"Gooning" may be most simply defined as that state usually achieved after a prolonged edging session, when a man becomes completely hypnotized by the feeling radiating from his penis. Since a gooning state can only be had after edging, the man's dick will have become extremely aroused at this point and every caress the male genitals are exposed to will trigger powerful shockwaves of pleasure.
As the man keeps edging and keeps experiencing this pleasure, he enters a state of trance where his mind merges with his cock: the gooning state, where he and his dick become one. To be even more accurate, when the gooning state is achieved, the man's body becomes, for all intents and purposes subservient to his erection. When this state is achieved, the male becomes freed of all social codes of conduct, and his arousal, alone, dictates his reactions. As a result, a gooned out man will become very expressive and demonstrative: he may become very vocal, while his body and face might take on undignified expressions and poses, all in response to the intense stimulation of his penis. Hence the term "goon", since at this point the man effectively looks like a silly, foolish, or eccentric person. Gooning is somewhat of a meditation experience, where the mind and the body align, focused on a single thought (or feeling, in this case). The goal of gooning is to avoid orgasm, and stay in the heightened, pre-orgasm state for as long as possible. For some people, this can mean several hours!
This, to be clear, is completely different from the regular ol’ wham-bam-thank-you-m’am whackoff you do when you’re mildly horny and trying to fall asleep. Edging, gooning’s close cousin, is a bit more time-consuming and involved, but it comes with the promise of a more powerful and gratifying ejaculation at the end.
With gooning, however, the desire to orgasm pretty much goes out the window. It’s like when a basketball player enters “the zone” and can’t miss a shot because their muscle memory and mental focus are locked in sync — except in this case, the goal is to not shoot a damn thing. Instead, a gooner remains deeply in the bliss of masturbation, submitting themselves to an unrelenting cycle of tease and denial.
Gone are thoughts of your workday or the national debt, he says, while your inhibitions will have completely melted away and you are at one with your body. Many gooners describe it as the state where your “mind merges with your cock.”
Mastering and achieving a state of gooning needs the ability to prolong sexual arousal and get in tune with one's own body and sexual responses. There are gooning threads and boards that are filled with advice on how to do this, what it feels like, what toys to use, and how to make the experience last longer. Gooning often includes watching porn, or even multi-screen porn setups referred to as "goon caves."
Gooning overlaps with "bating" and the "bator" community, masturbation enthusiasts, some of whom have chosen masturbation as their key source of sexual pleasure. The origins of the term gooning are not known, but it first appeared in the Urban Dictionary in 2005. Because gooning can take up so much time, there is concern about addiction in the gooning community but the concern largely comes from outside the community. Those inside the community understand the power behind the art and practices of gooning and are unafraid to explore the intensity that can be found in the gooning community!