Rape and Orgasm?

Discussion in 'Human Science' started by Bowser, Apr 29, 2016.

  1. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    So I ran into a video yesterday that claimed 80% of rape victims experience orgasm during the assault. I've never consider it possible, so I Googled it and this is one link I found...
    http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-05/science-arousal-during-rape
    I mentioned it to my wife and she hit the roof, claiming it was some crazy bs that I was reading. But no, I was reading Popular Science. So now I have to consider the possibility that our bodies react on instinct. Though there doesn't seem to be hard statistics regarding the number of people who actually are aroused during sexual assault, there seems to be growing evidence to support the idea.

    It's just something that I would never imagine possible, so it caught my attention. A curiosity, I guess.
     
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  3. origin Heading towards oblivion Valued Senior Member

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    deleted - I don't want to have anything to do with this demented thread.
     
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2016
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  5. Randwolf Ignorance killed the cat Valued Senior Member

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    Personally, I'm stocking up on the popcorn and awaiting the arrival of Bells and Tiassa.

    Speaking of, this quote of T's from a few hours ago seems appropriate: "But in the end, it's like everything else in the purity cult: Any excuse to focus on people's genitals. Any excuse to think about perversity."
    http://www.sciforums.com/threads/the-great-restroom-debate.156117/page-9#post-3377702


    Bowser: The only thing I have to say is "Go have your prostate massaged - preferably by an 80 year old male doctor - then report back here."
     
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  7. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    Why is it that so many people no longer know the difference between perversity and perversion?

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  8. billvon Valued Senior Member

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    I don't get either the fascination or the surprise. Yes, of course your body reacts via reflex and instinct; instincts help keep us alive and help propagate the race. And of course that has nothing to do with the crime of rape.
     
  9. Bells Staff Member

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    Your link redirects to the front page and I was unable to find the actual article.

    To answer your question, yes, you can become aroused and you can orgasm during rape. This happens to both men and women who are raped.

    It isn't because the rape itself is enjoyable.

    It is a physiological response which the victim has absolutely no control over. It is an involuntary reaction.

    The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a division of the peripheral nervous system that influences the function of internal organs.[1] The autonomic nervous system is a control system that acts largely unconsciously and regulates bodily functions such as the heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, pupillary response, urination, and sexual arousal. This system is the primary mechanism in control of the fight-or-flight response and the freeze-and-dissociate response.[2]

    Within the brain, the autonomic nervous system is regulated by the hypothalamus. Autonomic functions include control of respiration, cardiac regulation (the cardiac control center), vasomotor activity (the vasomotor center), and certain reflex actions such as coughing, sneezing, swallowing and vomiting. Those are then subdivided into other areas and are also linked to ANS subsystems and nervous systems external to the brain. Thehypothalamus, just above the brain stem, acts as an integrator for autonomic functions, receiving ANS regulatory input from the limbic system to do so.[3]

    The autonomic nervous system has two branches: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.[4] The sympathetic nervous system is often considered the "fight or flight" system, while the parasympathetic nervous system is often considered the "rest and digest" or "feed and breed" system. In many cases, both of these systems have "opposite" actions where one system activates a physiological response and the other inhibits it. An older simplification of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems as "excitory" and "inhibitory" was overturned due to the many exceptions found. A more modern characterization is that the sympathetic nervous system is a "quick response mobilizing system" and the parasympathetic is a "more slowly activated dampening system", but even this has exceptions, such as in sexual arousal and orgasm, wherein both play a role.[3]

    Some studies have found that the response in women are reflexive, a preparation, if you will, for sexual penetration. What they call the preparation hypothesis:

    Some researchers have suggested a functional hypothesis for the non-specificity and automaticity of female genital arousal. Because increased vaginal blood flow is a precursor to vaginal lubrication (Levin, 2003), nonspecific and automatic genital responses in women may serve a protective or preparatory function, readying women for sexual intercourse whether it is desired or not (Chivers, 2005; Laan, 1994; Laan & Janssen, 2007; Suschinsky et al., 2009; van Lunsen & Laan, 2004).

    But there are some restrictions to this hypothesis, because it does not always happen in women and women tend to respond less to sexual violence cues in the study itself. Which the paper discusses in detail.

    It needs to be noted that sexual arousal or orgasm is not indicative of consent. At all. The Levin paper can be found here. It is the only site that published the paper in full if you do not have access behind the paywall.. The paper itself is well worth the read.

    In short, it is possible (and does happen) to feel aroused even though your mind and brain feel repulsed, pain or disgust.

    Which of course can and does later lead to feelings of self hatred because the body betrayed the mind in automatically responding to the physical stimulation, even if the victim does not want or is repulsed by said sexual stimulation, in instances of rape.

    Experiencing sexual arousal or orgasm during a sexual assault is likely under-reported and almost never discussed due to the obvious embarrassment, confusion, and potential response from others – wouldn’t any type of arousal mean the victim accepted and/or enjoyed the sexual assault? It is a sad reality that society often engages in victim blaming and frequently responds inappropriately to survivors of sexual abuse; however, a victim is never responsible for being targeted and sexually abused by another person – even if physical arousal may have occurred during the assault. It is an evolutionary fact that genital arousal (i.e., increased blood flow to the vagina or penis) is linked with our sympathetic nervous system, which also controls our fight or flight response. So, for some people when they are frightened (as would occur during a sexual assault), there is increased blood flow to the entire body, including the genitals, which may cause genital (physical, not mental) arousal – and, just like our fight or flight responses, this physiological response is not within our conscious control. It is important to note that this is true for both males and females – a male obtaining an erection during a sexual assault does not mean the male consented to or enjoyed the abuse, simply that his body experienced an ingrained evolutionary response to physical sexual stimulation.

