Morning Wood: Why Some Men Wake Up With Erections

If you’re a man or if you’ve spent any time close to one, you would have probably noticed the occurrence of morning erections or, in slang, morning “glory”. The phenomenon is known medically as Nocturnal Penile Tumescence simply refers to the erection you get when you’re waking up.

While many people might attribute this occurrence to mean that a man is aroused and ready for some action, there’s much more to it.

Morning glory is not just a morning thing, rather, it’s something that happens throughout the night. The phenomenon is, in fact, the last in a series of night-time erections.

So, Why Do Men Wake Up With Erections?

The actual cause of morning erections is not fully known. However, experts believe that they occur from a combination of different key factors.

Some of these factors are discussed below.

1. Hormone Production

The principal male s£x hormone, testosterone, is responsible for everything from male s£xual features like a deep voice and facial hair to s£x drive. It’s possible that a morning erection will occur because the typical level of testosterone in your system is the highest right after sleep. The hormonal alteration that occurs in your body while you sleep is the primary factor in morning wood. Your body’s testosterone levels are at their maximum during sleep.

This could also explain why morning wood becomes less common as people get older. The amount of testosterone in the blood decreases as people age, resulting in less s£x drive and fewer morning erections.

2. Effects Of Full Bladder

Morning glory has also been described as a means for alerting males to their full nighttime bladder. This could explain why, after emptying one’s bladder, the erection goes away.

3. Mental Stimulation

Morning erections could also be due to a mental component. Your body creates more cortisol, a glucocorticoid hormone that has detrimental effects on everything from your immune system to your capacity to keep an erection, while you sleep.

Despite this, your body creates more testosterone while you sleep, which is an important role in achieving and maintaining an erection.

There’s a better-than-average chance you’ll get an erection after waking up from REM sleep, especially if your testosterone levels are high.

4. Physical Stimulation

Finally, there may also be a physical component to morning glory. Just because your brain is relaxing while you sleep doesn’t mean that it is not aware of everything that is going on around you.

During sleep, physical contact with your partner (or even just pressure from your sheets, pillow, or clothing) may stimulate your male private organ and cause you to develop an erection

All of these factors may combine to make morning wood happen, meaning that a deficiency in one aspect (for example, low testosterone levels) can prevent you from getting morning wood even if the other factors are perfectly normal.