A Research Survey of
Sleep-Related
Female Orgasms and Sex Dreams©
Conducted
by Franceen King, Ph.D.
Preliminary Results first 200
responses
This
page contains some partial, preliminary results from the first 200 responses to
this Survey for those of you who have been waiting. The most important point is that these
responses are neither uncommon nor unhealthy!
I recently published a much larger
collection of statistics and anonymous commentary from survey respondents in
book form, Waking
into The Big O a New Look at Sleep-Related Female Orgasms
(2012). The Table of Contents is
posted below. Truthfully, I think the information is really ground-breaking, if
not revolutionary! I am profoundly
grateful to all the women who have completed this survey in the past. They have made a huge contribution to the
understanding of womens sexuality. I am
continuing to run this survey, nonetheless, to gather more information since
this response has not been studied with women above college age since Kinseys
time (1953).
Due
to increased interest, I also published my doctoral dissertation entitled Sleep-Related Female Orgasms: A
Survey of Biological, Psychological, sociological, and Cultural Factors (2006),
in book form. The abstract, introduction, and Table of Contents are posted here. Both of these books are available at my
e-store for $16.00 plus postage by clicking on the titles, or by ordering from Amazon.com
(SRFOs) or Amazon.com.
(Waking).
After completing the survey, I will send you a discount code which can
be used for purchasing Waking into The Big O at my e-store. If you have any questions,
please contact me at 813-971-8808, or DrFranceen@aol.com.
PARTIAL RESULTS first 200 responses:
The
first 200 respondents ranged in age from 15 to 85. Overwhelmingly, they were SRFO experiencers looking for information online. Consequently, they represent the largest
group of SRFO experiencers to be studied since
Kinsey, and the only group of healthy women above college age to be studied at
all since then.
96.5%
of respondents reported experiencing erotic or overtly sexual dreams.
91.5%
reported having dreams in which they were having sex with someone else.
46% reported dreams in which they witnessed
others having sex.
94.5%
reported awaking from sleep feeling sexually aroused at some time.
79%
of respondents reported that they sometimes experience lucid dreams, in which
they are aware that they are dreaming and able to influence the content of the
dream. Interestingly, of those who
experience SRFOs, 69% said they did not think SRFOs were more common with lucid dreams. Of the 21% who have never experienced a lucid
dream, over half have experienced SRFOs.
91%
of respondents report that they are able to experience sexual orgasm when they
are awake:
74% through masturbation
75% through masturbation and fantasy
combined
65% through manual stimulation by a
partner
60% through oral stimulation by a
partner
48% through vaginal penetration by a
partner
39%
of the respondents reported that they are sometimes able to experience orgasm
as a result of waking sexual fantasy alone without any physical stimulation.
87%
reported waking into a physical orgasm at some time in their life. Since this survey is not a representative
sample of women, one cannot say that 87% of women experience these SRFOs. In Kinseys
extended sample of almost 7789 women on this topic, he found that 22% had
experienced sex dreams with orgasm at some time in their lives. Of women who sometimes dream about sex, he
found that 37% would likely dream to orgasm by age 45. He estimated that only 70% of women would
ever dream about sex; but today it appears that almost 100% do. Later research (Wells 1986) suggested that
this figure was probably getting much higher due to the influence of social and
cultural factors. From the narrative
responses it is clear that most respondents were actively experiencing these
and looking for information online.
Interestingly, I found two very short online surveys which have appeared
since the time of my dissertation. Both
simply ask women if they have ever experienced a sleep-induced orgasm. Both surveys show a YES response rate of
around 80%...consistent with this survey.
Of
the 87% in my survey who have experienced SRFOs (SRFO
experiencers), 90% reported times when these have
been preceded by awareness of an erotic dream; 50% report times when there has
been no preceding dream awareness at all; and 36% report times when the
preceding dream has had no obvious erotic content.
95%
of experiencers had had a SRFO within the previous
five years.
