I sometimes wake up with a wet, sticky spot on my underwear or pajama pants.
It's not urine, so what is it?
– Stewart*
Chances are that you had a "wet dream" — something that can be embarrassing
and confusing, but is completely normal. A wet dream is also known as a nocturnal
emission. Nocturnal means "at night" and emission means "discharge." This
makes sense because a wet dream is when semen (the fluid containing sperm) is discharged
from the penis during ejaculation while a guy's asleep. Usually this happens during
dreams that have sexual images. Sometimes guys wake up from a wet dream, but sometimes
they sleep through it.
Wet dreams begin during puberty when the body starts making more testosterone,
the major male hormone. Although some guys may feel embarrassed or even guilty about
having wet dreams, they can't be controlled and you can't stop them from happening
— most guys experience them at some point during puberty and even sometimes
as adults. Wet dreams usually happen less as guys get older, though.
*Names have been changed to protect user privacy.
Date reviewed: November 2015
