Scarleteen

Hi, guys; I'm sorry if this post is a bit long... I've had this on my mind for a long time now and I really just want to sort things out. I'll try to keep it a reasonable length

So I'm a 15 year-old girl, and I'm really anxious to set the record straight about "clitoral desensitization". A couple years ago, I read some article-type information online that said that the frequent use of a vibrator or shower-head water on the clitoris would numb sensation and damage the nerves. Now most people seemed to think that this was just a myth, but a good number of people stood by the idea that the clitoris could become desensitized from too much stimulation and claimed that this was even more likely to happen if you were regularly masturbating in those ways at a young age, since you would become acclimatized to the intense feeling and basic touching or rubbing would no longer feel pleasurable because those can't provide the same intensity.

When I read this, I completely freaked out. I was 13 then, and before even hearing about this desensitization theory, I was already experimenting with vibration and shower-head water, and on a pretty frequent basis too. I started to get really scared that I had accidentally hurt myself, and my mom wasn't sure whether or not clitoral desensitization was possible. So just recently I found this site, did some reading, and was reassured by multiple sources that the masturbation methods I had experimented with were perfectly normal and common, which relieved my fears about that. However, I still haven't been able to shake the idea that I could have "overdone it" somehow, and caused possibly permanent damage.

I can't tell if my sense of feeling has changed at all over the years; sometimes I think I may have lost some sensation, other times I feel pretty sure that I haven't. I honestly don't know. What I do know is that the constant fear that I hurt myself (or could hurt myself in the future) from too frequently using "too intense" stimulation has prevented me from enjoying masturbation at all, even though I can climax. At this point, I'd rather find out that I did accidentally hurt myself than keep endlessly worrying, never knowing one way or the other. So that's why I'm asking you guys: is clitoral desensitization possible, and if so, is it likely that I caused it by masturbating "too often" or with "too intense" methods?

I want to say a big thanks in advance for any help, and for reading my long post

Hi CrimsonCat,

The short answer is nope, you cannot desensitize or hurt yourself from masturbating frequently. With the showerhead, as long as you aren't directing a spray of water into your vagina, you can't hurt yourself by doing that. There is simply no data to support the idea that masturbating a certain way causes loss of sensitivity. For a more detailed answer, check this out:
http://www.scarleteen.com/article/advic ... ensitivity

That being said, bodies and their sensitivity to certain things can vary from day to day, depending on all sorts of factors, including the state of mind you're in. So that's likely why you find your sensations varying between the times you masturbate.

Thank you so much!! Thanks especially for the link, though; I did try to see if the answer to my problem was already somewhere on the site before posting, but I guess I just didn't look in the right place. The detailed info is much appreciated. And wow, do I ever feel so much better now... knowing better than false information means no more being scared by it!

You're welcome, and I'm glad you found it helpful