Actual, psychologically healthy self-love is a quality many enthusiastic masturbators manifest.
QUESTION:
Bruce, you often talk about self-pleasure as a form of loving yourself. Isn’t loving yourself just selfishness? I mean, at the expense of other people? How is this different from narcissism, or is it different? How can this really be a good thing?
RESPONSE:
Actual, psychologically healthy self-love is a quality many enthusiastic masturbators manifest. Other people often sense this, as your decent self-esteem, and a certain relaxed acceptance of self as you are and of others as they are. But this is not a sense of superiority, and it harms no one else.
As I understand the psychological meaning of “narcissism,” it is a very different animal from self-love, in truth in some ways quite the opposite. A narcissist cares only about their self. They have little or no empathy for how other people feel. Serious narcissism is being extremely self-centered, to an extent that you really lack interest in anyone else, unless they can be used to your advantage. You are not interested in any opinions that contradict your own.
This psychological condition may make someone appear confident, but it is based on deep insecurity, and forms a kind of shielding, or protection from any challenge to the narcissist’s view of how superior they are to others.
Self-love, on the other hand, should not be mistaken for vanity or confused with being self-centered at the expense of others. Vanity may mean you are fixated on your own appearance, and consider yourself better-looking than many other people, or more wonderful than others, though but of course such judgments are highly subjective individual viewpoints.
Self-love, on the other hand, should not be mistaken for vanity or confused with being self-centered at the expense of others.
Most of us do not have mainstream “model or actor” good looks, and yet there are usually plenty of people who find us attractive. Appeal to others is not purely based on how we look to them. In most cases this involves other inner qualities that people sense about us. People may be attracted to your attitude and personality if you are kind or fun to be with. Also, if you are self-centered to an extent that you act as if you are always more important than others, this will usually make you seem less attractive to people who encounter you.
Healthy self-love involves accepting yourself as you are, not judging yourself too harshly, even if there are some things about yourself you might wish to improve or work on. Any changes to your lifestyle and how you treat yourself that might make you feel better, are always good.
In my experience, when you enjoy as much pure penis pleasure as you want while you masturbate, without guilt or shame about it, this is a significant part of genuinely loving yourself in a healthy manner. This is also beneficial to those you relate to because it helps you to be a more balanced and happier human male.
A note from The Batemaster: I’m honored that the guys at Bateworld have asked me to respond to some questions from male masturbators around the world every week.
Always check with your doctor about any issues you might be experiencing with your sexual organs. Prompt diagnosis and treatment are important. This article’s purpose is to inform and entertain readers and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment.
