Nocturnal emission

This article is about the biological function. For the sound art group, see Nocturnal Emissions. For fictional works, see Wet Dream (disambiguation).

A nocturnal emission is an ejaculation of semen experienced by a male during sleep. It is also called a "wet dream", a spontaneous orgasm, or simply an orgasm during sleep.

Nocturnal emissions are most common during teenage and early adult years. However, nocturnal emissions may happen any time during or after puberty. The emission may happen with or without an erection, and it is possible to wake up during, or to simply sleep through, the ejaculation. Nocturnal emissions are rarely lethal.

Causes and myths

Although little is known about the actual cause of nocturnal emissions, there are many potential hypotheses about how they are caused. Among these are that they are caused by erotic dreams, by memories of waking sexual events and/or exposure to sexually charged material, or by a "build up" of semen over time. There is controversy about the causes. Some claim that these may be myths, as these theories are perpetuated by authority figures who have not studied the relevant area, such as advice columnists or religious advisors. In fact, research has shown no conclusive connection between masturbation frequency and nocturnal emissions (see Frequency below), nor has it shown that erotic thoughts or dreams accompany nocturnal emissions. Although these causes have not been conclusively ruled out, they have not been substantiated by experiment; all that is currently known is that they only begin to occur during puberty.

Frequency

The frequency of nocturnal emissions is highly variable. Some men have experienced large numbers of nocturnal emissions as teenagers, while others have never experienced one. 83% of men in the United States will experience nocturnal emissions at some time in their lives. For males who have experienced nocturnal emissions the mean frequency ranges from 0.36 times per week for single 15 year old males to 0.18 times per week for 40 year old single males. For married males the mean ranges from 0.23 times per week for 19 year old married males to 0.15 times per week for 50 year old married males. In some parts of the world nocturnal emissions are more common; for example, in Indonesia, surveys show that 97% of men experience nocturnal emissions by age 24.

Some have the dreams only at a certain age, while others have them throughout their lives following puberty. The frequency that one has nocturnal emissions has not been conclusively linked to one's frequency of masturbation. Widely-known sex researcher Alfred Kinsey found "There may be some correlation between the frequencies of masturbation and the frequencies of nocturnal dreams. In general the males who have the highest frequencies of nocturnal emissions may have somewhat lower rates of masturbation. Some of these males credit the frequent emissions to the fact that they do not masturbate; but it is just as likely that the reverse relationship is true, namely, that they do not masturbate because they have frequent emissions." For women the correlation is also short of conclusive "According to Kinsey's findings, women who suddenly lost the opportunity for several coital orgasms per week had only a few more orgasms in their sleep per year."

One factor that can affect the number of nocturnal emissions a person has is whether they take testosterone-based drugs. In a 1998 study, the number of boys reporting nocturnal emissions drastically increased as their testosterone doses were increased, from 17% of subjects with no treatment to 90% of subjects at a high dose.

During puberty, 13% of males experience their first ejaculation as a result of a nocturnal emission. Kinsey found that males experiencing their first ejaculation through a nocturnal emission were older than those experiencing their first ejaculation by means of masturbation. The study indicates that such a first ejaculation resulting from a nocturnal emission was delayed a year or more from what would have been developmentally possible for such males through physical stimulation.

Although purported treatments to help prevent or diminish nocturnal emissions are available in abundance, none are known to have undergone any kind of rigorous experimentation or approval process such as that required by the Food and Drug Administration. Like the hiccups, there are a huge variety of "home remedies" with no scientific basis. Moreover, because no proven physical harm (beyond the inconvenience of cleaning the semen ejaculate) is caused by the event and it is not symptomatic of any underlying problem, it is generally considered inadvisable to undergo any sort of treatment.

Spontaneous orgasms can occur during waking hours in both sexes. In males, this is known as Spontaneous ejaculations and is experienced by many men at some stage, mostly as teenagers.

Regarding women, a 1953 study by Kinsey found that 40% of women experienced at least one orgasm during sleep by the age of 45, and a 1986 study published in the Journal of Sex Research found that 85% of women who have experienced orgasms during sleep first did so at a young age — before the age of 21, and some before 13.

Spermatorrhoea

In the 18th and 19th centuries, if a patient had spontaneous orgasms frequently or released more semen than is typical, then he was diagnosed with a disease called spermatorrhoea or seminal weakness. A variety of drugs and other treatments, including circumcision and castration, were advised to treat this "disease". Some modern doctors, especially herb healers, continue to diagnose and advise treatments for cases of spermatorrhoea, but these treatments have not been validated by thorough experimentation.

Religious views

Judeo-Christian views

Saint Augustine held that nocturnal emissions, unlike masturbation, did not pollute the conscience of a man, because they were not voluntary carnal acts, and were therefore not to be considered a sin. Augustine did, however, pray that he may be released from the "glue of lust" and thus recommended the beseechment of God's assistance in clearing one's soul of all such carnal affections.

Two passages in the Bible teach that under the law of Moses a man who had a nocturnal emission incurred ritual defilement.

"If a man has an emission of semen, he shall bathe his whole body in water and be unclean [Hebrew tameh] until the evening. And every garment and every skin on which the semen comes shall be washed with water and be unclean until the evening."

— Leviticus 15:16-17 English Standard Version

"When you are encamped against your enemies, then you shall keep yourself from every evil thing. If any man among you becomes unclean [Hebrew lo yihyeh tahor, literally "is not clean"] because of a nocturnal emission [literally: "by reason of what happens to him by night"], then he shall go outside the camp. He shall not come inside the camp, but when evening comes, he shall bathe himself in water, and as the sun sets, he may come inside the camp."

— Deuteronomy 23:9-11 English Standard Version

A third passage relates more specifically to priests, requiring "a man who has had an emission of semen," among other causes of ritual defilement, to abstain from eating holy food all day until after taking an evening bath (Leviticus 22:4).

The regulations required the defiled person (tamei) bathe in a mikveh. A man who had normal intercourse with his wife was also considered ceremonially unclean, and he too was required to bathe in a mikveh and he became pure after the sun had set (Leviticus 15:18). Leviticus makes similar statements about menstruation (15:19-24) and childbirth (Leviticus 12). Psalms are still recited on Yom Kippur at night as a supposed aid against nocturnal emissions. This is particularly an issue on Yom Kippur, since bathing is forbidden that day.

It is also possible that some of the above is referring to not a discharge of semen but of blood or other substance indicating disease. This interpretation is bolstered by passages listing two different rituals to be followed subsequent to emission, one requiring a wait only until the nightfall, but the other lasting a week, both requiring bathing in a mikveh.

Saint Augustine interprets the references to the uncleanliness of discharge of seed (and menstruation) in Leviticus as symbolising disorder and unruliness as opposed to the seed forming a human being through conception which symbolises the form and structure of a just life.

In Judaism, the Tikkun HaKlali, also known as The General Remedy, is a set of ten Psalms designed in 1805 by Rebbe Nachman whose recital is intended to serve as repentance for nocturnal emissions.

Medieval folklore

In medieval Western occultism, nocturnal emissions were believed to be caused by succubus' coupling with the individual at night, an event associated with night terrors.