How can I make my erections last longer?
As much as we’d like, there isn’t an instant miracle cure for erection problems like ED. If you want to know how to keep an erection for longer, there are simple steps you can take, as discussed.
That includes getting regular exercise, with a good mix of aerobic and strength exercise, avoiding recreational drugs and not smoking and sticking to the “low-risk” alcohol consumption guidelines. The more you perform good health practices such as these, the better your ability will be to stay hard during sex.
Erections happen because, in times of arousal, blood rushes to the penis and fills two muscular chambers known as the corpus cavernosum. Keeping an erection means that once the penis is filled with blood, the muscles at the base can constrict well enough to keep it there, ensuring you stay hard.
If you want to learn more about the severity of your ED symptoms, you can work out something called your International Index of Erectile Dysfunction (IIED) score, by doing a questionnaire. Knowing how badly you suffer with impotence can help inform the steps you take to keep your penis hard, and how to make an erection last longer.
The importance of stimulation
If you’ve ever wondered how you get an erection, or even how to get an erection on command, ensuring you live a healthy lifestyle is only half of what needs to happen. You also need to be aroused.
One of the biggest misconceptions about ED drugs is that they get you in the mood and stimulate you sexually, but this isn’t true. They merely help the blood vessels to dilate, allowing for blood flow into the penis.
When you’re turned on, the brain sends chemical signals to the penis. The blood vessels in the penis will dilate, allowing for blood to flow in. Once filled, the vessels at the base constrict which traps the blood, keeping you hard.
If you’re struggling with arousal, it can help to:
- make sure you feel comfortable and engaged
- remember that if you’re with a sexual partner, trust is key
- remove anything that might be distracting you
- make sure you give foreplay enough time
- talk to your sexual partner if you’re feeling anxious about sex.
Refractory period and erections
Why does ejaculating make your erections weaker? Why is it so difficult to stay hard, or erect, after coming?
Answer: the refractory period, which is defined as the period directly following an orgasm where the person is no longer sexually responsive. It’s more common in men, whereas in women it’s an area of more complex clinical focus. In men, the period can be thought of in two stages.
Stage 1: Following an orgasm, it is physiologically impossible to get an erection or ejaculate again.
Stage 2: A psychological refractory period may also occur, where the man feels fulfilled and no longer interested in sex.
How long does it take to get an erection again after ejaculating?
The refractory period is different for all men. Sometimes you may feel ready to go again in just a couple of minutes, but sometimes it can last hours or even days.
Longer refractory periods get more common with age, but other things can factor into how long they last, including cardiovascular health. It's also alleged that certain exercises or training techniques can reduce the refractory period, such as pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT). But this hasn’t been studied extensively.
It may also be worth speaking to a doctor or sexual health expert if you feel your refractory period is too long.