Depression after losing virginity (Is it possible?)
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Author bio
The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
In this article, we will answer your query of ‘Is it possible to suffer from depression after losing virginity?’. In addition, we look at a few reasons why people suffer from depression after losing virginity, what is virginity, and the bodily changes after having sex.
Is it possible to suffer from depression after losing virginity?
Yes, it is possible to suffer from depression after losing virginity.
This comes to our surprise as well. Sex is the biological need of a human. Sexual intercourse is usually associated with the release of happy hormones like serotonin and oxytocin, which helps you keep in happy and a relaxed mood. Sexual intercourse is associated with pleasure and satisfaction.
However, research has shown that post sexual intercourse for the first time, men experience a boost in their self-esteem, whereas women feel worse about their body image. Various tweets on losing virginity were on the lines of – “After losing my virginity, I became more concerned with how my naked body looked”.
Another survey of 434 US college students, aged 17-19, was in the Journal of Adolescence by Professor Eva Lefkowitz, of Penn State University, said: “It’s striking that when young women had sex, their self-image went down. They feel worse about themselves.”
On the other hand, there have been studies that prove the majority of teens do not experience depression after losing their virginity. Only a few do. Among these girls around the age of 15 who have low emotional stability are see to be suffering from depression after losing virginity. It was believed by the researcher that due to the combination of various factors, these teens are vulnerable to depression after losing their virginity. It was seen that girls who had sexual intercourse for the first time in a relationship that was not emotionally strong or dissolved, were more vulnerable to depression after losing their virginity. For girls in uncommitted relationships, ending a relationship with sex has more of an impact on mental health than ending that same relationship if it did not involve sex.
Therefore it is seen that it is usually the female gender that experiences or feels depressed after losing virginity. In boys, some of these concerns go as they may have insecurities about the size of their penis.
What is virginity?
Now that we are talking about virginity, let us first understand what it means.
When we talk about losing our virginity, we are usually referring to the action of having penetrative sexual intercourse. This means that a man’s penis enters the woman’s vagina.
However, the definition of virginity may be difficult to explain as it differs from person to person and culture to culture. Not all people have penis-in-vagina intercourse. For them and for others, virginity loss may refer to their first time with oral sex, anal sex, or sex using fingers or toys. Some people feel that they have lost their virginity multiple times, by having different kinds of sex.
However, the widely accepted notion of virginity is penis and vagina intercourse.
Why do people suffer from depression after losing virginity?
Here are five important reasons why one would suffer from depression after losing virginity.
- They might have not been ready
- Hormonal changes
- Social stigma attached
- It does not go as planned
- Concerned about your self-image
Losing your virginity, that is having sex for the first time, is considered to be a very important thing in the life of a teenager. It is very important the decision of losing virginity is taken very cautiously. However, this can also depend on individual to individual. Some people choose to live spontaneously and also lose their virginity in the spur of the moment. They do not think of sex as the sacred bond between two people. Rather they believe sexual intercourse to be a form of attaining pleasure. To them, sexual intercourse is the mere satisfaction of their physical needs.
Below is the explanation of the above-mentioned reason why one would suffer from depression after losing virginity.
They might have not been ready
Teenagers often do various things under peer pressure. Only becomes everyone around them is having a kind of sexual relationship, they would too wnt to do that. In addition, the period of adolescence is filled with hormonal changes that make a person want to try new things irrespective of the fact that they are ready or not. If you happen to lose your virginity too early in life, when you are not ready to face the consequences of it, you may feel depressed. Virginity is something that once lost, cannot come back. You cannot go back in time and stop the act of losing your virginity. Therefore, if you make a decision that you might not be ready for, it can lead to depression.
It is quite possible that you might have made this decision while you were completely drunk. Or under the pressure of your horny boyfriend. Situations like these are oftentimes associated with depression after losing virginity.
Hormonal changes
After losing virginity, the body goes through various changes that can be seen or not, which I will talk about in the latter part of the guide. However, hormonal changes are quite often the reason that one may feel depressed after losing their virginity. These hormonal changes can make you feel both happiness and sadness at their extreme. After the rush of hormones goes down, you may feel a little sad or depressed as a result of the hormonal imbalance.
