Why do men often wake up with an erection?

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A lot of people think that morning erections are triggered by erotic dreams, or a need to pee, but in fact they're a physiological reflex linked to sleep. That’s right - they’re not dependent on sexual arousal at all. And in a somewhat similar way,  women actually also experience increased blood flow to the clitoris during the night. Now, the scientific term for a nighttime erection is nocturnal penile tumescence, or NPT for short, and men get a few each night on average. They occur during REM sleep phases, which make up around 20% of total sleep time.  What exactly is REM sleep? Are you saying it’s an involuntary reflex then? What if I stop experiencing morning erections? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions! To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: Is the gut really our "second brain"? What's the best way to cut your toenails? Who is US presidential candidate "Literally Anybody Else"? A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices