Semen... Good for You?!

Kary, T.  (2002).  Crying over spilled semen.  Psychology Today, September 2002.

This article discusses how women who have unprotected sex are actually less likely to be depressed and attempt suicide.  Although we have learned from Reeve (2005) that sex is one of our physiological needs, due to the hormones released from our hypothalamus (p. 89), Kary describes a study that expands this to include that semen contains additional hormones.  The study also demonstrates that these hormones are absorbed, and have been shown to increase mood.

Gallup's study used 293 college women.  The major findings were that, not only does unwrapped sex decrease depression and suicide attempts, but that once women have unprotected sex, they become more and more depressed the longer they don't "get some."  Interestingly, however, women who always used condoms don't have the same affect when a time lapse occurs between sexual encounters.

Even more important, Gallup's finding that women who had been having unprotected sex tend to search for new partners more quickly suggests that the hormones in semen can create a chemical dependency.

In our text, Reeve (2005) discusses how our hormones (androgens, estrogens) motivate our behavior to engage in sexual activity.  He also discusses that there are significant differences between men and women - basically, men have higher arousal and desire for sex than women (p. 90).  This article, then, is different and important, because it goes a step further to suggest that, in addition to having sexual urges, once we fulfill our need for sex, there are physiological changes that take place that reinforce sexual behavior.  

This article can be found at www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200210/crying-over-spilled-semen