Social stigma attached
We live in a society, where people, especially girls who have lost virginity in a non-marital relationship are often addressed with foul words such as a slut or a hoe. Having said this, the blog does not believe in anything like that. However, society does put pressure on girls to maintain their virginity for the one right person, who they will marry. Therefore, it is quite possible that this social stigma attached to losing virginity can make you feel depressed. You may start to think if what you have done is right or wrong. Religions all around the world ban sexual intercourse before marriage. This is an essential reason why girls feel depressed after losing their virginity.
The guilt they live with, the horror they face, the pressure they have to deal with are unimaginable. Being a girl in this society is not easy. It is a brave thing. But with these shackles, even the bravest might fall at least once.
It does not go as planned
Like mentioned before, having sex for the first time is considered to be quite special by many people. They might want it to be perfect. A good dinner followed by a romantic moment, with candles lit and soft jazz music playing in the background. So many girls plan for the perfect moment to have sex for the first time. In any case, if you have such expectations, that you have the perfect moment with your boyfriend, it is not wrong. Nevertheless, if it does not happen, and you lose your virginity in a completely opposite manner, you may feel depressed.
In addition to this, some girls might want to have sex for the first time with the right person. If your relationship changes or dissolves after having sex, you may feel used and certainly feel depressed. Having a strong emotional bond with the person you lose your virginity to can reduce the chances of getting depressed to a great extent. The idea that someone is loving you for who you are after seen the rawness in you, can make you feel great. It releases various happy hormones and reduces the chances of depression.
Concerned about your self-image
As we have seen above that various girls feel highly conscious about their body image after losing their virginity, we can say that this might be a very important reason one feels depressed after losing virginity. A few girls tend to overthink what the guy must have thought of their body. They at times also feel ashamed to be completely naked, because they are highly conscious about their body image. If you are not confident about the way your body looks, there are quite high chances that you may fall into depression after losing your virginity.
What happens to your body when you lose your virginity?
Sex can cause various changes in one’s body. Below lie a few prominent changes in a girl’s body after they have sex.
Vaginal changes
Your vagina becomes more flexible. It is believed that your vagina is rigid when you are a virgin. Having sex can open up your vagina and the clitoris. Repeated penetration makes it more elastic and reduces pain. This also makes penetration more pleasurable. However, this doe not mean that repeated sex will harm your vagina or loosen it completely. Remember, your vagina has the capability of pushing an entire baby out and still remain intact, a penetration can do no such harm.
Changes in the breast
Post sexual intercourse your breast size might shoot up to 25 % or more depending upon the arousal levels. You might have to buy a slightly bigger bra than what you normally wear. The increase in breast size is because of the hormonal changes that take place in the body after you lose your virginity. The arousal increases the blood flow to your breasts causing them to swell and become firmer.
Nipples
After a sexual encounter, nipples tend to get tingly and sore which increases the sensitivity. This so happens because sex triggers more blood flow to the breasts, areola, and nipple. This is a temporary change that accompanies arousal and will go away afterward.
Hormones
During sex, your brain releases lots of chemicals, including endorphins and the hormones dopamine and oxytocin. Oxytocin is sometimes called the “love hormone” or the “cuddle hormone.” This cocktail of powerful neurochemicals can make some people feel trust or a very strong bond with the person they had sex with. There will be a rush in these hormones making you feel extremely happy and satisfied.
Conclusion
In this article, we have answered your query of ‘Is it possible to suffer from depression after losing virginity?’. In addition, we looked at a few reasons why people suffer from depression after losing virginity, what is virginity, and the bodily changes after having sex.
FAQs: Depression after losing virginity.
What is depression?
Depression is the most common and prevalent mental health disorder. It is usually categorized as a mood disorder by DSM-5. People with depression, face extreme sadness, loss of pleasure or interest in activities, loss of sleep, appetite, and extreme fatigue. These are some common symptoms of depression.
What is the right time to lose virginity?
This is indeed a subjective question. The decision to losing your virginity depends on you. Some prefer to wait for the one right person, while others believe that it is a mere way to satisfy one’s physical needs. Nevertheless, one must at least be an adult that is over the age of 18 to think about losing their virginity.
Does being a virgin affect your health?
People who start having sex at a younger or older than average age appear to be at greater risk of developing sexual health problems later in life, a new study suggests.
References
https://thefrisky.com/girl-talk-why-do-girls-get-depressed-after-losing-their-virginity/
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326122#what-happens-to-the-body
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