What causes less semen discharge after ejaculation?

Posted on Wed, 5 Mar 2014

Question: sometimes after my husband and I have sex I go the bathroom and I don't see any semen in the toilet. It doesn't happen all the time but sometimes it does. Most of the time I do see it floating in the water but sometimes not. He says he orgasmed and I think that he has. Is this common? is there any case where I might not notice the semen floating in the water. When I wipe there is always some fluid there. I'm just not sure if it is mine or his. We are trying to have a baby so I am concerned.

Answered by Dr. Michelle Gibson James (27 minutes later)

Brief Answer: does not mean did not ejaculate Detailed Answer: Hi, thanks for using healthcare magic The normal male ejaculate contains at least 20 million sperm per each ml of semen, the average would actually have about 100 million per ml. Each sperm can travel at very fast speeds up to 28 miles/hour into the female genitalia for reproduction. It only takes 1 of these sperm for a woman to conceive though many do not survive the trip into the female. Even though you may or may not see semen, it does not mean that your husband has not ejaculated. He would know if he has, infertility is only an issue if the ejaculate does not contain enough sperm or the sperm is abnormal. This can only be determined by laboratory examination. The semen may not necessarily be seen in the toilet when you use it. It is the quantity and quality of the sperm within the semen that would affect the ability to conceive. Even though the chance of conception is greater during the ovulation time period, conception is still somewhat possible during other times during the cycle (except during menstruation). To increase chances of success you would need to be active as often as possible. I hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Michelle Gibson James (35 minutes later)

Ok. Thank you. I was concerned that there might be an underlying health concern there. If he thought that he was but he actually was not ejaculating. So there are cases where there just might not be enough semen for me to notice it? In that case would his penis be less sensitive afterward than if he ejaculated a lot? I have noticed that it seems to be less sensitive when I don't see the semen in the toilet.

Answered by Dr. Michelle Gibson James (11 minutes later)

Brief Answer: ejaculate amount can vary Detailed Answer: HI Men would know if they have ejaculated. In some cases the ejaculate is a small amount, in this case, you may not notice it.The amount of ejaculate varies with each episode. Rarely men can have retrograde ejaculation, in this instance, instead of the semen coming out through the normal opening in the penis, it goes backwards into the bladder, this is a rare problem.In retrograde ejaculation , there would be no semen. If after a period of 6 to 8 months (though the waiting period is normally a year), you have not conceived then your doctor would assess the both of you, this includes a semen analysis. Please feel free to ask anything else

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Michelle Gibson James (8 minutes later)

Thank you very much for your help. We have only been trying for a couple months so we will see what happens. I just wondered if there is a health issue that we need to be worried about. One other quick question. Are men able to fake orgasm? I guess I'm worried that maybe when this happens he might be faking it. I don't think that that is the case because he definitely seems to have the almost involuntary muscle response as other times but is it possible for him to fake it?

Answered by Dr. Michelle Gibson James (5 hours later)

Brief Answer: it is possible Detailed Answer: HI sorry about the late response. Yes, a male can fake a response if he wishes to but this is more commonly seen in women than men but males can if they wish. If your husband wants a child as well , he is unlikely to do this or would tell you if he is having any problems having an orgasm. Men sometimes do this if they think the delay in having an orgasm may hurt their partner's feelings. Hope this helps, feel free to contact with any other queries

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar