Syntribation: The ‘secret’ female masturbation technique you probably haven’t heard of

Many women discover this method of masturbation at an early age especially if they grew up in environments that forces them to be secretive about their sexuality.

Syntribation is a way of masturbating by crossing or squeezing one’s thighs tightly together
© Getty Images
Syntribation is a way of masturbating by crossing or squeezing one’s thighs tightly together

So it’s been established that many women do not attain the big ‘O’ through penetrative sex. As creative as the female species is, women have developed a myriad of ways to take care of some of their most intimate needs by themselves, after all, you are your best and trusted messenger.

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But what comes to mind when you think of female masturbation? You may well be picturing manual stimulation—touching one’s sel—or perhaps a vibrator. However, there are so many different ways that women masturbate which are not as obvious but just as fun and effective.

These methods are hardly depicted in porn or talked about (sadly, female masturbation is still quite a taboo topic) so the women who indulge in them may feel unsexy or weird attaining pleasure through these means. One of such is syntribation.

What is syntribation?

It is a way of masturbating by crossing or squeezing one’s thighs tightly together. It is hands- free, does not require any tools and can be done with clothes on or naked. Some women who have exhibitionist fantasies confess to doing it in public. That is possible because it simply involves crossing the legs and grinding one’s hips back and forth subtly or otherwise.

According to some sex therapists, many women discover this method of masturbation at an early age. In particular, children who grow up in an environment that compels them to be secretive about their sexual feelings, begin to figure out inconspicuous ways of stimulating sexual pleasure without using their hands, thus not drawing attention to themselves.

Syntribation may not be a common method used during those intimate solo sessions, but for the over 4,000 members of the Reddit community dedicated to it, it is a huge part of their lives. Many of them are just glad to know they are not alone and that there is a name for it.

Concerns over non-PIV Orgasms

A running theme in those threads is the concern that syntribation makes it difficult or in most cases impossible to orgasm any other way. Many of the women worry that they may have destroyed any chance of them climaxing during penetrative sex.

Some sex therapists advice women whose only source of orgasm is through this method, to spend more time exploring sexual feelings that come from manual stimulation of different erogenous areas of the body while departing from their preferred method. They warn that it could take time to develop other methods of receiving pleasure especially with a partner, but it can be done.

However, others suggest as long as the goal of reaching an orgasm is achieved at the end of the day, there is no need to stop. In other words, do whatever works for you. Do you, girl!

Read more:

Syntribation: Here's how to masturbate without your hands

Masturbation: This commonly used technique is actually very harmful

Mindful masturbation: What is it and how can you do the sexual act?

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