# Whats The Straight Dope On Early Morning Boners? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 3, 2008, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144 "2008-02-03T21:40:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2008, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/1 "2008-02-03T21:40:53Z")
Every morning I wake up with a boner that could cut glass. I’m not awakening from arousing dreams, nor do I sleep in the same bed as anyone, but every morning, the cock crows. I’ve seen it referenced and spoofed in movies (The 40 Year Old Virgin is a perfect example) so it seems that its not just me it happens to. Why? Does all your blood rush to your penis while you sleep? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2008, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/2 "2008-02-03T22:16:20Z")
This is a common question around here. The answer is simply that men get erections during REM sleep. It happens whenever you’re dreaming; you just notice in the morning because you wake up. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2008, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/3 "2008-02-03T22:25:35Z")
So why will it not go away until I empty my bladder that is bursting at the seams? ---
**Author:** ![ulpilotrmh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f14d63/32.png) [@ulpilotrmh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ulpilotrmh)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2008, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/4 "2008-02-03T22:35:59Z")
[QUOTE=1920s Style “Death Ray”] So why will it not go away until I empty my bladder that is bursting at the seams? [/QUOTE] Do you think it might be because your full bladder is stimulating your prostate, causing the “Morning Woody?” ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2008, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/5 "2008-02-03T22:44:32Z")
Not the prostate, but rather spinal nerves. It is true that erections happen in REM sleep, and this may be the greatest contributor to morning erections. But there are also spinal nerves that can be stimulated by a full bladder and thus cause what are called reflexogenic erections. Cites: [Cite 1](http://lifecenter.ric.org/content/2560/?topic=3&subtopic=163) > [@](#): > > The center at T11-L2 controls psychogenic erections (those stimulated in the brain when you look at a magazine or fantasize) and releasing fluids. The center at S2-4 controls reflexogenic erections (those stimulated by masturbating, rubbing the inside of the thigh, a full bladder, and when catheterizing) and ejaculation (the release of semen). [Cite 2](http://www.spinalcordcenter.org/manual/pdf-files/scibook-chp17.pdf) > [@](#): > > Reflexogenic erections are coordinated by the spinal cord in the > area of S2, S3 and S4. A reflexogenic erection occurs with direct > stimulation to the penis or by internal stimulation such as a full > bladder. Reflex erections need the spinal cord reflex of S2, S3 > and S4 to be intact. So if a full bladder can stimulate the nerves that cause erections, why don’t men get erections whenever the bladder is full? I have never seen an answer to that, but it could be that the sleeping brain is less able to suppress these signals, or it could be enhanced by the normal tendency to erection that happens during REM sleep. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/6 "2008-02-04T01:23:59Z")
[QUOTE=Cosmic Relief] So if a full bladder can stimulate the nerves that cause erections, why don’t men get erections whenever the bladder is full? . [/QUOTE] That’s the key question. How often do you get erection when your bladder is full? Probably never. So why should that be what causes erections when you sleep? If anything, a full bladder should make it more difficult to have an erection. When you have an erection, you can’t urinate. It’d be pretty screwed up evolution to create a response that makes it difficult to relieve the problem. The REM sleep erection is so commonplace that it is how doctors diagnose ED. It’s the Nocturnal Penile Tumescence test (NPT), though it’s often called the “stamp test,” since it involved wrapping a roll of stamps around your penis and checking in the morning to see if the perferations on the stamps have been broken. Men generally have 3-5 erections a night, all during REM sleep. And, I think you notice that you usually wake up at the tail end of a dream – REM sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/7 "2008-02-04T02:09:58Z")
Enjoy it while you can… ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/8 "2008-02-04T02:11:11Z")
You can urinate when you have an erection. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/9 "2008-02-04T02:38:11Z")
I’m finally living in a house with a urinal. No more do I have to bend my entire body at a 35 degree angle to pee in the morning. Life is good. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/10 "2008-02-04T03:24:26Z")
[QUOTE=BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed] I’m finally living in a house with a urinal. No more do I have to bend my entire body at a 35 degree angle to pee in the morning. Life is good. [/QUOTE] My biggest problem is hiding it from my wife. The woman has the sexual appetite of a freshly paroled crystal meth fiend. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/11 "2008-02-04T03:42:06Z")
