The penis of a normal man, apart from becoming erect due to sexual stimulation and certain external stimuli, is usually in a relaxed state. However, sometimes the reflex action of internal organs can also cause penile erection.
Most notably, before waking up in the morning, penile erection often occurs frequently, leading to an increase in bladder pressure and causing stimulation, which can result in a subconscious reflexive erection of the penis. This is commonly referred to as being "stiffened" by holding urine. This is a normal physiological phenomenon, medically known as morning erection. However, the intensity of this erection varies and never reaches the specific level associated with sexual intercourse.
According to research data reported by an American scholar, in men after adulthood, the frequency of morning erections increases between the ages of 20 to 30, and gradually decreases in middle age. A German doctor also studied this physiological phenomenon and found that during illness, the phenomenon of morning penile erection disappears, and reappears when the body recovers. Therefore, he proposed that the phenomenon of morning penile erection could be used as one of the reference indicators for observing male energy and health conditions.
However, the exact mechanism of morning penile erection has not yet been fully researched. Nevertheless, it is definitely a normal physiological response in men, and individual variations caused by daily differences should not be used as the sole criterion for judging the quality of male sexual function. Indeed, doctors need to use this as a reference when diagnosing changes in sexual function, but only under pathological conditions. For a normal man, it should not blindly be used to assess good or bad sexual function. Some men, once the morning erection phenomenon stops or becomes slack, suspect they have impotence, thus becoming overly worried. The more they worry about having impotence, the fewer the morning erections become, and may even become weak and powerless. This is a terrible vicious cycle because psychological unease can lead to physical imperfection; and physical problems can further induce psychological unease, repeating over and over again, getting worse each time. In such cases, medical treatment should be sought as soon as possible.