There are probably many sophisticated and urbane women out there who don’t know that it’s fairly common for men to experience a little shiver just as they finish urinating. And there are probably just as many men out there who shiver after they pee, but don’t have the foggiest notion as to why.
Now we are not talking about a cold-induced shiver here… the camping-in-the-Arctic-and-taking-an-early-morning-whizz-in-the-woods shiver. We are talking about something a wee more mysterious…
Although this is a common male physiological phenomenon, there has been, to our knowledge, no scientific research conducted to explain its basis.
It is thought, though, that the pee shiver is related to the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The sympathetic subdivision of the ANS keeps the bladder relaxed and the urethral sphincter contracted so we don’t wet our pants during an episode of fight-or-flight anxiety. When you go, the parasympathetic side of the ANS causes a contraction of the bladder and a relaxation of the urethral sphincter, enabling you to take a piss.
Dr. R. James Swanson, professor of biological sciences at Old Dominion University – and one of the only scientists intrepid and curious enough to publicly weigh in on the subject – muses that “the sympathetic outflow of action potential… would include the release of the adrenal medulla catecholamines epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine. When the opportunity arises to allow the parasympathetic side of the ANS to take over, the change in catecholamine production might be the cause of the shiver.” Dr. Swanson adds that, in addition to the shiver, you will also notice a momentary “euphoria” shortly after relaxing the urethral sphincter.
Some yoga-oriented folks have compared the pee shiver to an orgasmic Kundalini energy flow. And the term “mini-orgasm” comes up with surprising frequency in discussions of this simultaneously mundane and esoteric subject.
A man could have a quasiorgasmic response to merely relaxing his urethral sphincter shows just how ridiculously easy we are.
By Billy Goldberg
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"Why do you shiver after you pee?" was posted on Sunday, September 2nd, 2007 at 10:46 pm.
Why do people feel dizzy during peeing?
Actually, this is a phenomenon that many woman can also relate to.
@Jack
People (manly men) feel dizzy during peeing is usually caused by lack of blood flow to the head due to the fact that we stand up to pee. The medical term for the extreme case is Micturition syncope.