[QUOTE=RealityChuck] That’s the key question. How often do you get erection when your bladder is full? Probably never. [/quote] Don’t know about you, but it’s not unheard of for me. > [@](#): > > If anything, a full bladder should make it more difficult to have an erection. When you have an erection, you can’t urinate. Where on earth do you get that erroneous piece of information? Of course men can urinate with erections. If you want to direct the stream downward into a toilet, that can be problematic, but letting it fly along the angle of erection is no problem. TMI but it’s very common for me to have to begin my day by going directly to the shower to whiz because I can’t point downward at the toilet. > [@](#): > > The REM sleep erection is so commonplace that it is how doctors diagnose ED. It’s the Nocturnal Penile Tumescence test (NPT), though it’s often called the “stamp test,” since it involved wrapping a roll of stamps around your penis and checking in the morning to see if the perferations on the stamps have been broken. I’m not disputing that REM sleep can be one cause of nocturnal erections. I was just supplying cites in an effort to explain why a full bladder may be involved as well. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/12 "2008-02-04T03:49:11Z")
[QUOTE=Washoe] My biggest problem is hiding it from my wife. The woman has the sexual appetite of a freshly paroled crystal meth fiend. [/QUOTE] And you’re complaining? I’ve found it happens to me when I’m napping on car trips sometimes - normally, I think it helps with the “oh lord, gotta pee” factor. ---
**Author:** ![TheBigTripleD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@TheBigTripleD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBigTripleD)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/13 "2008-02-04T03:56:39Z")
Wait it isn’t because of blood flow? I was under the impression(probably wrong) that the bladder got in the way of blood flow but since arteries are at higher pressure and veins at lower it’s more likely for blood to get in but not get out. ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/14 "2008-02-04T04:33:02Z")
I used to get six-hour boners when I rode the Greyhound or sat in a confined position on other road trips. Not good. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/15 "2008-02-04T04:51:11Z")
[QUOTE=Cosmic Relief] Where on earth do you get that erroneous piece of information? [/QUOTE] Its a very common \*partial \*myth. We were told in Human Sexuality class (college) that the urethral sphincter closes off the bladder entrance into the urethra during erections, and that, therefore, urinating isn’t possible with an erection. In truth, it’s possible for some men and not possible for others, and possible at some stages of erection and not at others. [Here’s one cite from Sexual Health Network.](http://www.sexualhealth.com/question.php?Action=read&question_id=7326&channel=1&topic=3) [And one from the Kinsey Report.](http://books.google.com/books?id=KsW6wPiXEd0C&pg=PA277&lpg=PA277&dq=urinate+while+erect&source=web&ots=73ZcX-5VRR&sig=xn4neo9MPmdxDuqVaLH3PlK2OCE) [And one from a urologist (warning, TMI: descriptions of less than vanilla sexual activities which more sensitive readers may find disturbing).](http://en.allexperts.com/q/Urology-Male-issues-989/Odd-question.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/16 "2008-02-04T04:55:35Z")
[QUOTE=An Gadaí] You can urinate when you have an erection. [/QUOTE] If you hang by the toes from the shower curtain rod. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/17 "2008-02-04T05:29:35Z")
I’ve noticed that my (and others’) morning erections are hard as a rock, much harder than erections during sex. Can anyone explain this? And yes, I can pee with an erection, but I have to practically break it to aim at the toilet. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/18 "2008-02-04T07:18:49Z")
My gf always wanted morning sex, and I enjoy myself much less when I have a full bladder. RE: sleeping. I was under the impression (from some long-forgotten health class) that males (all males, down to little newborns, but I don’t remember discussing old men) get periodic erections while sleeping. The number kicking around in my head is every 90 minutes. However, I’m not sure why this corresponds with waking up most of the time. Most, because there are occasional mornings when I’m not greeted by Mr Happy, but they’re few and far between. Anyone heard any of that? ---
**Author:** ![Carson\_O\_Genic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Carson\_O\_Genic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carson_O_Genic)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/19 "2008-02-04T10:16:43Z")
No Vonnegut readers ? He called it a piss hard on,claimed it was universal (at least in the story line ). Hearing the term from non lettered people ( and personal experience) leads me to think it is a body defense mechanism. As for ability to multi-task output is limited to acute z-axis. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2008, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144/20 "2008-02-04T10:46:44Z")
> [@Shamozzle](#): > > I used to get six-hour boners when I rode the Greyhound or sat in a confined position on other road trips. Not good. Unless you’re traveling with a freshly paroled crystal meth fiend, of course. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-early-morning-boners/436144.md?page=2)