What can you do to last longer in bed?

It’s a fairly common issue for men to not last as long as they’d like to in bed. Although it’s not a serious health concern, it can be frustrating and stressful to experience this. It can cause a lack of confidence, and even performance anxiety which can result in stopping, or having less sex. The emotional stress this creates can eventually lead to problems with relationships.

Medically reviewed by

Daniel Atkinson, Clinical Reviewer

Use a thick condom

Premature ejaculation can be caused by hypersensitivity, so using a condom could help you to last longer. The condom, particularly a thick condom, can weaken sensation and delay ejaculation.

Take a break or think about something else

It can help to stop and take a break to distract yourself. By thinking about something else you will be putting less stress on performing and gain more control over when you ejaculate. It’s important, though, that you don’t completely lose focus, and remain present with your sexual partner. You can also do this by changing positions during sex, to pause and cool down for a moment.

Masturbate beforehand

Some men find it useful to masturbate one to two hours before having sex as a way of reducing sensitivity and psychological pressure. You’ll need to practice to see how long before sex this should be, if it’s too close to having sex you may struggle to get an erection or if it’s too long before it might not work to help you stop ejaculating prematurely.

Take a breath when you’re about to climax

Another tip to last longer in bed is to take a deep breath just before ejaculating. This supposedly counteracts the reflex that makes you want to ejaculate, allowing you to last longer.

The ‘squeeze technique’

The squeeze method can be used during sex or masturbation. The idea behind this is to allow you to rest when you feel like you’re going to climax, before starting again to increase your duration. This requires self-control and practice.

The technique involves the following:

Having sex until the point in which you think you’re about to ejaculate.
Next, you pull out and squeeze the tip of your penis for a few seconds, until you no longer feel like you need to ejaculate
Continue having sex and repeating the technique as required.

The ‘stop go technique’

The ’stop go’ method is similar to the squeeze technique, as it involves stimulating the penis until you’re close to ejaculating, then stopping this stimulation until the feeling subsides. Try this three times, and on the fourth time, allow yourself to ejaculate.