When A Girl Squirts Is It Urine

When A Girl Squirts Is It Urine
The Best Fitness Deals to Shop on Prime Day
Don't Leave 'Thor: Love and Thunder' Right Away
Harry Jowsey Takes the Sexy Cosmo Quiz
Wanna Save Abortion Access? Sign Up for a Training
21 Affordable (and Actually Good!) Wigs on Amazon

This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

Carina Hsieh
Sex & Relationships Editor
Carina Hsieh lives in NYC with her French Bulldog Bao Bao — follow her on Instagram and Twitter • Candace Bushnell once called her the Samantha Jones of Tinder • She enjoys hanging out in the candle aisle of TJ Maxx and getting lost in Amazon spirals.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Harry Jowsey Takes the Sexy Cosmo Quiz
From the Cosmo Archives: In Convo with Julia Child
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
The Sexy Cosmo Quiz: Frankie Grande Edition
20 Tips and Tricks on How to Get Wet During Sex
Listening to a Stranger's Voice Gave Me a Huge O
Read a NSFW Scarlett St. Clair Excerpt!
Some Things to Consider Before Texting Your Ex...
Let’s Decode All Your Sexiest Dreams, Shall We?
46 Body-Language Signs That Someone’s Into You
15 Reasons Your Vagina Might Be Burning After Sex

We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we love. Promise.

You’re at brunch with your BFF (the one who overshares and you love her for it) when she mentions how her latest hookup made her orgasm so many GD times, she had to strip her sheets at 3 a.m. because they were soaking wet.
“Uh, you mean you peed your bed?” you ask.
“No,” she explains, “ squirting , as in gushing fluid during orgasm, is totally different from pee.”
And then you’re both whipping out your phones to prove each other wrong. But after scrolling through hundreds of articles, neither of you can find a definitive answer for whether squirting is urine or something else entirely.
Despite millennia of evidence that squirting is a very real thing that happens to some women and people with vaginas during sex (see the receipts below), so much about it still remains a big fat question mark. Experts have yet to come to a consensus on how, when, or why squirting happens—and, most importantly, whether or not it’s actual pee that comes out.
For starters, let’s take a 2013 study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine that estimates between 10 and 54 percent of women ejaculate fluid during sex . Okay, so either half of all people with vaginas do it…or almost none. Yeah, not helpful. There are a handful of other small, conflicting studies about the phenomenon, but doctors say way more specific research is needed, which makes it tricky to scream, “It’s pee!” or “STFU, it’s not pee!” at brunch with any kind of conviction.
The thing is, though, the world really, really wants to understand it. Perhaps thanks to porn—in which vagina-havers are often seen shooting out streams of fluid during foreplay and intercourse—curiosity over this sexual feat has reached an all-time high. ( Searches for “squirting” on Pornhub more than doubled between 2011 and 2017, and women are 44 percent more likely to look for this stuff than men.) Basically, it’s the Loch Ness monster of our sexuality: The less evidence there is about it, the more we want to know.
Oz Harmanli, MD , chief of urogynecology and reconstructive pelvic surgery at Yale Medicine, has reviewed much of the research on squirting. His personal conclusion? The liquid is urine that can be mixed with some sort of female ejaculate. But (eek) mostly urine.
Let him explain: Squirts often contain something called prostate-specific antigen , a protein found in semen, which suggests that women do have the ability to cum sort of like guys do. Some experts say that protein comes from the Skene’s glands , aka the female prostate, located on either side of the urethra. But, he adds, “there is no gland or reservoir in the female body, other than the bladder, that can produce the amount of fluid that is released with squirting.”
It’s the Loch Ness monster of our sexuality: The less evidence there is about it, the more we want to know.
So in the argument with your bestie, yeah, you probably have the edge. (Thank you, Dr. Harmanli.) Squirt is most likely urine and secretions from the Skene’s glands . But contrary to popular belief, squirting doesn’t only signal a great time (and it doesn’t define good sex—you can still have a killer orgasm without squirting). It may also point to urinary incontinence or, more specifically, coital incontinence , aka the inability to control your bladder during penetration or orgasm.
While standard pee leaks are typically a thing older women might deal with, coital incontinence may affect 20 to 30 percent of women of all ages, says ob-gyn Heather Bartos, MD . And it can be tied to the status of your pelvic-floor muscles, adds ob-gyn Morgan West, DO . When those muscles are strong, you have max control—your bladder and urethra are on full lockdown mode, so nothing is coming out if and when you don’t want it to. But when they’re weak or, you know, relaxed at the tail end of an intense tantric sexathon, the muscles may not be able to withstand the power of your orgasm, setting up the perfect (rain)storm of squirt.
Nope. Unless you or your partner are totally squeamish, squirting—and what exactly this love juice contains—is really NBD. Yes, you may need to clean up afterward, but don’t let that kill your vibe. Most people find even just the idea of squirting incredibly hot. And honestly, if someone is making you nut so hard that you’re legit losing all control over your own body and its functions…who cares about a little mess? You’ve now got one hell of a brunch story.
Elaine Ayers, PhD, an assistant professor of museum studies at NYU, on the historical confusion around women’s orgasmic secretions.
5th century BCE: The ancient Greek Hippocratic treatise On Generation inaccurately claims that women’s “semen” is necessary for conception.
4th century CE: A Taoist text mentions a female genital fluid that comes out during orgasm, totally separate from natural vaginal lubrication.
1672: Dutch physician Reinier de Graaf is the first to describe the “female prostate.” He says its function is to “generate a pituito-serous juice that makes women more libidinous.” Right….
1905: Sigmund Freud links an “abnormal secretion of the mucous membrane of the vagina” to “hysteria”—an old term for female mental illness. It’s bullshit!

