What are Morning Erections?

You might have heard or seen jokes about morning erections on TV or in movies, but what exactly is it?

This refers to the situation where a person's penis becomes erect upon waking up in the morning. A more medical term for this is nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT), as the penis becomes erect during the night. This can occur at any age and does not necessarily happen every morning.

Whether you have experienced your first morning erection recently, or if your morning erection pattern has undergone significant changes, it is natural to have questions.

What causes morning erections?

These types of erections are different from the usual ones because they are not caused by sexual factors.

On the contrary, it is related to the sleep cycle. Most non-erect penile erections (NPT) occur during rapid eye movement sleep (REM). Since this can happen multiple times throughout the night, you might unconsciously experience repeated erections. The most common time of awakening is after the end of rapid eye movement sleep, combined with the higher testosterone levels in the morning (testosterone is a hormone that triggers erections). This means that the first thing in the morning is most likely to be the time when morning erections occur and are noticed.

You might have heard rumors that NPT is the body's way of preventing urination during sleep, or that it occurs in erotic dreams, but these seem not to be true.

Is it normal to have no morning erection after waking up?

Due to the varying physical conditions of each individual, the absence of morning erections is completely normal. Young people have higher levels of testosterone in their bodies, so they are more likely to experience morning erections. However, as testosterone secretion decreases around the age of 40-50, the occurrence rate of morning erections may decrease.

If morning erections suddenly stop or the frequency of erections suddenly drops significantly, one should see a doctor. These symptoms may be caused by other underlying problems, such as heart disease (leading to blood flow issues), sleep disorders (stopping rapid eye movement sleep), and anxiety disorders (causing mental factors that lead to erectile dysfunction), etc.

The medication may also cause side effects that stop the NPT process. Therefore, please be aware of this. If you notice any changes after starting a new medication course, please consult your doctor.