For some, the ordeal will be at an end but for others the clock is ticking down until they’ve cleared the month of November and can go back to jerking it without feeling like a failure.
I am, of course, talking about the end of No Nut November, for as we travel into the final month of the year, a bunch of men around the world have been once again challenging themselves to keep their hands away from their glands.
While there’s a bit of a debate over the health benefits, those who actually partake in this self-imposed challenge swear by the upsides to abandoning onanism.
Even as health experts say there’s a plethora of positives to cranking one out on a regular basis, many of those who’ve done it say it makes them feel ‘really good’ by the end of the month. That’s because they reckon it boosts their physique and they enjoy the feeling of ‘self control and patience’ that comes with sticking to the challenge.
The objective is pretty simple, just get through the month of November without having a w**k.
Depending on where you are it’s either no longer November or it’s about to be, so do you feel better? (Getty Stock Photo)
For those who’ve made it all the way through, feel free to give yourselves a hand and a vigorous round of congratulations, wherever you choose to place that hand is really up to you.
Those who’ve completed the challenge in the past have said it makes them feel ‘accomplished’ at having made it through the entire thing, which they believe has resulted in them becoming ‘mentally stronger’.
As for what No Nut November does to your body, doctors have said that abstaining from masturbation could boost a bloke’s fertility but wouldn’t bring many other tangible benefits.
Those in the medical say that regularly cranking one out can lead to you having better sleep, a boost in hormones that make you feel good, a decreased heart rate and a drop in stress.
Do you feel better or worse after that month without masturbation? (Getty Stock Photo)
On the other hand, if you’ve made it through No Nut November successfully then don’t you feel like you’ve accomplished something?
You entered into a challenge that nobody forced you to undertake where your greatest opponent was yourself and you made it, what this has proved, if anything, is up to you but you set your mind on a specific goal and accomplished it.
That’s got to feel good on some level, and now you get to join the ranks of the millions of men who also completed No Nut November.
It does feel good to defeat a challenge, doesn’t it?
Here is how to get rid of the dreaded ‘blue balls’ as the ‘No Nut November challenge’ nears the end of its first week.
In case you somehow haven’t looked at a calendar for the last couple of weeks, it’s November – which has for some reason has been re-christened as the month in which men across the globe decide to forgo sex and masturbation.
We’re now five days into No Nut November, which means anyone embarking on the 30-day abstinence challenge will now be well aware of the side effects.
And yes – we’re talking about the infamous ‘blue balls’.
Don’t worry, your downstairs won’t look like this (Getty Stock Images)
What are ‘blue balls’?
If you’ve ever lost sleep at night wondering whether or not blue balls is a real thing or myth then look no further, as we’re about to tell you exactly what the phenomena is.
Known medically as epididymal hypertension, blue balls is a condition in which a man experiences pain or discomfort when becoming sexually aroused without orgasming, which is caused by increased blood flow to the genital region. Symptoms can include a strange ache, a feeling of heaviness, or straight up discomfort in their testicles.
The skin may also get a slight blueish tinge, however, we’re glad to report the rumours of your gonads resembling Papa Smurf are very much a myth.
Given how the condition is likely to cause you pain, the first thought of anyone experiencing blue balls – perhaps this is the reason why you’re reading this – is most likely ‘how the hell do I get rid of them’.
Fortunately for you, that’s the next section of this article.
How to get rid of blue balls
The experts over at Verywell Health have kindly complied a list of a few different DIY ways in which you can banish the dreaded blue balls – some of which are more practical than others.
According to the guidance, the (second) easiest thing you can do to remedy epididymal hypertension is to jump in a nice cold shower, as cool water can help reduce any genital swelling.
There is a very simple way to be rid of blue balls, but you won’t want to hear it (Getty Stock Images)
However if standing under a freezing shower sounds a little too painful, then you can always make do with a cold compress.
Next on the list is exercise, as working out can help divert the flow of blood from the testicles to other major muscle groups and around the body.
But you may look a little bit strange going for a run or hitting the gym if you’re, ahem, still pitching a tent.
