Recent research indicates that self-stimulation may serve as an effective non-pharmacological method for managing symptoms associated with the menopausal transition. The findings suggest that while masturbation is an under-discussed topic in medical settings, many women report it aids in sleep regulation and mood stabilization. These results were published in the journal Menopause.
Menopause brings a variety of physical and psychological changes that can significantly disrupt daily life and workplace productivity. Common symptoms include sleep disturbances, mood volatility, and genitourinary issues like dryness or pain. Hormone therapy remains the primary medical treatment for these issues.
However, usage rates for hormone therapy have declined over the last two decades due to health concerns and contraindications. Consequently, there is a distinct need for accessible, low-risk management strategies that can supplement or replace pharmaceutical interventions.
“Most women going through menopause experience a range of symptoms, some of which are considered highly disruptive and negatively affect everyday quality of life. Hormone therapy can be a great option for treating them, but usage rates are low and not everyone has access to care, which presents a need for more options that are affordable and accessible,” said study author Justin Lehmiller, senior research fellow at the Kinsey Institute, host of the Sex and Psychology Podcast, and author of Tell Me What You Want.
Previous scientific literature has established links between sexual activity and physiological benefits. For instance, orgasm releases neurochemicals such as endorphins and oxytocin, which can blunt pain perception and promote relaxation. Additionally, genital stimulation increases blood flow to the region, potentially oxygenating tissues and countering atrophy.
To investigate whether these known physiological mechanisms translate into symptom relief for women undergoing menopause, the research team recruited a demographically representative sample of women residing in the United States. Participants were gathered through opt-in internet panels to match census data regarding race, age, and geography. The initial pool included 1,500 women between the ages of 40 and 65.
To focus specifically on the menopausal transition, the researchers excluded premenopausal respondents from the final analysis. The final analytic sample consisted of 1,178 participants. The researchers categorized these participants based on their menstrual history over the preceding year.
Those experiencing cycle changes but who still had at least one period were labeled perimenopausal. Those without a period for at least a year were labeled postmenopausal. This distinction allowed the team to compare experiences across different stages of reproductive aging.
The survey presented a checklist of fifteen potential symptom management strategies. Options included lifestyle changes like diet and exercise, medical treatments like antidepressants and hormone therapy, and sexual behaviors including masturbation. Participants indicated which strategies they currently used.
Analysis of the data revealed that approximately 61 percent of the participants had engaged in masturbation within the past year. When asked about symptom management specifically, about 10 to 13 percent of the women identified regular masturbation as a strategy they actively employ. This usage rate was lower than lifestyle interventions such as exercise but higher than medical interventions like hormone therapy.
Participants rated the effectiveness of each strategy they utilized on a five-point scale. The data showed that women who used masturbation for symptom relief rated it as highly effective. In terms of perceived benefit, it ranked similarly to partnered sex and higher than many other common strategies such as supplements or Kegel exercises.
This pattern of high efficacy held true for both perimenopausal and postmenopausal respondents. The researchers also sought to identify which specific symptoms were most responsive to self-stimulation. Perimenopausal women reported the greatest improvements in mood swings, irritability, and difficulty falling asleep.
Postmenopausal women similarly identified sleep initiation as a primary benefit. They also reported relief from vaginal pain and bloating, though these were less common than sleep benefits. Qualitative responses supported these statistical findings, with women describing feelings of relaxation and reduced restlessness.
“We found that a sizable number of women reported that self-pleasure positively impacted menopausal symptoms, especially those related to changes in sleep and mood,” Lehmiller told PsyPost. “Compared to other methods of symptom relief, masturbation was rated as being one of the most effective, which points to its potential as a way of managing certain symptoms and potentially augmenting other forms of treatment.”
“For instance, to the extent that hormone therapy enhances desire and reduces vaginal dryness and pain, it may make masturbation more comfortable—and masturbation, in turn, may provide additional benefits, such as by making it easier to fall and stay asleep.”
The authors note that the specific benefits of masturbation appear to align with its biological effects. For example, the release of oxytocin and dopamine during sexual arousal helps regulate mood. This offers a plausible explanation for why psychological symptoms were frequently cited as improving.
Similarly, the physical relaxation that follows orgasm may directly address insomnia. Sleep disturbances are among the most disruptive complaints during menopause. Finding a non-drug method to address sleep latency could improve overall quality of life.
A significant portion of the survey addressed communication with healthcare providers. The results indicated a substantial gap in doctor-patient dialogue regarding sexual health.
“Only about half of menopausal women in our study said that their doctor had ever even talked to them about menopause, which is pretty shocking,” Lehmiller said. “Menopause isn’t some rare or uncommon thing—every woman will experience it at some point. The fact that so many women say they aren’t hearing about it at all from their doctors is problematic to say the least because there’s so much that can be done to alleviate symptoms and enhance quality of life.”
