A man has told of the worrying toll that trialling a sex trend known as 'gooning' for seven days took on him.
Content creator Chris Ivan (@CITV) decided to give the bizarre practice a go for a week, in the hopes of showing 'the real dangers' that it can pose to people who partake in it.
For those who don't know, gooning is a bit of a step-up from a regular w**k. Those who get involved masturbate until they almost reach climax, before abruptly stopping to enjoy a euphoric, 'goon state'.
It's certainly an acquired taste, but a lot of men admit to doing it.
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Experts have also been warning that 'gooning' can lead to consequences such as developing a problematic relationship with porn and causing erectile dysfunction, but tons of people still do it.
Chris explained that he was already aware that overindulging in self-pleasure is quite the slippery slope, given that excessive masturbation is a problem that plagued him in the past.
He reckoned documenting his seven-day experience might get people to realise just how harmful it can be, as he opened up about the physical, mental and emotional impact it had on him.
He explained he hadn't consumed adult content for 'a long time' and was therefore 'insanely sensitive to it'. The YouTuber admitted that he used to watch porn 'every day, multiple times a day' when he was a teenager.
"It is meant to get you hooked like a drug," Chris said in the video. "But I think I can say this without a shadow of a doubt - there is not a single positive outcome that can come from watching porn or gooning consistently."
Day one
After his first gooning session of the week, he hit quite a slump in the afternoon and admitted he 'felt like his life force had been sucked out of him'.
Although he was typically quite a jolly bloke, the social media user said he felt sleepy, less energised and cranky - and confessed that the idea of gooning again was the only thing that seemed 'enticing' to him.
"The idea of exposing myself to that content again seems very enticing, because overall I don't feel as good as I did before I exposed myself to that content," Chris told his 26,900 subscribers.
Day two
The following day, he woke up to find that his brain 'felt like mush', while he also noted that he had 'less awareness'. Chris also admitted that he was having second thoughts about going through with the gooning experiment.
Explaining the complex emotions he was dealing with, Chris said: "There's a temptation to view the content and then in the back of your head, you know, it's like, 'Hey, I probably shouldn't'. But you still do. I just feel so guilty. I hate this for myself because I know it's just not healthy. "
He felt 'like garbage' and 'a shell of the person' he was at the start of the week, while saying he was 'already disappointed in how big of an effect this had' so early on in the experiment.
Days three to seven
On day three, Chris said he woke up late and had noticed 'spontaneous negative self-talk' and was 'genuinely struggling'. He said the 'guilt' of regularly watching porn was 'eating him alive'.
Over the course of the next few days, this continued for Chris. He explained that daily tasks he was previously content with completing suddenly felt like 'a chore', as his mind was constantly thinking of porn and self-pleasure.
But even when he did give in to the urge, he explained that it 'made him feel normal rather than great' and said that it 'isn't even exciting anymore'.
Chris said his mood did slightly improve at some points, but overall, gooning didn't do his wellbeing any good.
Looking back
Reflecting on the week, he said that he 'wasn't in the mood to do anything' for the seven-day period, while minor inconveniences were extremely 'frustrating' for him to deal with.
A month on from his experiment, Chris said he couldn't believe how 'vastly different the quality of his life is' in comparison to when he was consuming porn and gooning.
He told viewers that he wasn't trying to 'glorify' gooning with the experiment, but wanted to demonstrate 'how easy it is to slip into addiction and how quickly something 'harmless' can start controlling your thoughts, mood, and habits'.
"It’s here to show the real dangers, the mental pull, the excuses your brain makes, and what it actually took for me to stop," Chris added.
Doctor explains if you can masturbate too much
Dr Jen Claude stressed on her YouTube channel in a 2024 video that 'masturbation actually can be a very healthy part of overall life and fulfilment', adding: "Certain people masturbate multiple times a day, some people masturbate only certain times every few months, depending on whatever."
While insisting there is 'no top limit threshold', she said masturbation becomes a problem if it interferes with your life, relationships and career.
She said: "In certain situations you can see how masturbation becomes compulsive, in which case we say that you need to be evaluated, you need to discuss this with a licensed professional, okay?"
Topics: Sex and Relationships, YouTube, Adult Industry
Olivia Burke