The secret is out. Women masturbate.

Female masturbation is still considered taboo because of a preconceived notion that women are supposed to be proper ladies who are sexually passive.

About 74 percent of women admit to masturbating, according to a study by The Kisney Institute, which researches sex, gender and reproduction. About 44 percent of college women masturbate and 25 percent of women first masturbated by the age of 13.

But I was different. The first time I masturbated, I was 23. I was Skyping with my then-partner and wanted to do something I had never tried before.

Touching and fingering myself was weird at first, but after awhile, it became pleasurable.

I was always taught that it wasn’t proper to touch myself, so I didn’t. Even after I moved out, I still found it dirty. But as I have become comfortable with my sexuality, I wanted to seek pleasure through my own means, to pleasure myself without relying on any partner to do it.

And I am not the only one.

I recently found a book called “Women on Top” by Nancy Friday, and it has shown that our generation is more comfortable with their sexuality. It also says that masturbating isn’t as taboo as it was 50 years ago.

Gone are the days when it wasn’t spoken of, or quietly discussed in a hush-hush manner.

Masturbation teaches women to value themselves and take their pleasure into their own hands.

I might have been a late bloomer to masturbation but it definitely is something women are doing more of.

I encourage all women to explore their bodies, value their sexuality and have fun with masturbation.

Chantal Richards can be reached at [email protected] or @ChantieRichards on Twitter.