Of
the SRFO experiencers, 28% reported that they
experienced their VERY FIRST orgasm this way, at ages ranging from under 10
(5%) to mid 50s (1%). Kinsey had
reported that 5% of his overall population experienced their first orgasm as
dream-related.
Of
the SRFO experiencers, 10% reported that SRFOs are the ONLY orgasms they have ever experienced at
any age.
When
asked if they were aware, prior to this survey, that women sometimes experience
SRFOs, 91% of respondents said yes, while 9% said
no. I have included in this 91% the 18 experiencers who had never heard of these and thought they
were unique, or that something was wrong with them.
When
asked how they first learned about SRFOs, 93% of the experiencers learned by experiencing one. This is not surprising since this topic is
not covered in sex education classes and is only rarely covered in discussion
or print.
A
total of 9% of respondents had no previous awareness of SRFOs
at all prior to this survey. Only 12% of
respondents, including some experiencers, learned
about SRFOs from a book or magazine, the internet, a
friend or relative, or school. Only one
participant mentioned a sex education class.
When
asked about subjective reactions to SRFOs, experiencers were allowed to check all that applied, therefore the following responses do not equal
100%:
5% feel worried about them
16% are confused about them
10% are embarrassed by them
56% are curious about why they occur
2% feels afraid of them
77% enjoy them
13% used to feel worried, confused,
embarrassed or afraid, but no longer are
41% find them amusing or entertaining
50% look forward to them
19% actively try to make themselves
have one
When
asked when they first experienced a SRFO, experiencers
reported as follows:
5% under age
10
15% between ages 11 and 15
22% between ages 16 and 20
37% between ages 21 and 30
12% between ages 31 and 40
7% between
ages 41 and 50
1% between
ages 51 and 60
1% cant remember
Obviously
this spread is influenced somewhat by the numbers of respondents in each age
category, as were the responses to Question 17d and 17f.
17d: During which age periods have SRFOs been most common for you? Overall, in response to 17d, women reported
whatever age decade they were in to be the peak frequency range. Older women reported more frequency in older
age ranges; i.e., women in their 60s often reported peak frequencies in their
sixties, with the 50s as a close second place.
17f: During which of the following conditions have
SRFOs been more frequent for you? Respondents could check as many situations as
applied; however, some of these situations; i.e., pregnancy, menopause,
widowhood, etc. are somewhat age-related.
These responses clearly suggest that there are a variety of factors
physiological, psychological, and social
which influence the occurrence of SRFOs.
33% During
the premenstrual stage of your monthly cycle
16% During
your menstrual flow
19.5% During
the beginning of your monthly cycle, after your menstrual flow
9% During pregnancy
2.8% During
nursing after giving birth
8.6% During recovery from pregnancy
8.6% During the beginning of menopausal
symptoms
9% After menopause
14.3%
At the beginning of a new romantic relationship
30.4% During
periods of frequent waking orgasms or sexual arousal
38.5%
When between, or without, a sexual relationship
.5% After death of spouse or sexual partner
21.8%
During periods of anxiety or worry
16% Could not
notice any common situations
Other situations mentioned:
2% When ovulating
2%
At the end of a relationship
2% When feeling aroused before sleep and not
masturbating
3% When meditating a lot/kundalini
active
3% When withdrawing from antidepressants or
discontinuing birth control pills
2% When flirting, feeling attractive/romantic
1% During IVF treatments
Only
ten women reported ever having discussed this topic with their physician or
gynecologist (4), psychological counselor or therapist (5), or spiritual
advisor/minister (1).
More
analysis and commentary will be forthcoming.
Please encourage your women friends and family members to participate in
my survey. I am so grateful for your
assistance.
Table of Contents Waking
into The Big O A New Look at Sleep Related Female Orgasms
AUTHORS NOTE
.
..
..
.iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
.
.
.
..
...
...iv
ABOUT the
AUTHOR
.
..
v
DEDICATION
.vi
INTRODUCTION
.
.
