Masturbation has plenty of benefits and has been deemed healthy, but, as we’ve pointed out a few times recently, there are times when it might be a bit too much of a routine, with a few signs showing when a guy might be doing it more than he should. Still, for all intents and purposes, stroke away, guys, because it’s normal to masturbate a few times a week.

While we gave you some masturbation life hacks the other day, we figured the next thing to do is to educate you on some masturbation side effects, giving you even more info about one of your favorite hobbies. Don’t worry, unlike some other habits you have, these aren’t necessary terrible for your health, but they are something you should know — because, well, why not? Sex education is in session, thanks to some info from Mashable, so take some good notes.

The aforementioned Mashable article talked to scientists, medical doctors, clinical sexologists, and sex educators to see exactly what happens when you masturbate, and we’re really happy that we now know this info.

Why can’t you pee immediately afterwards? Dr. Myrtle Wilhite — a physician specialising in sexual health — says this is something that affects people with penises and vaginas because the “same neural arousal system” controls the bladder and “moderates the process of sexual arousal.” Meanwhile, the sympathetic nervous system is in charge of retaining urine in the bladder to make sure you don’t like, pee when you’re having sex or — if you have a penis — when you ejaculate. Why can’t people with penises carry on masturbating after they come? This is because they have a refractory period, the period of time it takes to regain sexual sensitivity. “This reduced sensitivity lasts until the body has regained sensitivity to sexual stimuli,” says Herati. Sex educator Bianca Palmisano says scientists aren’t 100 percent certain why this happens, but some hypothesise that the refractory period is regulated by hormones like like oxytocin and prolactin. Why is your pee a split stream afterwards? According to Siegel, but it’s “far more prevalent” in people with penises. “After they ejaculate some of the semen remains in the urethra where it thickens and dries out,” says Siegel. “This can form a partial obstruction for the flow of urine, particularly if it is a weak stream.” Herati seems to be in agreement with this explanation. “The split stream likely originates from retained ejaculate in the urethra causing the urethral wall to collapse and remain partially collapsed during urination.”

Did you follow all that? Do you smarter now that you’ve got some masturbation info, understanding why some of the side effects happen? We certainly hope so, because it’s pretty useful stuff — and answers lots of questions we’ve all probably wondered.

For those looking for even more masturbation answers, head on over to Mashable, where they answer plenty of other things relating to masturbating. Just think, you’ll be a walking sexpert in no time!

(H/T Mashable)