Should the above not the be to your fancy, taking anti-inflammatory painkillers will also help, however, it may be worth seeking medical advice first.
As for the most simple solution? That would be masturbation, which is unfortunately off the table until 1 December.
The month of November has arrived, which means one thing – apart from a cheeky Snickers, no nutting is allowed.
For around a decade, millions of men around the world have been joining in on the bizarre challenge which requires them to abstain from ejaculating for 30 days – which for most lads, is a big ask.
There’s plenty of debate surrounding it all, with experts being left divided on whether there is any actual benefit to doing it.
Some people take part to test their level of self-control, while others reckon it gives their mental health and testosterone levels a boost.
But boffins have also warned that it could be a ‘really dangerous’ thing to take part in for certain people, so the jury is still out on the success of No Nut November (NNN) on a whole.
You might be wondering why on earth a load of blokes would want to run the risk of being plagued by ‘blue balls’ for an entire month, and it seems out that a legendary US sitcom might be to blame.
A lot of people are convinced that an episode of the ‘show about nothing’ which aired a whopping 32 years ago – in the month of November, of course – might have inspired the challenge for men not to masturbate this month.
The earliest record of No Nut November on the world wide web is an Urban Dictionary entry which was first published in 2011, but it only became popular on social media about six years later.
Still, whichever fella who came up with the w*nking-related challenge about 13 years ago had to be influenced by something, right?
And according to a lot of people on Reddit, it was Seinfeld co-creator Larry David who was the inspiration for it.
Seinfeld fans reckon an episode titled ‘The Contest’ might have inspired No Nut November (NBC)
The comedian, 77, is the mastermind who came up with the humorous script for the eleventh episode of the fourth season, titled ‘The Contest’, alongside Jerry Seinfeld.
For those who haven’t seen it, it follows friends Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer as they each attempt to outdo each other by abstaining from masturbation for the longest time.
Despite it’s strange subject matter, ‘The Contest’ is considered as one of the best episodes of Seinfeld ever and it scooped a series of awards – including an Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series for David.
The comedian previously revealed where he got the idea for the episode during a chat with Variety – and it turns out, he had tried out the competition himself before getting his Seinfeld co-stars to do it.
He explained that while living in New York in the 80s, he ended up having a bet with one of his mates about how long they could last without masturbating.
Larry David came up with the hilarious plot for the 1992 episode (Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images)
The Curb Your Enthusiasm star said: “I can’t believe I have to discuss this at my ripe age. I don’t remember what the bet was. There must have been some money involved. I think it was a small amount.”
“[The contest lasted] two days,” David continued. “Maybe three. I just remember it didn’t last very long. I was surprised at how quickly it ended. I won handily, yes.”
Eagle-eyed fans of the show picked up on this little tidbit of information so obviously, a host of people took to Reddit to heap praise on both the actor and Seinfeld.
One said: “The cast of Seinfeld did ‘No Nut November’ before it was cool,” while another wrote: “No f**king way!”
A third added: “And won an award for it!”
While a fourth laughed: “‘Treating his body like an amusement park’ is stuck in my head forever.”
Maybe sticking all nine seasons of Seinfeld or thinking about Larry David could be the secret to making it through No Nut November, eh lads?
A scientist has revealed the surprising difference between men and women when it comes to their ‘appetite for sex’.
Social psychologist Dr Sarah Hill has explained why different genders tend to look at sex differently, from an evolutionary point of view.
The US-based professor appeared on The Diary Of A CEO podcast to talk about the dangers of birth control pills, from ‘sabotaging sex to axing attraction’.
Evolutionary social psychologist Dr Sarah Hill has explained why women and men see sex differently (YouTube/The Diary Of A CEO)
But during the November 25 episode, she also opened up about an old study conducted by the University of Florida involving a male and female model who would purposely approach strangers on campus.
“What the researchers did is they had a male and female model, so a really attractive person approached strangers on campus and they would introduce themselves,” Dr Hill said.
“They would just say ‘hello, I’ve been noticing you around campus and find you very attractive’.