1
CHAPTER 1: LIFTING THE VEILS ON ANOTHER SEX SECRET
.7
CHAPTER 2: HOW DO WOMEN LEARN ABOUT THESE SRFOs?. 13
CHAPTER 3: WHAT SHALL WE CALL THESE? SLEEP-RELATED
FEMALE ORGASMS (SRFOS)
.
..
..
21
Examples of SRFOs
25
CHAPTER 4: IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH ME?
..
.31
CHAPTER 5: HOW COMMON ARE THESE SRFOs?
.
.......39
Survey Data from
Kinsey
.
..............39
My Survey
.
.
40
Age of
Onset
.
..
.
43
First Orgasms
.
..
...
..45
CHAPTER 6: HOW DO I KNOW IF IM HAVING AN ORGASM?..49
Elements of
Orgasm
..50
The Experience of
Orgasm
...52
CHAPTER 7: WHY ARE MY SLEEP ORGASMS SO INTENSE?
..57
Lack of Inhibitions and Voluntary Muscle
Control
..
.57
Nerve Pathways
..
.........59
Mapping the Vagina..
..
.
.
..61
Orgasms Through
Fantasy Alone Thinking Off
.
.63
CHAPTER 8: IS IT POSSIBLE FOR WOMEN TO EXPERIENCE
SLEEP ORGASM EMISSIONS OR WET DREAMS?
69
CHAPTER 9: WHAT CAUSES SRFOs?........................................75
Old Theories
..
....77
Demons
.
..
.
77
Pathology
.
80
Biological Compensation
..
..
..80
Frequency
..........81
Active
Incidence Throughout the Life Span
.
..85
The System Check Theory
..
..90
Newer
Understandings
..
.
90
Brain Activity During
Sleep
91
The Human
Sleep Cycle
.91
Sleep
Disorders Related to Sex
..
.
93
Sexsomnia
.
..
.93
Epilepsy
.
.
.
..95
Sleep Paralysis
..
.
96
Hormonal Fluctuations
.
....98
Puberty
.
....99
Luteinizing
Hormone
.
.100
Oxytocin
..105
Cortisol
....
106
Dopamine
..
...108
Behavioral Factors
..
..
.110
Cultural Factors
.112
Psychological Factors
..
.
114
Anxiety and
Arousal
..
.
..
.114
Physiological
Stimulation & Excitation Transfer
...115
Healthy
Homeostasis or Excitation Integration
.120
Spiritual
Interests and Practices
..124
Education/Intelligence
..
128
CHAPTER 10: WHAT DO DREAMS HAVE TO DO WITH
SRFOs?............................................................................133
Sex Dreams
Frequency
..
.133
Theories of
Dreaming
.
..
136
Dreaming as a Psychological Process
.
136
The Empiricists
.
.
...137
The Neurophysiologists
....
.138
The Consciousness Researchers
.
..
141
Sex Dreams
Content
..142
Lucidity and Volition
..
...149
Background
..
..
150
Lucidity and SRFOs
..
..
152
CHAPTER 11: WILL I EVER EXPERIENCE AN ORGASM WHILE
AWAKE?..........................................................................159
Orgasm
Training
.
..163
Masturbation
..
.
.167
Fantasy
168
Penis-Vagina Intercourse
(PVI)
.
.
170
CHAPTER 12: HOW DO I STOP OR START HAVING THESE
SRFOs?............................................................................175
Stopping
.
.
..175
Starting
.
.
.177
CHAPTER 13: EPILOGUE -EMBRACING THE INNER
GODDESS
.
...183
Table of Contents of Sleep-Related
Female Orgasms
A Survey of Biological, Psychological,
Sociological, and
Cultural Factors
.
.
.186
APPENDIX B
A Research Survey of
Sleep-Related Female Orgasms
and Sex Dreams conducted by Franceen King, Ph.D
.189
REFERENCES
...
.
...
199
Figure
2. Stages of
the Human Sleep Cycle
.92
Figure
3. Fluctuations in Duration of
Sleep & REM periods
by age
93
Dr.
Franceen King is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Board Certified
Clinical Sexologist in private practice near
©
2012 Franceen H. King