Sex: The Stress Buster

With finals, work, doctor appointments, potty training, and school and just being a mom can cause a lot of pressure and stress. What better stress reliever than with the good old power of sex!

According to an article on About.com, they give examples how sex can help even the most stressed out mom. They list many scientific research about sex, stating that sex and physical intimacy led women to feel less stressed and be in a better mood the next day. Additionally they note that sex can lead to less of a stress response during challenging situations, such as when about to take test.

Aside from these scientific findings, sex has some obvious stress management components. In addition to effectively taking your mind off of your worries for a decent period of time, sex provides some of these other stress management benefits:

• Sense of Touch: Studies show that massage can be a great stress reliever. In fact, we need touch for our emotional health; studies also show that babies who are not touched enough can fail to thrive, and touch continues to be important into adulthood.
• Social Support: People who have a supportive social outlet tend to manage stress better, live longer, and enjoy increased overall health. The type of emotional intimacy that sex can help supply is good for you!
• Endorphins: Sexual activity releases endorphins and other feel-good hormones. 
• Physical Workout: Depending on your level of enthusiasm, you can burn a lot of calories during sex, and gain the stress management benefits of exercise as well.
• Deep Breathing: This deep, relaxed type of breathing relaxes your body, oxygenates your blood and reduces the stress you feel.

Orgasms Good For Your Health

We all know that sex is good but we might have underestimated HOW good it actually is for us. As per this article on About.com they examples of research that has been done that lists the many benefits of orgasms and why we should put them on our "Things To Do" list, no pun intended. Ok...pun intended

• A UK study which looked at the relationship between having frequent orgasms (two or more per week) and mortality in men. At a ten year follow up the researcher found that men who had frequent orgasms had a significantly lower risk of death than men who did not have frequent orgasms. 
• Several studies have hypothesized that hormones released during arousal and orgasm, specifically oxytocin and DHEA, may also have protective effects against cancer and heart disease. 
• Research has also pointed to the sedative and relaxing effect of oxytocin and other endorphins released during orgasm, which may explain why people use masturbation as a way to get to sleep, and why sex is a great way to deal with stress.

It’s also worth pointing out that orgasm and sex play in general can be a wonderful form of exercise. Frequent sex and orgasms can bring with it the benefit of other good cardio workouts.