Light

Dark

Auto

Slow Burn: Roe v. Wade
Highland Park
Brittney Griner
Inflation
Jan. 6
Guns
Monkeypox
Thor: Love and Thunder

Light

Dark

Auto

Content Locked

for Slate Plus members

About

About Us
Work With Us
Contact
Pitch Guidelines
Send Us Tips
Corrections
Commenting
Reprints

Subscriptions

Subscribe
Sign In
Account
Subscription FAQs
Podcast FAQs
Newsletters
Customer Support

Advertising

Site Advertising
Podcast Advertising
AdChoices
Cookie Preferences

How to Do It is Slate’s sex advice column. Send your questions for Stoya and Rich to howtodoit@slate.com .
I’m a 20s cis woman who either doesn’t orgasm or has really weak orgasms, possibly due to a medication I take. I’ve never had an unequivocal, earth-shattering orgasm, but I enjoy sex anyway. Sometimes a particularly thorough boyfriend or a vibrator will get me feeling way better than usual, and the sensation builds up almost painfully. Usually I back off, but today, I didn’t. I kept masturbating until I felt like I could release, but that release turned out to be … me peeing myself. And no, I wasn’t into it. I know some women “squirt,” but I didn’t experience euphoria and delight. I just felt turned off and a need to wash the sheets—unless coming is the exact same sensation as urinating and everyone’s been lying this whole time. I didn’t have a particularly full bladder before I started. What gives?
I can’t tell you what gives. You need to see at least one, if not two, doctors. First, you’ll want to speak with whoever prescribed this medication that may possibly be interfering with your orgasms. You should report this potential side effect, and if orgasms are important to you, you may want to ask about alternatives.
The other doctor you should see is a gynecologist. She can do an exam, ask all sorts of questions, and use her bucketloads of medical training to help you figure out what’s going on.
As for squirting, some women love it. Others resent it for various reasons—cleanup, pain, having to explain to partners. We still don’t have a firm answer on whether female ejaculate is pee ; some studies say it’s something else, while others have been done saying that yep, it’s totally pee.
While you’re waiting for these doctor appointments, you can experiment with your own two hands or a vibrator and collect data. Try getting up to pee just before you have an orgasm. Does fluid still come out? That’ll be useful information for your doctors.
And a note on orgasms: We’re conditioned to expect these earth-shattering waves breaking over one’s body, and that isn’t necessarily the case for everyone. If we expect fireworks all the time, we’re setting ourselves up for disappointment when all we get is a tiny splash. Try to focus on the sexual pleasure you do get, not what you imagine you should.
I’m a divorced straight man in my mid-50s. Since the divorce I’ve had a series of relationships (less than one a year) that have all come to an end within a few months. In each case I’ve never developed deep feelings, and the relationship always ends because she can feel that, or I can’t live up to the pressure of trying to meet the emotional needs of someone I’m not in love with. The reason I get into these relationships is that while I have a deep-seated need for touch and physical affection, I don’t really need anything else. But I do need that, and it drives me to find the next one. Mind you, I want each relationship to be the one, forever. But I’ve come to recognize that my odds of forming a relationship with someone I can really love are small, and I’m tired of hurting women, and tired of the emotional investment I need to put in to start a relationship to have it end.
Maybe someday the magic will happen, but I no longer expect it, and I just can’t bring myself to make that first move on a dating site anymore. In the meantime, I need an alternative to get the intimacy I can’t seem to live without. It’s not even sex; it’s just to have someone touch me, and someone to touch. I’d like to consider sex workers, but there are so many stories about how women are coerced into these roles that I can’t in good conscience go that way. Or can I? Is there a safe way to arrange transactions for physical intimacy where I can know the other person is truly a willing and unexploited participant?
Americans benefit every day from labor that is exploitative. So we need to draw a distinction between “acceptable” exploitation (someone providing a service, and someone profiting from it) and unacceptable exploitation (physical force or emotional manipulation). I wouldn’t think of sex work any differently.
Be clear about what you’re after. There’s no shame in seeing a sex worker for some PG snuggles. Treat your provider like you would any skilled service worker you hire—a construction worker, a lawyer, an accountant—and you’ll do OK.
One way you can address your worries is to stick to your provider’s boundaries—whatever they may be—and compensate her properly for the job without haggling. Don’t question whether the providers you see really enjoy their work, really enjoy their time with you, or really enjoy some other specific detail. If you must ask, you should prepare yourself to believe what the worker tells you about their willingness to participate in your sessions.
A sex worker–led website might be a good place for you to start educating yourself about what sex work is like and how sex workers are misrepresented in the media. My own website, ZeroSpaces.com , has two preview pieces up from sex workers of various sorts. You might check out Morrigan Eris’ essay “Meow” for a trip behind the scenes at a legal Nevada brothel.
Remember, most sex workers are trying to navigate our society as best they can. Sometimes we don’t like our jobs. Sometimes that’s because the system needs to change, and sometimes that’s because we’re experiencing burnout. Just like any other worker.