    This information is extremely important for professionals who work with survivors or perpetrators. Survivors commonly blame themselves for the abuse they experience and this can extend to the arousal they experienced against their will. Providing education and information about the physiological aspects of sexual arousal, primarily that sexual arousal can be an automatic response such as breathing, pupil dilation, or eye blinking, may provide context and help survivors heal.

    It is sad and somewhat tragic, that I find myself wanting to make sure that you understand that this response is not indicative of pleasure or consent..

    What I can say is that I am surprised that you are surprised by this..
     
  10. Bells Staff Member

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    Tsk.. tsk..

    Honestly, what do you think we are?

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    ????

    Actually, don't answer that..

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  11. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    Actually I suspect this fact - that physical arousal is not necessarily indicative of pleasure or consent - is not widely appreciated. I wonder if this may play a role in a certain amount of "date rape". Might be good for more people to be aware of it.
     
  12. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    The article that I tried to link to used tickling as an example. Though the individual is laughing, they are actually being tormented.
     
  13. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    That sounds like a very good way to explain it to a teenager, certainly.
     
  14. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    How would you describe it to an adult? I thought it a very good description. Anybody who's been held down and tickled to tears can relate. Granted, it's not the same violation as is a rape, but it gives it some kind of idea as to the natural reaction and the actual mental state.
     
  15. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    I just had in mind that the teenage years are when errors of judgement regarding the opposite sex are common, due to lack of experience, so a bit of education at that stage seems a good idea. No doubt it is a good image to use with adults as well.
     
  16. Bells Staff Member

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    I can say with certainty that it is absolutely horrifying.

    The worst of it is that even in this day and age, when questioned by police, some will ask victims about it and victims often feel as though they were being judged or that the officer believes the victim enjoyed it. And I have seen some officers actually argue that it cannot really be rape because the victim 'got off on it'.. It gets worse in court when the lawyers for the accused ask these questions and then try to play it as though it was consent, because the victim had an orgasm or became aroused, which leads to further despair for the victim.

    The feeling of betrayal from one's own body is not an easy thing to live with. And until people start to understand it more, understand that the victim isn't enjoying it, that it just adds to their pain and torment, that it is not something they can control, it will forever torment victims.. Many victims are actually ashamed and won't even speak of it, out of fear that people believe they enjoyed being raped. That it can't really be a rape if they had an orgasm.. Despite the fact that the arousal and/or orgasm itself is not something that the victim can control. It is the the body responding to stimulation, while the brain of the victim rebels against it.. It is one of the tragedies of rape and I have seen many victims destroy themselves because of it.

    Is there an evolutionary basis to this, in that is the preparation hypothesis correct? Possibly. But we know that the response is absolutely involuntary and that the response can happen even if mentally, the victim is repulsed by it.

    How would you describe it to an adult? With absolute honesty. Without judgement. Explain that the body will respond to stimuli even when the person is repulsed by it. That it is not something that the victim can control or has any control over. And explain just how damaging that is to the victim mentally and psychologically. Because I can tell you now, it is devastating and is not something that a rape victim gets over easily and haunts them for a long time. We may know we have no control over that response, but it doesn't make it easier to accept or understand.

    I do think it plays a role in it.

    A lot of literature about rape, especially aimed at victims in schools and universities, also comment on this happening, advising that it is normal to become aroused or orgasm during a rape and reiterating that it is just the body's response and in no way lessens the crime that has been committed.. In that regard, people are trying to make others aware. But there is always that feeling of being judged, or feeling of guilt for the victim when it happens. Especially when they report their rape or sexual assault and the police officer questions them and asks them if they had an orgasm or enjoyed it.. That's even worse.

    There is a lot of education that needs to be done in regards to rape. This is just one part of it. But people do need to become aware of it and do need to understand the science behind the body's response.

    I think a lot of people believe that arousal and orgasm has to be when one is enjoying the contact. But that isn't the case at all. The body will respond to any type of contact, even if it is not pleasurable or wanted contact.. The tickling example is a good one. We laugh or respond even when we do not want to and we aren't enjoying it.

    And it is sad to say, but some rapist get off on that. Some rapists believe that their victim enjoyed it or wants it if they become aroused or notice that their victim is aroused. It just gives the rapist more power over them, or makes them feel more powerful, that they have brought their victims to heel. It is actually very sadistic.
     
  17. exchemist Valued Senior Member

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    Interesting. There is no doubt of the sense of achievement and, I suppose, power that one gets from giving sexual pleasure to someone - though normally, i.e. between genuinely consenting adults, this is, I should hope, quite innocent. It has often seemed to me the giving of pleasure is more rewarding that receiving it...Hmm...

    But it's complex....ah well, dem days is over for me -perhaps it's just as well. But food for thought here for what I tell my son in due course.....

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