Hi there, thanks for getting in contact with us.

As long as you masturbate in private you can masturbate as much as you like, and given your age, it's quite normal for a young man like yourself to masturbate a lot. As long as it's not interfering with your life—it shouldn't stop you from hanging out with your friends and doing other fun things—it's okay. So relax and don't worry!

If you want to, you could use some lube like sorbolene (but not with condoms because sorbolene contains oil) or KY gel to help while you masturbate, if you feel that masturbating frequently is causing you to become sore.

Congratulations, it sounds like you have entered puberty, a normal developmental milestone in a young man's life! Most boys experience their first ejaculation—when a clear sticky fluid comes out of their penis—by the age 13 or 14 (but this can happen earlier). The first experience of ejaculating usually happens when masturbating.

Another thing to be aware of is wet dreams. Have you heard of those? This usually starts to happen about a year after you first ejaculate. A wet dream is an involuntary ejaculation that happens while you're asleep. It can happen when you're having a sexy dream, a regular dream, or even when you are not dreaming at all. This is perfectly normal and a part puberty.

It's really difficult to comment on the colour of your penis. However, if it's a purple colour when you have an erection then this completely normal because the penis is full of blood, and can look a purple/blue colour during an erection.

Is there a school nurse or another trusted adult you can talk to about this stuff? It sounds like you are anxious about your parents. Is this because you are worried that they will find out you are masturbating and you are worried about what they may think?

I can assure you that masturbation is very safe and very normal. Most people masturbate at some point in their lives, including your parents (which I know is probably not a nice thought!). If you went to see the doctor, you could say that you had noticed your penis being purple when having a pee, rather than when you were masturbating.

It would be a real shame for you to miss out on sports etc. because of being worried about your penis, so please get some help. You have already taken the first step by writing in here, so take a deep breath, and go get checked out. I am sure you have nothing to worry about.

Remember, if you are having sex or start having sex at some point in the future, use a condom every time to protect yourself and the person you are having sex with from STIs and unplanned pregnancy. Have a look at the links below for more information. Good luck and take care.