My wife and I decided a year ago that we won’t be having kids. Every form of birth control we’ve tried hasn’t worked out for various reasons. So basically we’ve just had “outercourse” for the past year. No penetration. Well, in a few weeks I’ll be getting a vasectomy. After I heal and have a confirmed zero sperm count, we plan on getting back to the good old days of penetrative sex. Do you have any advice for us as we relearn how to do it?
Congratulations! As various states in the U.S. make it more difficult for people with uteruses to access abortions, you’re doing the sensible thing—taking responsibility for your own baby juice. Bravo. You deserve a round of applause, as does anyone else with a penis undergoing the same procedure.
I think you’ll find that penetrative sex is like riding a bicycle: There’s a lot to balance, but your body tends to remember more than you might think it will. If you’re used to condoms and planning on forgoing them, you might find yourself more sensitive than in the past. Time and experience are the fixes for that, unless your wife is the sort of person to find early ejaculation somewhere between charming and erotic, in which case you’re already more than fine.
“Relearning” is definitely one way of looking at this situation. But I’d like to encourage you to do a little bit of reframing here; you and your wife have the opportunity to get to know each other’s genitals all over again. With pleasure as your navigation tool, you get to explore all the spots, angles, and techniques you can imagine. Enjoy yourselves. Keep notes if you’re feeling scientific. Focus on each other and express yourselves with your bodies. You’ll be great.
I’m a bisexual woman in her mid-20s living in the Deep South with zero dating experience. I have kissed three people total in life that have varied in intensity, but I’m still a virgin. I ultimately want to be in a relationship, but because of the high stresses in my life currently, I want to have sex without one. The thing is, the few people I’m out to in my life have encouraged me to seek straight sexual relationships. I want to have sex with men and women! Dating apps are hard to navigate, but I’m willing to try. I just can’t seem to decide how I should go about dating and sex.
That should word … as if there’s some template for new-bis to follow, or a map of queerness. The word should makes me twitch, but that isn’t going to stop me from using it on you: You should date and have sex in exactly the way that feels best for you.
You’re going to have to work that out for yourself. You’re probably going to make mistakes, and you might make some that stick with you. You’ll probably find yourself in uncomfortable positions at times, and you’ll need to navigate them. You’ll have to set your boundaries. You’ll try things you aren’t sure about, and you might like some of them.
Your friends who are encouraging you to date people of the opposite gender may be concerned about the stigma surrounding LGBTQ people. Passing is a privilege, and you’ll have to decide for yourself what the risk/benefit of being out is. If your area has LGBTQ meetups, it might be worth stopping by to meet some people in person. And there are always the dating apps and sites. Consider trying a few until you find what works for you.
Be upfront about what you’re looking for; from your letter, it sounds like you’re looking for hookups. Be cautious with whom you give your number to, and let a friend know whom you’re meeting, where your date is, and what time they should expect you to check in by. Remember that you can always slow things down if you get uncomfortable, you can always leave a date, and you can always block a number.
My new husband and I enjoy very rough sex. Unfortunately—in spite of efforts to keep quiet—my 12-year-old daughter overheard us. I got called in for a private meeting with her teacher outside of school hours. She told me my daughter heard her stepfather slapping me and was extremely upset. I was completely taken aback, not to mention embarrassed beyond belief, and couldn’t think of anything other than mutter that I was fine and everything was fine at home. Of course, this only made the teacher believe I was trying to cover up the “abuse” and told me repeatedly she was there to help when I was ready. I know I can’t just let my daughter continue believing her mother is being abused, and I really don’t want this kind teacher to be concerned over a complete misunderstanding. I just don’t know how to begin. Please help.
Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company.
All contents © 2022 The Slate Group LLC. All rights reserved.
Slate and our partners use cookies and related technology to deliver relevant advertising on our site, in emails and across the Internet. We and our partners also use these technologies to personalize content and perform site analytics. For more information, see our terms and privacy policy. Privacy Policy

Verywell Health's content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Ⓒ 2022 Dotdash Media, Inc. — All rights reserved

Verywell Health articles are reviewed by board-certified physicians and healthcare professionals. These medical reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. Learn more .

Medically reviewed by
Lauren Schlanger, MD

Learn about our
Medical Expert Board

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Answers to Your Questions About the Clitoris

The Skene's Glands Role in Urinary and Sexual Health

The Most Interesting Facts About Ejaculation

How to Soothe the Symptoms of Vaginal Dryness From Menopause

Urology and Sexual Anatomy Functions in Women

How the Male Reprod
Renata Davila Tube
Chezch Babes
Make Sure No One Is Around When You Play This Kinky Game

When A Girl Squirts Is It Urine

Report Page