Less than 8 percent of participants reported that their physician had ever discussed masturbation with them. Despite this lack of professional guidance, a large number of respondents expressed openness to the idea. Approximately half of the perimenopausal women stated they would be willing to try masturbation as a treatment if a doctor recommended it.
The study also explored potential negative effects. A very small minority of women reported that masturbation worsened their symptoms. Exploratory analyses suggested this was associated with poorer overall health or difficulty achieving orgasm.
For women with genito-pelvic pain or other chronic conditions, sexual activity might exacerbate discomfort. This highlights that masturbation may not be a suitable strategy for every patient. Individual health contexts play a significant role in determining the viability of this approach.
Qualitative data provided additional context to the statistical figures. Women were given the opportunity to describe their experiences in their own words. Many described masturbation as a form of self-care that reconnected them with their bodies.
Some participants explicitly mentioned the “use it or lose it” concept regarding vaginal health. They felt that regular activity helped maintain elasticity and lubrication. Others focused on stress reduction, noting that it served as a release valve for daily anxieties.
As with all research, there are some limitations to consider. The study relied on self-reported data, which introduces the possibility of recall bias. Participants were asked to remember past symptoms and behaviors, which may not always be accurate.
Additionally, the cross-sectional nature of the survey means that it captures a snapshot in time rather than tracking changes over a long period. This design allows for the identification of associations but cannot definitively prove that masturbation causes symptom relief. It is possible that women with fewer severe symptoms are simply more likely to masturbate.
The sample was limited to women in the United States. Cultural attitudes toward female sexuality vary significantly across the globe. Consequently, these results may not generalize to populations with different social norms regarding self-pleasure.
Selection bias is another potential factor. Women comfortable participating in a survey about sexual behavior may differ from those who declined. This could potentially skew the prevalence estimates of masturbation usage.
“I’ve seen a few comments on social media that seem to minimize the findings,” Lehmiller told PsyPost. “Specifically, some people point to the line that nearly 1 in 5 menopausal women had noticed that self-pleasure provided symptom relief as evidence that it only works for a small number, but that’s an inaccurate conclusion.”
“A substantial number of women in the study (22.5% postmenopausal and 12.5% perimenopausal) said they’d never masturbated, which means they wouldn’t necessarily know whether self-pleasure has an effect. Of the others who had masturbated, they might not have consciously connected self-pleasure to menopause symptoms because many people are not aware of the full range of symptoms (in fact, many discussions of menopause only focus on one symptom: hot flashes).”
“Consistent with this idea, when we asked later on in the survey whether masturbation had improved specific symptoms of menopause and gave a full list, nearly half of perimenopausal and one-third of postmenopausal women reported improvement in at least one symptom. Those aren’t small numbers.”
Future investigations could benefit from experimental designs. The researchers suggest that randomized controlled trials would provide more robust evidence of efficacy. Longitudinal studies tracking women through the menopausal transition could help clarify the timing and magnitude of any benefits.
Further research might also incorporate physiological measures to objectively assess changes. For instance, tracking sleep architecture or hormone levels could validate self-reported improvements. The researchers have conducted preliminary follow-up work suggesting a link between masturbation and vagal efficiency.
“We partnered with Womanizer again this year on an intervention study to more closely explore the link between masturbation and menopause symptoms,” Lehmiller explained. “We are preparing the findings for publication in a scientific journal, but a preliminary report is available here (PDF).”
“We recruited a sample of peri- and post-menopausal women and tracked them for 3 months while they underwent a masturbatory abstinence phase, a period of masturbating with their preferred method, and a period of masturbating with a clitoral sex toy. We found that reports of most menopausal symptoms went down when participants were masturbating regularly (3-4 times per week) compared to when they abstained. This longitudinal design provides us with more definitive evidence that masturbation does seem to have a positive effect on menopausal symptoms.
“As part of this research, we also did a small psychophysiological study to better understand why masturbation has these effects, and we found some support for the idea that masturbation (particularly with a toy that targets the clitoris) is linked to enhanced vagal efficiency,” Lehmiller continued.
“Vagal efficiency is a measure of the brain-body connection. The vagus nerve connects the brain to all of your vital organs and regulates key body functions, such as heart rate and blood pressure. We think part of what’s going on here is that masturbation may be enhancing vagal tone—and this, in turn, may be reducing stress, improving mood, and facilitating sleep.”
“Something else we found in this study is that the effects of masturbation on menopause symptoms were strongest for women who reached orgasm regularly. This suggests that another part of the benefit here has to do with the neurochemicals released upon orgasm (e.g., oxytocin, serotonin), which may also assist in falling asleep, getting better quality sleep, and just feeling better overall.”
The study, “The role of masturbation in relieving symptoms associated with menopause,” was authored by Justin J. Lehmiller, Cynthia A. Graham, Louise Ferrall, Emily A. Mendelson, and Merissa S. Prine.
