Waking up with an erection?

by Karl
(California)

Question:
I'm 74 now and for as long as I can remember have woken up many times during the week with an erection. I can't remember dreaming about sex to make this happen & wonder why it does?

Our Answer:
Here are a few reasons:

• A man's penis becomes erect in response to sexual arousal and excitement, but it can also become erect as a result of deep relaxation, such as that experienced in deep sleep called REM (rapid eye movement) -- a period of sleep during which you dream.


• The male testosterone level is at its highest in the early morning during restful sleep, usually built up during the night and at its highest around 4-6 a.m. from my understanding.


• Morning erections are technically nighttime erections which happen during Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep (when most dreaming occurs), although men older than sixty years may have them during even non-REM sleep. Generally, males experience four intervals of REM sleep per night. These spontaneous erections in the wee hours are caused by specific neuro-reflexes that are stimulated during REM sleep. Morning erections are the tail end of a series of nighttime erections, as many as five per night that can last for 20-30 minutes each.


• Many people are not aware of the fact that erections do not just serve sexual purposes; they also are a source of increased blood supply to the penis, so the male body will have several erections at night, just to keep the penis healthy.