Onanism: The Hidden History of Self-Pleasure and How Shame Shaped It

When people say onanism, a historical term for self-pleasure rooted in religious fear and medical myth. Also known as masturbation, it was once blamed for insanity, blindness, and death—despite no science backing it up. The word itself comes from a biblical story about a man named Onan, who was punished for withdrawing during sex. But the real target wasn’t his method—it was his refusal to impregnate his brother’s widow. Over time, that story got twisted into a warning against any kind of solo pleasure, especially for women.

By the 1800s, doctors in Europe and America were selling steam-powered vibrators, medical devices marketed to treat "female hysteria"—a made-up condition tied to sexual frustration. Also known as early sex toys, they were tools of control disguised as therapy. Women were told to avoid self-pleasure, while men were warned that onanism would drain their vitality. The same doctors who preached this nonsense later invented machines to relieve the very symptoms they claimed to cure. Meanwhile, women who admitted to enjoying their own bodies were labeled immoral, hysterical, or mentally ill. This wasn’t about health—it was about power. And it wasn’t just men enforcing it. Society, religion, and even mothers passed down the shame like a family heirloom.

Today, we know better. Science confirms that onanism is safe, natural, and even healthy. It reduces stress, improves sleep, and helps people understand their bodies. But the old fears didn’t vanish—they just changed clothes. Now they hide in porn stigma, sex education gaps, and the silence around female desire. The same myths that called masturbation a sin now whisper that it’s "unhealthy" if you do it too much—or not enough. The real problem isn’t the act. It’s the guilt attached to it.

What you’ll find below isn’t just a list of articles. It’s a timeline of how society tried to bury self-pleasure—and how people fought back. From Victorian doctors to feminist writers, from banned poetry to hidden archives, these stories show how deeply shame was woven into our understanding of sex. And how, slowly, truth is rising again.