You and your trouser snake are inseparable, the best of friends, and you never stop marvelling at how, with even just a little attention, it leaps into life and is ready to play.
But how does this incredibly clever part of the male anatomy work? There are three erectile structures inside your cock, when it’s soft these are like cylinders of sponge and like a sponge they are quick to absorb fluid, in this instance – blood.
One of the cylinders is located near the base of your cock and is known as the corpus spongiosumor “spongy body.” The other two are located on each side of the upper part, each of these is called a corpus cavernosum “cavernous body.”
It’s your corpora cavernosa (plural) that’s largely responsible for the hardness of your erect cock. Running through the center of each corpus cavernosum is one of the two major arteries of your cock; blood returns from your cock to the heart through the veins, located closer to the skin.
The slippery pre-cum you experience while you’re getting all worked up is secreted through the Cowper’s glands.
The erectile structures go deep into the body, which is why your erect cock doesn’t flop around like your it does when it’s flaccid. Surrounding the erectile structures is connective tissue, and everything is wrapped in a layer of skin known as the foreskin.
Every time you get a hard on, nerve impulses are sent near the base of the spinal cord called the erection center.
Nerves passing from the erection center to the penis supply a return impulse that causes the release of a substance called acetylcholine, which causes the arterioles (small arteries) in the erectile structures to dilate, or widen. The next part of the trick is for muscles surrounding the veins near the base of your cock to contract, acting like a non return valve for your cock, leaving your cock inflated with blood.
The brain can send signals directly to the erection center and cause it to kick into action, which is why watching porn can give you a quick boner. The next part of the equation is what’s known as the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic controls your fear factor, the “fight or flight” reaction, and ejaculation; and the parasympathetic calms things down enabling you to have an erection. The two systems are designed to operate against each other.
Because an orgasm is a big deal for the sympathetic nervous system, it shuts down the parasympathetic system for a while which is why you lose your hard on quickly after coming. It’s also why impotence is such a problem in some men –their sympathetic system dominates and they can’t get a hard on and are unable to perform sexually. Therefore the key to getting an erection is to relax.
