What's up with morning
erections?
Hi coolvallers,
Why is it when guys wake up
they have an erection in the
morning? Does this happen to
ALL guys? Thanks.
Dear Readers, Contrary to what many
believe, waking up with your
flag at full mast is not caused
by urine buildup in the
bladder. Morning erections are
technically nighttime erections (or Nocturnal Penile
Tumescence) which happen
three to five times per night.
They usually pop up (pun
intended) during periods of
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep (when most dreaming
occurs) and last around 30
minutes each. Unrelated to
dream content, they are both
common and completely
normal and men older than sixty years may even have
them during non-REM sleep. Likely a combination of
testosterone levels and
bedtime brain activity, these
spontaneous woodies in the
wee hours are caused by
specific neuroreflexes that are stimulated during REM
sleep. Scientists believe that
the nerves in the penis
release nitrous oxide which
dilates nearby blood vessels,
increasing blood flow and leading to an erection. Though
you may find it surprising,
this phenomenon occurs in
other mammals. Women
experience similar yet less
visually noticeable REM-related engorgement of the clit¤ris
and v#gin# as well. Thought to be the body's
natural attempt to properly
oxygenate the penile tissue,
most guys will have nocturnal
erections throughout their
lifetime, and their frequency, along with one's awareness of
them, may vary. The pen!$
may stay erect for up to two
hours nightly, and not all men
who have erections during
the night wake up with one in the morning. So despite the
name, the common experience
of "morning wood" has
nothing to do with time of
day, but rather the flag
raiser's stage of sleep.
Coolvallers
