# Aside from sex, what physical sensation makes you feel good? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 21, 2013, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425 "2013-11-21T14:03:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![James\_Toothpaste](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e56c9b/32.png) [@James\_Toothpaste](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/James_Toothpaste)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/81 "2013-11-22T22:24:17Z")
The feeling of coming into a warm house in winter. Going outside on a hot day. Back massage Sneezing, pooping, scratching an itch, and the like ---
**Author:** ![Atomic\_Alex](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atomic_alex/32/175_2.png) [@Atomic\_Alex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Alex)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/82 "2013-11-22T22:27:18Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Crushing my enemies, seeing them driven before me, and hearing the cries of lamentation of their women. > > What?.. You bastard QuickSilver! I came in here post that! _crosses arms tightly across chest and huffs_ ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/83 "2013-11-22T22:32:09Z")
> [@James\_Toothpaste](#): > > The feeling of coming into a warm house in winter. > Going outside on a hot day. > Back massage > Sneezing, pooping, scratching an itch, and the like I’d agree with all of those except sneezing, which doesn’t do anything for me. I’d add _'walking on a carpet that has a thick under-pad._’ For some reason I always notice with pleasure how my feet flex and roll during each step. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/84 "2013-11-22T23:17:25Z")
Petting/hugging the kittehs, or putting my cheek against their side when they’re sleeping. My SO rubbing my back. I’m another electric blanket person. Try it with fleece sheets for the most amazing warm bed experience EVER! The first bite of something chocolate. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/85 "2013-11-23T03:39:45Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > When the barber puts hot shaving cream on my neck and straight razors’ it off. Yes, I LOVE the feel of the razor as he trims around my ears and along the back. I wish my beard-shaving at home felt that way. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/86 "2013-11-23T04:19:30Z")
Sometimes I put a roast in the oven, and leave the house for a couple of hours. When I come back in the house, the aroma is overwhelming. Yeah, it smells good if I’m at home all the time, it’s just that when I open the door and walk in, and that roast aroma hits me, it’s all I can do to keep from drooling. This might be part of why my husband hasn’t divorced or killed me yet. I can cook. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/87 "2013-11-23T04:24:40Z")
I have a super-fluffy blanket that I love how it feel when I dig my toes into it. And you know that heavy, moist air that too rarely accompanies a mild breeze as a hot summer day melts into a less stifling late afternoon or night? If the air had any higher a water content it’d be misting out, but it isn’t, not quite. That feels lovely on your exposed skin. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/88 "2013-11-23T04:37:48Z")
Scalp massages, leg massagers that squeeze and deflate, feeling and petting the purring kitty sitting next to me. ---
**Author:** ![Mander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Mander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mander)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/89 "2013-11-23T05:54:21Z")
My absolutely number 1 is having my back gently rubbed or fingers lightly run in patterns all over my back. Actually all over my body is nice. So relaxing, it puts me to sleep. Unfortunately its been years since my husband has done that. A really hot shower after hanging out at the arena all day. Having my hair gently played with. Firm hugs. ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/90 "2013-11-23T06:20:56Z")
I think I’m the only person in the world who hates scalp massages. I can just barely tolerate having somebody else wash my hair. I think I have very little pain tlerance. For me the best feeling is putting my feet up at the end of the day. They hurt all the time so climbing into bed and putting them up such a relief it almost makes me cry. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/91 "2013-11-23T12:34:32Z")
Having my feet dipped in hot wax. Any kind of foot massage, especially having my toes bent way back and then pulled in opposite directions. Pure pleasure. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/92 "2013-11-23T17:22:59Z")
Eating foie gras. ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/93 "2013-11-23T22:54:30Z")
Getting _just drunk enough_, then standing up, closing my eyes and waiting. It starts as dizziness, then turns into an orgasm along my whole spinal cord, not just the genitals. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/94 "2013-11-23T23:58:36Z")
