientation. Five states still allow negative information about homosexuality pushed in these lectures, and while 39 states (plus Washington D.C.) do require HIV education, only 18 mandate that it is medically accurate. What’s more, zero states currently mandate discussion of gender identity in sex education.
Since school is where we begin learning about sex, we carry on with our lives not knowing the carnal pleasures hidden between our cheeks, resolving that anal sex is for gay men and any curiousity in anal play means that you are undeniably gay.
Sodomy laws were re-written against gay people in the late 60s, making headway in the 70s. According to the ACLU, these laws were inextricably used against queer people in a number of ways, whether it was to limit our ability to raise children, to deny custody of our own children, to refuse us to adopt, to justify firing us, and/or to deny equality. Sodomy is still illegal in 12 states.
Though anal sex can be traced as far back as 2300 B.C.E and the prostate was first formally identified in 1536, it isn’t until 2014 that we see public descriptions of prostate-induced orgasms in academic and clinical research.
Though anal sex can be traced as far back as 2300 B.C.E and the prostate was first formally identified in 1536, it isn’t until 2014 that we see public descriptions of prostate-induced orgasms in academic and clinical research. Prior to that, such literature only spoke to the prostate’s function during a penile orgasm and as a means to prevent prostate cancer. Most of this research began in the late 60s and started making significant strides more than a decade later.
Though there were appearances prior, the late ‘90s and 2000s was the first time we ever witness anal sex in media in a way that isn’t exclusively gay or taboo with films like Monster’s Ball (2001), Nyphomaniac (2013), and groundbreaking moments like the pegging scene in Broad City (2015). Around this time, popular men’s magazines began publishing articles glamorizing male behinds, like this one from GQ on proper posterior grooming methods. Suddenly people with penises were no longer ashamed of their asses, but taking pride in them.
A recent survey of 880 Americans from intimate care brand Future Method found that 32 percent of men have received anal sex and 10 percent of straight men have tried pegging.
As mainstream representation continued to grow, people began understanding that anal and prostate stimulation was for anyone and everyone who wanted it…and a lot of people did. A recent survey of 880 Americans from intimate care brand Future Method found that 32 percent of men have received anal sex and 10 percent of straight men have tried pegging.
This eventually became reflected in our choice of sex toys. An analysis of over 1,000,000 sex toy sales found that butt plugs account for 40 percent of male sex toy purchases and that single men purchase more dildos than any other demographic. In an article titled ‘The Great Prostate Rush,’ Mashable wrote that “We’re living in the golden age of prostate massagers,” reporting that sex toy brands across the board are reporting a steady increase in prostate massager sales.
For example, Aneros, the first brand dedicated entirely to prostate massagers, reported a 40 percent increase per year between 2012 and 2018, adding that this sudden demand birthed a bevy of butt-centric brands like b-Vibe, which launched in 2016. Mashable also reported that large sex toy retailers like Babeland have grown their offering from one or two prostate-stimulating devices to nearly 30.
This market shift occurred concurrently with the wellness movement boom, which also had a heavy hand rebranding sex toys from novelty items to beneficial tools for your bodily and mental health.
Mainstream media brought curious consumers to retailers’ doorsteps, an opportunity brands have seized to further educate through advertising, how-to guides, video tutorials, training sessions, workshops, and other creative means. This market shift occurred concurrently with the wellness movement boom, which also had a heavy hand rebranding sex toys from novelty items to beneficial tools for your bodily and mental health.
The benefits of prostate massage are real. They’ve been shown to protect sperm (which is great if you’re trying to conceive), cleanse toxins from your reproductive system, reduce pain and swelling in the prostate, alleviate long-term erectile dysfunction, and can make orgasms feel up to 33 percent stronger. Massage also encourages blood flow to our genitals which can help prevent erectile dysfunction.
As we continue showing interest in the prostate, we will continue to see more research and innovation in the space to more effectively satisfy our sexual needs. After decades of neglect, the prostate is finally getting the recognition it deserves, and it is no doubt a sign of scientific progress, but social progress as well.
