What Causes Morning Wood’, Anyway?
Content Verification
📝 Quick Recap 📝
- 🌞 Morning wood is a normal occurrence for many people.
- 💡 It's caused by various factors, including hormonal fluctuations.
- 🧠 It's usually a sign of good blood flow and overall health.
- ⏳ Stress and poor sleep can sometimes impact it.
🔑 Key Advice & Tips from Our Experts 🔑
- 🛏️ Prioritise good sleep – it helps everything, even morning wood!
- 🍓 A balanced diet with vitamins can boost circulation and health.
- 🧘♂️ Stress less – meditation can help regulate bodily functions.
- 🌿 Regular exercise keeps the blood flowing and the body happy.
- 💪 Talk to a doctor if it's causing discomfort or concern.
Morning wood is very common and rather normal to the male denomination. Below are the causes of the morning wood.
Scientifically known as nocturnal penis tumescence (NPT), morning wood is slang that refers to a person having an erect penis when they wake up in the morning. It is mostly caused by hormonal alteration. According to Karacan et al. (1972), NPT can be used to diagnose impotence. Therefore, you should be worried if you don’t get morning wood or if its frequency reduces. Below are the causes of the morning wood.
Physical Provocation
We all know that morning wood sometimes occurs even in our sleep. Though your eyes are shut, your body is much aware of what is happening around you. If your partner unintentionally touches you or brushes your genitals, you may become erect. The body senses this stimulation and reacts to it with an erection.
Hormone Alteration
Testosterone levels are preeminent in the morning after you wake up from rapid eye movement (REM), also known as the sleep stage. According to Bhasin et al. (2007), an increase in testosterone hormone can cause an erection, even in void of physical provocation. As men age, their testosterone levels fall, especially between the ages of 40 and 50. Due to this decrease, NPT decreases likewise.
Brain Tranquility
During waking hours, the body releases hormones to stifle erections. When asleep, the body is not that active and releases those hormones less. There are assumptions about what causes morning wood that isn't true. Understand that NPT is by no means caused by dreams or thoughts of a sexual nature.
Who Gets Morning Wood?
According to Papagiannopoulos et al. (2015), men of all ages can experience NPT depending on the levels of testosterone. However, younger men will experience it more than older men. It may start as young as 6 to 8 years old and may also occur in men in their late 60s and 70s but not that frequently due to the occurrence of erectile dysfunction. Erectile dysfunctions are more frequent with aging. It’s healthy since it signifies a properly functioning blood and nervous system in and around the penis.
Young men may experience an erection three to five times a night. Some NPTs can last even longer than 30 minutes, depending on your testosterone levels. A few men experience erections as long as two hours in their sleep. However, most erections ease up a few minutes upon waking up.
What It Means If You Stop Getting Morning Wood
Keep in mind that having morning wood is an indication of healthy blood and nerve supply to the penis. NPT is an indication of the physical capability of getting and maintaining an erection while awake. However, if you are waking up to no erection, there is a need to worry since this may be an early sign of a latent medical issue. Most likely, this is one sign of physical erectile dysfunction.
Other causes of erectile dysfunction are overweight, high blood pressure and cholesterol levels, diabetes, depression, and certain physical disabilities. Medications such as painkillers and antidepressant medications may affect your ability to experience morning wood. As you age, NPT becomes less ordinary. However, if you don't experience morning wood at a young age or it certainly stops, consider seeking help from the hospital.
When To Visit the Hospital
There are only two circumstances that may require you to see a doctor. These are:
Seizure of Morning Wood
A decrease in NPT is completely normal as you age. However, a sudden drop in frequency might be a sign of a latent medical condition. Remember that things don’t just happen by chance, especially with health. There is always an explanation for everything.
Having Painful Erections
Most erections will recede within 30 minutes or so upon waking up. If your erections last more than an hour after waking up or become painful, there is a need to see a doctor. Some people experience the morning wood a few times a week, some every day, and others, not more than once a week. Talk to your doctor about the frequency of your morning wood for a proper diagnosis of what might be the problem. It is better to see a doctor than rush to think about any other condition that shares the same characteristic as a painful erection. Some diseases related to UTIs and STDs may have similar symptoms.
Conclusion
Morning wood is biological and totally natural, though you will have to lash out at your misconceptions about it. Morning wood is caused by the testosterone hormone and is not in any way sexually related. It is certainly healthy and an indication that there is enough blood supply in and around the penis. The morning wood is mostly experienced by young men but recedes with aging. Be keen on your NPT frequency to notice if any changes are signifying a latent medical condition.
References
Karacan, I., Hursch, C. J., Williams, R. L., & Thornby, J. I. (1972). Some Characteristics
Of Nocturnal Penile Tumescence In Young Adults. Archives Of General Psychiatry, 26(4), 351-356.
Papagiannopoulos, D., Khare, N., & Nehra, A. (2015). Evaluation Of Young Men With
Organic Erectile Dysfunction. Asian Journal Of Andrology, 17(1), 11.
Bhasin, S., Enzlin, P., Coviello, A., & Basson, R. (2007). Sexual Dysfunction In
Men And Women With Endocrine Disorders. The Lancet, 369(9561), 597-611.
