Female ejaculation – commonly known as “squirting” – has been a subject of interest right back to ancient times. Back then, however, it wasn’t a puzzle or taboo. The philosopher Aristotle, who was kicking around Ancient Greece more than 300 years BC, matter-of-factly observed that when women ejaculate, they produce far more liquid than men. And the Kama Sutra, the Hindu sexual text written around 200-400 AD, called the product of squirting ‘female semen’. It’s clear that for some of our ancient sisters ejaculation at orgasm was a normal part of sex.
As with so many aspects of women’s sexuality, however, over the last two millennia female ejaculation became a taboo subject. Then in the mid 20th century its existence was even denied by early sexual researchers and was written off as just incontinence (charming!).
In recent years the pendulum has swung the other way and the act of squirting has been over-sensationalised. It is often misrepresented and unhelpfully faked in porn – leading to bans by film classification boards in some countries. Sometimes squirting can even be overly-fetishised as an essential part of sex. Which of course, it’s simply not!
Thankfully, scientists are now using new techniques and equipment to conduct research into many aspects of female sexuality, helping us to become far better informed and gain both a real understanding and an appreciation of our bodies. Several years ago the scientific spotlight was turned on the wonderful internal clitoral organ, and in the last few years it’s turned to female ejaculation.
It’s incredibly important to emphasise before we go any further that your experience as a woman may very well be that you love sex, you get intensely turned on and you orgasm, but you don’t squirt. That’s both great and normal.
Only a third of women recently surveyed report ever having squirted, and many of those had experienced it only once or twice. Some people found it an intense experience that enhanced their sex lives, while others really didn’t enjoy it. As with everything to do with sex and bodies, there’s a vastly wide spectrum of what constitutes ‘normal’, and there’s a huge range of preferences too.
The purpose of this piece most definitely isn’t to create any pressure, but rather to highlight the latest research and to explore ideas for women who would like to know more. Partners of women who are reading this are also reminded that it’s never appropriate to put a partner under sexual pressure or make them feel that their experience is ‘wrong’, so just don’t do that!
What science says
In a 2014 quest for the definitive low-down on female ejaculation, some French scientists decided to study orgasming women with scanners. Yes, really! They recruited women who reported easy and copious squirting and got them to empty their bladders, have an ultrasound scan, bring themselves close to orgasm, have a second scan, and then orgasm and ejaculate. The fluid that was squirted was collected and analysed, and finally the women had a third scan.
Results showed that by the second scan, the women’s bladders had refilled even though they hadn’t had a drink, and the third scan showed empty bladders. So the squirted fluid clearly did come from the bladder – BUT the fluid analysis showed that for the majority of those women, the fluid also contained a substance called PSA. That’s an enzyme secreted by the Skene glands, thought by some scientists to be structures akin to the male prostate.
Other studies have shown that some women who don’t experience that kind of copious, wet squirting do instead express a small amount of milky white fluid at orgasm – thought by many scientists to be the Skene gland ejaculate on its own.
As a thoughtful September 2016 article by sex expert Dr David Delvin explains, G-spot stimulation seems to be the key sexual experience that results in female ejaculation. And as he also says, it would really help to develop our understanding if a much larger study could be carried out. (Any scientists out there want to take up the challenge?)
Stimulate your G-spot
If the idea of squirting excites you and you want to up your chances of it happening, you need to become acquainted with your G-spot. It’s an area of the front wall of the vagina, and for many (though not all) women it’s located a couple of inches up and has a different, rougher texture than the rest of the vaginal wall. You may be able to feel it when you insert your fingers into your vagina, and a sexual partner (who can get their fingers in at an easier angle) is even more likely to be able to feel it too.
By getting yourself thoroughly aroused first and then pinpointing your G-spot with deliberate stimulation, you might find that you orgasm and ejaculate in one of the two ways described earlier. Practise can only be a good thing, as it will lead to lots of pleasurable times whatever the result! Just don’t put yourself under any pressure – simply relax and enjoy some solo pleasure sessions, or sex with a partner who’s on the same wavelength as you. On a practical note, you might want to have a towel handy in case you experience a gush.
The best sex toys for G-spot stimulation are ones that are especially designed with a curved shape and enlarged tip to literally hit the spot. There are hundreds of ideal toy options out there, some of which are amazingly likelife vibrating dildos.
But G-spot toys can work just as well if they’re non-vibrating or non-realistic, so if you’re not a fan of buzzy things, or you don’t like the appearance of lifelike sex toys, don’t think that G-spot stimulation isn’t an option for you and therefore squirting is out. Stylish toughened glass toys such as the Lovehoney Ribbed G-spot Sensual Glass Dildo or even wands in shimmering steel make an investment in your G-spot pleasure that could just lead to a lifetime of happy squirting fun.
Helen Self is a blogger and sex toy expert who writes for Lovehoney Australia. You can see a list of their best-selling products here.
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