What Causes Weak Ejaculations and How Is It Treated?

It’s perfectly normal to experience changes in the way you function sexually as you age. It could be being slightly less interested in “getting it on” than you used to in your 20s, or it could be sexual dysfunctions of premature ejaculation (PE) or erectile dysfunction (ED) happening to you more often.

A noticeable change in sexual function is weaker ejaculation and lower volume of said ejaculate – but what causes it?

 

What causes weak ejaculations?

 

Let’s get one thing straight: weak ejaculations do NOT fall under any recognized medical ailment. However, certain disorders involving the act of ejaculation exist, such as retrograde ejaculation – a condition that causes men to ejaculate low volumes of semen or weakened ejaculations when engaged in sexual activity.

Your semen volume may vary. For instance, you might ejaculate less the next time you orgasm if you’ve just masturbated or had sex earlier in the day.

Many factors are thought to play roles in determining the force and volume of your ejaculate. These include hormone levels, fitness, and age.

 

 

How is weak ejaculation defined?

 

Ejaculation is a reflex controlled by your central nervous system involving the ejection of semen and other fluids from your body when you climax and reach orgasm upon sexual stimulation.

The first phase of ejaculation involves the contraction of the tubes that link your testes to the ejaculatory ducts that move ejaculate to the penile base.

Simultaneously, the prostate gland and seminal vesicles produce semen in order for them to reach your partner’s sexual glands.

The second phase of ejaculation involves the contraction of muscles located at the base of your penis to forcefully expel semen out of your penis, leading to a series of bursts that push semen out of your penis upon climaxing.

Weak ejaculation is typically used to define lower volumes of ejaculation than usual or ejaculation with less force than you are accustomed to – a subjective sexual issue since ejaculation volume and intensity differ for each person. Most cases are thought to be more related to perception rather than a medical diagnosis.

Total semen volume in ejaculation varies widely. Men generally expel around 1.25 to 5 milliliters of semen when ejaculating. Men who ejaculate below 2 milliliters of semen are often diagnosed with hypospermia, a condition describing low ejaculate volume.

 

What are the symptoms of weak ejaculation?

 

Many men manifest ejaculation-linked symptoms as they age, including:

 

• Lower ejaculate volumes. You might perceive reduced ejaculate volume than you’re used to. It’s common to notice a diminished ejaculate volume as you hit middle age and beyond.
• Reduced ejaculation strength. You may also notice that the pressure with which your semen is expelled lessens as you age.
• Problems with ejaculation. Weak ejaculation strength or low volumes may also come with delayed orgasms, difficulty climaxing or experiencing less pleasurable orgasms than usual.

 

What are the causes of weak ejaculation?

 

It’s often hard to identify the underlying cause of weak ejaculations, especially when they aren’t linked to a medical condition that’s causing it.

After all, sex is a confluence of physical and psychological factors. In theory, anything that interferes with your psychological pleasure and physical sexual function can affect your ability to ejaculate normally. This includes the following:

 

Aging

As you age, it’s normal to produce less semen. The International Society for Sexual Medicine says that men are at their peak semen-producing powers in their early 30s; however, they go into a decline past that age. Age-related diminished semen production may result in reduced ejaculation volumes and weaker ejaculations.

 

Lifestyle Habits and General Overall Health

Lifestyle habits such as smoking can lead to or worsen weak ejaculation. The BJU International journal found that otherwise fertile smokers ejaculated less semen than their non-smoker counterparts.

 

Other lifestyle factors such as sleep habits, stress levels, and dietary habits may also influence your sexual health, including your capacity to ejaculate. COVID-19, for instance, can lead to infrequent or lack of orgasms.

 

Prostate Health Conditions and Procedures

Prostate health conditions and the surgical intervention needed to treat them may contribute to weak ejaculations.

Many men who undergo surgery to treat prostate enlargement (benign prostatic hyperplasia) find it hard to ejaculate as normal after the operation due to complications of muscle contraction caused by this procedure.

Moreover, surgical procedures affecting the pelvic region may cause long-term damage to the nerves that promote sexual function, diminishing your ability to ejaculate.

 

Alcohol Consumption

Research shows a defined link between long-term alcohol consumption and a heightened risk of sexual dysfunctions such as PE and ED. You might find it harder to control your ejaculations when you’re under the influence while having sex or if you drink alcohol frequently.

 

Issues with Intimacy and Arousal

Sexual factors such as arousal may affect your ejaculation frequency and volume.

Arousal is an integral part of sex, and if you’re not fully into it, you might ejaculate less frequently or forcefully. Additionally, if you’ve had sex or masturbated earlier in the day, you might ejaculate less semen than you’re accustomed to.

Moreover, if you aren’t as sexually attracted to your partner, you might experience weaker or less frequent ejaculations.

 

Retrograde Ejaculation

Retrograde ejaculation may cause weak ejaculation. Retrograde ejaculation is a recognized medical condition wherein semen regresses into your bladder rather than moving forwards and is expelled from your urethra.

In most, if not all cases, retrograde ejaculation is caused by physiological factors such as nerve damage from prostate or bladder surgery or illness, and damage from taking antihypertensive or mood-altering drugs.

Chronic conditions like diabetes may also cause damage to the blood vessels and nerves surrounding the penis, which may lead to retrograde ejaculation issues. The same is true for clinical procedures like prostate cancer or prostate enlargement surgery, which may cause complications such as retrograde ejaculation.

 

Psychological Factors

Most forms of sexual dysfunction are at least partially influenced by psychological factors resulting from emotional or mental components.

For instance, erectile dysfunction is often caused by psychological factors like stress, depression, or performance anxiety.

While more research is needed to determine a conclusive link between mental health issues and weak ejaculations, self-esteem or performance anxiety issues can interfere with your ability to be fully concentrated and relaxed while having sex and achieving orgasm. This may make climaxing and ejaculation less pleasurable.

 

What are my treatment options for weak ejaculations?

An incremental decrease in your average ejaculation volume or the pressure with which you release seminal fluids is linked to aging and not a cause for immediate medical attention.

But if you’ve noticed a sudden, substantial reduction in ejaculate volume or if weak orgasms and/or ejaculation are affecting your ability to enjoy sex, it might be something to take up with your healthcare provider.

Such sexual dysfunctions can be addressed by making simple lifestyle changes, taking prescription medicines to boost your sexual function, seeking therapy, or performing techniques to boost your pelvic floor muscles.

 

Healthy Lifestyle Changes

Sometimes, improving sexual function all boils down to making several changes to your lifestyle and daily habits. 

In fact, such adjustments may also help boost sperm count, a frequent issue in men with weak ejaculations.

 

Try to implement the following changes for better overall sexual health and function:

 

• Exercise regularly. Being overweight or obese is linked to a heightened risk of developing sexual dysfunction in men and women. Regular exercise helps you reduce excess weight and improve blood circulation, the latter of which can do wonders for your sexual health.
• Improve your sleeping habits. Sleep deprivation is linked to a host of fertility issues. Make getting at least seven hours of sleep a daily priority. 
• Eat a healthy, balanced diet. A diet rich in whole grains, fruit, vegetables, and lean protein while avoiding high-sodium and high-fat foods may help reduce your risk of developing sexual dysfunctions.
• Quit smoking. Smoking reduces ejaculatory function and semen volume. It can also reduce sperm count and cause erectile dysfunction. Quitting smoking will improve all aspects of your sexual health, so it’s a worthwhile effort to do so.

 

Performing Kegel or Pelvic Floor Exercises

Pelvic floor muscles play a central role in ejecting ejaculation. Performing Kegel or pelvic floor exercises to strengthen them may help ease ejaculation problems.

If you’ve ever tried to pause the flow of urine, then you will have already done pelvic floor exercises before. They are what works when you contract your muscles when urinating to stop mid-stream. Your pelvic floor muscles lift when you contract them to pause urinary flow from your urethra.

Doing pelvic floor exercises regularly may improve your ability to manage and control your ejaculatory function. 

 

Taking Prescription Medication for Improved Sexual Function

 

Currently, no FDA-approved medicines are on the market developed specifically to treat weak ejaculations. However, several drugs used for treating erectile dysfunction may help boost your confidence in bed and enhance your ability to orgasm and ejaculate.

These include the PDE5 inhibitor class of erectile dysfunction drugs such as sildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil, and avanafil, or their branded equivalents known as Viagra, Cialis, Levitra, and Stendra, respectively, can help give you that performance boost to overcome anxiety in bed.

PDE5 inhibitors won’t increase your arousal or boost ejaculatory function on their own, but they promote blood circulation to your penis before and while having sex.

Additionally, antidepressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which may be used off-label to treat premature ejaculation, may help ease ejaculation disorders. Examples of SSRIs used to delay ejaculation, and boost stamina include paroxetine and sertraline, which are sold as Paxil and Zoloft, respectively.

In some cases, the inability to orgasm and retrograde ejaculation may happen as a side effect of the medicines you take. If that’s the case, your healthcare provider may put you on a different dose or another medicine that’s less likely to cause sexual side effects.

 

 

Psychotherapy and Counseling

 

The brain and nervous system are crucial elements of proper sexual function, apart from other systems in the body. Therefore, psychological issues are a significant factor in your ability to engage and take pleasure in sexual activity just as much as physical health conditions are.

One treatment approach you can take is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and related psychotherapies for problems with sexual performance.

You might want to consider online counseling to learn about your options if weak ejaculation or other sexual health issues are affecting your mental health.

 

The Final Word on Weak Ejaculations

 

We totally get it – sexual dysfunction issues like weak ejaculations can be a hard thing to discuss with your partner or healthcare provider.

But if you’ve noticed a change in your ability to achieve orgasms or sense weaker ejaculations than usual, or if you notice a complete and total lack of ejaculation during sex, it’s important to see a healthcare provider and talk to them about your concerns.

 

Weak ejaculations are often a symptom of another underlying condition. And by talking to a healthcare provider, you’ll be able to determine their potential causes and find a suitable treatment approach to help boost your ejaculatory ability and improve your overall sexual health.