Locktober (and beyond) – Thinking About Chastity
from
Recon News
20 October 2025
By Dr Liam Wignall
Summer is over and it's officially autumn with Halloween and Pumpkin Spice Lattés on peoples' minds, wondering when Mariah Carey will defrost. But for some people, the only thing that is on their mind is when Locktober will end!
Some of you will be locked while reading this blog, others may be curious, and many of you may be thinking "why would anybody lock themselves up and deny themselves pleasure?!" Well, this blog discusses some of the things people give up, the impact of chastity, but also explores why people do chastity.
When the term Locktober first appeared is unclear, but there are references to it on early internet message boards and posts on different kinky social networking sites (e.g., FetLife). But chastity devices have been around for centuries, with early examples stopping people from masturbating because it was seen as immoral, harmful or a waste of energy, often against their will as medical interventions.
Kinksters realised that chastity devices could be used in kink settings as an extension of power play through "controlling" when masturbation and orgasm. So, what exactly are you giving up by wearing a chastity device?
The benefits of masturbation (wanking/jerking)
Think about how your last orgasm through masturbation felt (sorry if you're locked while reading this). When orgasming, we feel exhilarated and relaxed simultaneously. Some describe a moment of extreme pleasure, forgetting about everything around them. This is because when you orgasm, your brain releases different chemicals that are designed to make us feel good - really good. Why is this?
Quick biology lesson - from an evolutionary perspective, orgasms are important. Orgasms occur through sex; sex is how babies are made; babies pass on our genes; this is important for survival. Over hundreds of thousands of years, we adapted to make orgasms so pleasurable, we want to have more sex and make more babies. It's more complex than that, but that gives you a basic understanding. While we may be focusing less on making babies in the sex we have today, the consequence persist – orgasms are still fucking great.
Before we think about why people stop masturbating, it's important to dispel a myth – the idea that masturbation is harmful or bad for you.
There are numerous benefits to masturbation and orgasms – in men orgasms have been linked to higher self-esteem, greater understanding of one's sexual pleasure, healthier immune systems, and even a reduced risk of prostate cancer. Some men also report that masturbating can be a way of helping relax and improve sleep quality. Related, speaking to my neurodivergent friends, they told me they masturbate as a form of stimming – behaviours used to help regulate emotions or sensory experiences (e.g., wanking reduces feelings of anxiety).
But remember, just because something is linked doesn't mean that one causes the other, and research is still being conducted in these areas.
On the flipside, there is a lot of misinformation about masturbating (and the "potential dangers" of masturbation) from a range of cultural and historical sources. For example, in the UK Victorian era, masturbation was viewed as an addiction of the sick.
More recently, misinformation has come from the related phenomenon to Locktober, "No Nut November" or "NNN". NNN is like Locktober in that it encourages no masturbation/orgasms, but during the month of November and without the use of chastity devices. NNN was popularised by the "No Fap" online communities – communities who promote the "benefits" of not wanking. But claims are not supported by research.
Abstaining from masturbation and orgasms for long periods will not increase testosterone levels, can lead to negative physical health outcomes, and rather than increasing focus can make us less focused because of how horny we are! You may eventually produce more semen (cum) abstaining, but there is a limit to how big your load can be.
Given all the benefits, why would anyone want to do Locktober?!
Motivations for Chastity and Locktober
Don't let the first half of the blog put you off from trying chastity if you are interested, and if you're locked already, don't run to unlock (without permission from whoever holds your key). A common theme of my blogs is that kink is all about balance, and chastity is no different.
Chastity can extend a sub/Dom dynamic beyond the bedroom or darkroom. It's easy to remember the dynamic when you're in the same room, but it can be difficult to keep this dynamic going when away from the other person, especially in vanilla life. Chastity devices provide a constant physical reminder about your dynamic when you get dressed, go to the toilet, gym, and sleep. It's an everyday reminder that somebody holds a key to your genitals and your orgasms, or you hold the key to somebody's pleasure.
Power exchange dynamics require investment from both subs and Doms, and chastity can be a good contribution and sign of commitment to the dynamic. The sub is giving up access to some sexual pleasure, while the Dom accepts responsibility for keys to the device and commits to accepting constant messages from the sub about how horny they are.
There are numerous ways physical and psychological pleasure can be achieved in kink, and chastity devices are a perfect extension to this mantra. They provide a very visual indicator that there is a barrier to genitalia and may motivate people to explore different kink activities.
Relatedly, chastity often makes people horny, and when people are horny, they can lose inhibitions – hence the concept of post-orgasm clarity. You could take advantage of chastity and finally do that kink you've always wanted to do or finally get your sub to do that thing they've been nervous about.
Chastity devices can also be a great indicator at kink or cruising events about the types of activities somebody might like. It's not always the case that somebody in chastity will be a sub/bottom, and I've seen many examples of Doms in chastity (which is a fun head-fuck), but it's a good indicator. At the very least it's a conversation starter! Plus, the range of designs you can now get for chastity devices means that they can be hot pieces of kink gear.
Of course, chastity doesn't have to be part of an interpersonal dynamic. You can put yourself in chastity, deny yourself pleasure and enjoy the dynamics of chastity on your own. I know plenty of subs who often lock themselves up to encourage a more submissive headspace.
So, should I lock up?
The choice to engage in chastity is entirely up to you, and I'm not going to argue either way. Chastity can be fun in the right context and can enrich a power dynamic. It can also be fun to explore on your own by wearing a chastity device and seeing how else you can bring yourself pleasure (e.g., exploring other parts of your body).
Locktober can provide an excuse to engage in chastity in a way that connects you to a kink community. The different Recon podcasts, blogs, and social media posts (#locktober) can help you feel like you are part of a group of people all doing horny fun together. You can share with others the difficulties of pissing wearing a chastity device and the mixed feelings about having a cage imprint in your underwear selfies.
Somebody curious about chastity could use the remainder of Locktober to explore it. Trying it for a week or two is an easy entry into chastity play and more of a realistic goal, but if you do choose to do it, please don't message me and tell me how horny you are all the time (I did warn you).
***If you'd like to share a fetish or kink experience in a member article, send your ideas or a first draft to: social@recon.com
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