Wet Dream Forum

I've been trying to understand more about what causes WDs. Researchers haven't attempted to directly answer that question but maybe some other connections can be made. Although I think the basic strategy of AB is unavoidable.


My current theory of wet dreams is that they're the result of testosterone spikes. I've included links where I have them but a lot of it is just stuff I've been reading lately.


1. The wikipedia article links to a source which says the following about night time boners (penile tumescence https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nocturnal ... tumescence )

"Nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT), the occurrence of spontaneous erections during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, is relevant. The neurophysiological basis of NPT is still disputed, but one plausible explanation is that REM sleep is associated with a ‘switching off’ of the noradrenergic cells in the locus coeruleus (l.c.) (Parmeggiana & Morrison 1990) which, via their spinal projections, are probably associated with inhibitory tone in the penis. Thus, the reduction of inhibitory tone during REM permits what can be called ‘excitatory tone’ to be expressed as erection." http://joe.endocrinology-journals.org/c ... 3/411.full

Wet dreams have to happen during this time because at other times the physical activity would be chemically blocked. Wet dreams also tend to happen during actual dreams (even though not everyone remembers every dream) which also happen during REM sleep.

It's also known that getting bad sleep can lower testosterone.

This would imply that getting longer, higher quality sleep would result in more REM cycles and more opportunities for WD.


2. People have natural fluctuations of testosterone that follow cycles.

This blog post (https://bare5.com/2015/05/06/guys-and-t ... e-of-year/) links to two studies, and includes graphs. Normally we can't see the graphs because the papers are gated. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/6841562/)/ http://www.maturitas.org/article/S0378-5122(12)00403-3/abstract

The graphs show that, once again, testosterone is higher at night than during the day. BUT! This pattern is only for "young men" (average age 17) and is not there for "old men" (average age 52). Even if young and old men hypothetically had the same overall levels, for young men it would be concentrated at night. If WDs are caused by testosterone spikes while sleeping, this supports that, because this would explain why young men get them more easily than old men.

That blog post also links to a study about annual cycles but the abstract is not at all confident about it, so not much weight should be put into it.

Testosterone also fluctuates from day to day, and that this is also in a cycle. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1117056

"These 12 subjects had cycles of plasma testosterone levels with periods ranging between 8-30 days, with a cluster of periods around 20-22 days. The majority of such cycles were significant at least at the 5% level. The mean amplitudes of these cycles ranged from 9 to 28% of the subjects' mean testosterone levels (average 17%)."

Or in other words, we also have testosterone cycles that last for 8-30 days, with lengths commonly being between 20-22 days. So for one guy testosterone might be higher every 9 days or for another guy every 25 days.


3. AB causes a testosterone spike. Most of us have probably seen the Chinese study that showed that AB does not increase testosterone, except for a spike at about 7 days in. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12659241

"The fluctuations of testosterone levels from the 2nd to 5th day of abstinence were minimal. On the 7th day of abstinence, however, a clear peak of serum testosterone appeared, reaching 145.7% of the baseline".

If AB causes a testosterone spike, and WDs are caused by testosterone spikes, then that would support the connection between WDs and AB.

The study only lasted for 16 days. I might speculate that if the study had lasted longer more spikes might have occurred.


4. Spikes vs overall testosterone levels. Boys in puberty are the ones most likely to have WDs, but they're also the ones who have the least overall testosterone. I can't directly confirm this because most of the search results are sex ed pages. But all of the generic graphs I've been able to find have testosterone starting very low and increasing to adult levels over the course of puberty, in contrast to say, immediately going higher than adult levels during puberty and then lowering once finished. So I can't confirm it, but an adult will have more testosterone than a 12 or 14 year old.

This would either mean that it's not the baseline amount that matters, but the spikes from baseline that count. Or it could mean that the total amount counts but that during puberty the spikes are super high despite overall levels being low (maybe the difference between young men and old men in #2 is even more extreme between very young men and young men). Or it could mean that my idea is wrong. :p


5. If this is all true then the practical takeaway from this would be to be healthy and get good sleep in order to have normal testosterone levels and lots of periods of REM sleep. And then to AB until you get lucky and your various testosterone cycles line up and you get a spike.

I originally posted this idea in my journal but it was suggested that I post it here.

I hope that over time people will be able to share information that either supports or refutes this idea. There have been a lot of different ideas about what causes wet dreams here, but so far this is the least problematic idea that I know of.

I think this should have a sticky. What do you think AGT?

_________________
2018 MB=0, WD=2/3, SE=1
...last
WD 1/28
SE 1/28
MB 2/22/2017
..
2017 MB=2, WD=32/33, SE=4
..
2014- MB=24,WD=3,SE=15
2013- MB=30,WD=4,SE=17
2012- MB=33,WD=4,SE=9
2011- MB=40,WD=6,SE=14
<2010- lots of MB, no WD/SE
11-15Y-age,no MB, WD 1-2 a week

OK. It's now a sticky.

Interesting research/results. I'm seeking testosterone boosting soon and this would be a fun side effect. Thanks for sharing.

I agree with your theory. Unfortunately I don't have any actual data to support it, and we probably never will unless a research team funds a study that tries to correlate real time testosterone levels with WD's. Perhaps one day in the future we'll be able to measure our own testosterone levels in real time and inexpensively, much like we can measure our pulse now with devices like Fitbit and Apple Watch.

_________________
Wet dreams are good. Masturbation is bad. I think I got it.
"An open mind is the essence of intellect"
"Be who you are and say what you want, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -Dr. Seuss
That's a picture of my own sperm under a microscope in my avatar.

I assume it is this that is responsible for getting hard while daydreaming, i.e. not even fully asleep?



Have you see graphs with real data for the period from the start of puberty to young adulthood. The only graphs I have ever seen seem to start around 17/18 and have the level already high at that point. I assume someone drawing the graph hasn't simply extrapolated from near zero to adult level with no supporting measurements?

The reason I question this is that if testosterone does not rapidly increase during puberty to near adult levels, why also the prevelance of random erections? Is this due to high daytime peaks? I thought you said the younger the guy the more biased towards high being at night. Also, although it is anecdotal, I don't remember being significantly less horny at 14 than, for example at 20. If levels are indeed lower during puberty might it be that the boys brain is more sensitive to testosterone?

The charts I've seen on it, show the increase in testosterone during puberty is very steep from 12-19. Like the line graph is nearly vertical during those years. Testosterone levels double, even triple in a year. I think it's this rapid increase, or change, rather than the absolute levels of testosterone that cause much of what we experience during puberty: spontaneous erections, constant horniness, WD's, etc. The brain needs time to adjust to the higher testosterone levels too.

_________________
Wet dreams are good. Masturbation is bad. I think I got it.
"An open mind is the essence of intellect"
"Be who you are and say what you want, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." -Dr. Seuss
That's a picture of my own sperm under a microscope in my avatar.