“And after they made this introduction, they would then follow this with one of three requests.
The Diary Of A CEO host Steven Bartlett (YouTube/The Diary Of A CEO)
“It would either be ‘would you like to go on a date with me, would you like to go back to my apartment with me, or would you like to go and have sex with me’.”
The study found was that for both men and women, 50 percent agreed to the date.
But what they discovered was that very few women said ‘yes’ to going back to the apartment with that person.
“And a full zero percent of women said that they would go back and have sex with the person,” Dr Hill continued.
“This isn’t what they found for men, right?
“For men, what they found was that men were more likely to agree to go back to somebody’s apartment with them than they were to the date.
“And men were most likely to agree to just have sex, almost 80 percent of men agreed, ‘Yeah I would love to go and have sex with you,’ and the men who said ‘no’, usually were in a relationship.”
Dr Hill noted that women are less reluctant to have sex with men because of the evolutionary fact that they can get pregnant, leaving ‘a minimum investment of nine months time in pregnancy and then subsequent time spent breastfeeding’.
“So for women who were sexually opportunistic, in other words, willing to consent to sex without strings or investment, women would have been penalised for that because throughout most of our evolutionary history that could result in a pregnancy,” she added.
Whereas men who ‘consent to sex without commitment, that’s an evolutionary win’.
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Male contraceptives have been nothing more than a pipe dream for too long after hormonal tablets caused side-effects.
But now, the first non-hormonal tablet for men is being trialled and one of the developers has squashed the most common fear men have about it.
Of course, we have condoms, femidoms, implants, pills and injections – predominantly focused on being used on women to stop pregnancy.
But calls for a male pill has proved to be quite difficult to manufacture… well, up until now.
Inventor Dr Gunda Georg, from the University of Minnesota in the US, has worked on a contraceptive pill for men for the last 20 years and feels that its animal trials have been successful, and that it’s release is ‘rewarding’.
It is the first of its kind not to contain hormones and has an apparent 99 percent effective and 100 percent reversible ability.
Having been tested on mice and monkeys, it was found to lower the sperm count and return back once withdrawn from the system.
A male contraceptive pill is in development, and one of the scientists behind it is feeling confident. (Getty Stock Image)
Now, it’s moving onto its next phase, which is the human trials, which will see a group of 16 men who are enrolled at a clinic in Nottingham, UK taking the pill to see how it fares.
But there have been a number of concerns, including the matter surrounding sexually transmitted diseases.
Speaking to broadcaster Petrie Hosken on TalkTV back in December, Dr Georg swatted away those concerns and spoke about her confidence in the drug.
Hosken pointed out how many use condoms solely to prevent pregnancy, and if a man was taking the pill, the chances of condoms being used would potentially become much more slim as ‘people wouldn’t want to use both’.
Dr Georg clarified: “This drug is not going to prevent sexually transmitted diseases, so types of precautions still have to be taken.
Dr Gunda Georg addressed the concern over sexually transmitted diseases. (TalkTV)
“But think about it, there are of course many people who are in committed relationships and for them, I think it would make a lot of sense.”
And another big concern Dr Georg addressed was regarding the pill’s ability to bring sperm levels back to normal once the user stops taking it.
She said: “Any time you give a drug to the first person there’s always the concern there could be something happening that was not anticipated from the safety studies in animals.
“We have pretty good evidence that this is a safe drug because we have tested it already in non-human primates, and that’s as close as you can get.
“Many drugs are going to clinical trial without going through the non-human primates, but that’s why we feel really confident about the drug.”
She explained that during the trial with monkeys, ‘the sperm count was lowered’ and ‘then when the drug was withdrawn, the sperm counts came back.’
A male contraceptive pill could be a huge game changer for many couples. (Getty Stock Image)
So, it should replicate the same results with men too.
While she said you ‘never know what’s going to happen’ when the first person takes the pill, she doesn’t expect any negative outcomes from the drug.
Instead of reducing testosterone, this new drug uses an inhibitor to block a protein that absorbs the vitamin A needed to make sperm.