This is a great thread. I bought this [“acupressure mat”](http://www.amazon.com/ShaktiMat-USA-Acupressure-Shakti-Mat/dp/B00BPH1ACO/ref=pd_sim_hpc_7) several years ago on a whim, and now I’m practically addicted to it. It has hundreds of sharp points, like the “bed of nails” that yogis lie on in cartoons. The points are so sharp, you really can’t touch them with your hands. **However, they do NOT break the skin-- I promise.** When you first lie down on it-- bare skin-- it is excruciatingly painful. After about five minutes, all the blood rushes to your back and it starts throbbing. After a while the pain morphs into this endorphin high. I compare the sensation to when you lower yourself into a tub of about 110-degree water-- at first, you’re not sure you’ll be able to stand it. The intensity banishes every other thought from your brain. I recommend this to the guy who gives himself paper cuts. You will adore this! There are several of them listed on Amazon, so read around and read the reviews. Ignore the 1-star reviews that warn of “blood everywhere.” :rolleyes: Not true. Not even close. I’ve been using it so long, that I don’t get the excruciating pain anymore ☹ but I still use it almost every night. It’s incredibly relaxing. I could almost fall asleep on it, but It also feels great when I sit up and remove it, then lie down with my bare back on my soft-as-whipped-cream bamboo sheets. Bliss… I’m not making any claims about woo-woo medical benefits. Don’t know and don’t care. P.S. I loaned it to my cleaning lady and she loved it immediately. I loaned to another friend and he couldn’t stand it even with t-shirt on. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/95 "2013-11-24T06:35:42Z")
I was drying off after a shower the other day and had a flashback of my parents drying my hair with a towel when I was very small. They’d put the towel over my head and basically give me a scalp massage. I told my mom that if I ever lose my shit - and I’ve come close to losing my shit completely before - that one of my parents needs to come to me and give me a scalp massage with a towel. It will fix me. And this is a weird one but…coughing? When I smoked (for like 15 years) I never developed a smoker’s cough but every so often I’d smoke enough in a time period to give me a cough later on. I do miss smoking (except I don’t miss, like, most things about smoking) and I miss the feeling of this cough. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/96 "2013-11-24T08:48:08Z")
My kitty is very snuggly and affectionate, and will usually (once a day) give my nose a few licks as if she is a dog. I’m fairly big and strong, and like being that way. I like to go for a long run and feel my leg muscles throbbing both during and after. I like to go to sleep after a really long run day and feel mesmerized by the exaggerated sound and feel of my own heartbeat. I like to snuggle with my gf. Just breathing, or sensing the atmospheric pressure- really, folks, I enjoy creaturehood itself. Foie Gras? Dunno, not sure I have ever had it. Seems kind of hard on the geese. I’ve had caviar though, and really enjoyed popping all those little eggs with my teeth and mouth. I think you can get pretty much the same effect with flying fish roe at a sushi restaurant, for a fraction of the price. Wasabi. Back when I played a lot of acoustic guitar, I liked the feeling of the vibrating instrument against my body. I love stealing a 10-20 minute nap during my lunch hour. ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/97 "2013-11-24T10:59:32Z")
Stretching and yawning when I wake up. Or just stretching in general. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/98 "2013-11-24T12:30:38Z")
A hug from either of my teenage kids when it comes from them. The physical sensation of playing my guitar - getting _inside the moment_, getting in the zone if you will, as my fingers engage and I disappear into the act of making music. That clearly puts my brain into some other biochemical state. That type of mind/body connection is a physical sensation I must have regularly or I clog up and things get very, very bad. Oh, and burying my face in my cats when they are purring. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/99 "2013-11-24T14:06:58Z")
One of my cats loves being picked up and held on my shoulder; the first thing he does is put his nose in my ear and purr. That gives me delicious goosebumps all over! ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425/100 "2013-11-24T14:41:47Z")
The smell of wood smoke. Sometimes I really enjoy the sensation of hunger, especially when I know I’m about to eat. Losing myself in a bottle of milk after having eaten something rich and chocolatey. Physical exertion after having not moved for a long time. When my cats nestle up next to me, with no ulterior motive. The moment when caffeine starts to kick in, and I suddenly have a constant stream of ideas and optimism. Sometimes when my thoughts repeat in tight loop ([cognitive tics](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9780470713518.app3/pdf)), I feel like I’m wrapped up in a protective blanket. I could just sit there and rock to the “sound” all day long. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aside-from-sex-what-physical-sensation-makes-you-feel-good/674425.md?page=6)