But I've noticed that if I don't masturbate for a while, my acne gets better. If I do masturbate, I break out the next day! There is a definite, 100%, unquestionable link – and believe me, I've tested it over and over! The funny thing is, if I have sex with my girlfriend, I don't break out as much. Could it have to do with going to sleep straight after sex, which helps the skin? (I masturbate in the morning.) Some people say acne causes masturbation – that the hormonal changes cause you to want to masturbate – but this is not what I mean. I can decide to stop masturbating, and the acne goes away. If I then start, I get bad spots. Yet the so-called "experts" call the above connection a "myth"! Sorry, "experts," but I think we know better on this one, as we have the evidence. I'm available for tests!
Sorry, but I still don't buy it. You're perceptive to notice the possible parallel causes of acne and masturbation – hormonal surges – and I think this is what happens in most teenage boys. The time-of-day theory is interesting, and you might want to test that out yourself. But I have another possible explanation.
It's fairly well known that stress can cause acne flair-ups. This is due to a connection between acne and the nervous system. And any disorder that's associated with the nervous system – such as a pinched shoulder nerve or bad back – is highly susceptible to what's known as psychosomatic effects. This refers to the creation of a real symptom in the body as a result of certain psychological, mental conditions. Perhaps you've convinced yourself so deeply that masturbation causes acne that when you masturbate, your body creates the acne to complete the circle. Even though it may seem unbelievable and bizarre, and that it couldn't possibly be happening to you, psychosomatic effects are widely documented, and this seems like a definite candidate. Of course, it could also be more direct: If you stress out about masturbation – perhaps because you're worried about how it will affect your skin – the acne could flare up because of the stress. It's a vicious circle.
The other reason I doubt your theory has to do with approaching the problem from a different scientific perspective. If what you say were correct, there would have to be a reason for the mechanism to occur. There would have to be some physiological difference in your body between masturbating and intercourse. In one, the penis is getting stimulated by a hand; in another, it's a vagina. From a scientific standpoint, that's about the only difference (except maybe your girlfriend's perfume). Again, the time of day might be an issue. If having sex were also causing acne, we'd have a lot of factors to consider – but if it's just masturbation, we don't. So I maintain that masturbation does not cause acne.