Jeremy: "a natural part of your sex life"

Jeremy, a doctor, still lives with his parents but is in a serious relationship.

I masturbate, like everyone, but I don't talk about it. Well, it's not the kind of thing you go round shouting about, is it?! I do think it's still a taboo subject, even though you know every man does it. It's totally natural, even though it's not totally accepted.     

When do you do it?
When I'm turned on by a film, or if I haven't had sex for a while. Sometimes I go for weeks without doing it - that all depends on sex with my girlfriend. If we have a dry spell I do masturbate more. I always do it in my bedroom - I'd never do it in public places or at other people's houses! I know some people who do it together in front of porn films but that's not my thing. It's...private.   

What do you think of it?
It gives you pleasure, so it can't be bad! It's normal, people shouldn't be so disapproving. Sexual acts are totally healthy, as long as you're not doing anything illegal...I don't understand why masturbation is still taboo - maybe we just find it difficult to talk about such a private thing with the people around us. Then there's the whole 'feeling guilty' thing, which I think affects women much more because they talk about it even less and it's less accepted.