Why does sex make me sleepy?

The muscle relaxation triggered by the sexual response induces sleep in some, similar to the action of certain types of sleep medications.

i think to recharge the batteries so you can go again lol

You’re doing it right.

Funny I get hungry after sex. Really hungry.

Some biologists suspect that lethargy after sex is adaptive because of the reorientation of the vaginal barrel after the onset of bipedalism. Lying down preserves semen.

@pdworkin wins! lol

@azlotto Yep. My sentiments exactly!

So why do men fall asleep too?

@janbb cuz they’re bums, lol. Shhh the secrets out!

@janbb I don’t remember…read about it once.

@janbb it was God’s idea of giving women half a chance at holding them to their responsibilities before they just hit and run… lol ;-)

Funny i fall asleep too.. but has to be something to do with hormones i would have said ..:O)

Its the opposite for me. I am amped afterwards and have a hard time falling asleep, while my husband is snoring away . . . .. . not fair! LOL!!!

Sex is good exercises for relaxation ! enjoying both together.

I’ve heard that the body releases sleep-inducing hormones after orgasm.

@lonelydragon it’s not necessarily after orgasm

First, the obvious reasons for sex’s somnolent sway: the act frequently takes place at night, in a bed, and is, after all, physically exhausting (often more so for the man than the woman, although this certainly varies). So when sex is over, it’s natural for a guy to feel sleepy.

Secondly, research using positron emission tomography (PET) scans has shown that in order for a person to reach orgasm, a primary requirement is to let go of “all fear and anxiety.” Doing so also tends to be relaxing and might explain the tendency to snooze.

Then there is the biochemistry of the orgasm itself. Research shows that during ejaculation, men release a cocktail of brain chemicals, including norepinephrine, serotonin, oxytocin, vasopressin, nitric oxide (NO), and the hormone prolactin. The release of prolactin is linked to the feeling of sexual satisfaction, and it also mediates the “recovery time” that men are well aware of—the time a guy must wait before “giving it another go.” Studies have also shown that men deficient in prolactin have faster recovery times.

Prolactin levels are naturally higher during sleep, and animals injected with the chemical become tired immediately. This suggests a strong link between prolactin and sleep, so it’s likely that the hormone’s release during orgasm causes men to feel sleepy.

-scienceline.org

@Violet Thanks for the very complete information. So those are the proximate causes; I’m still certain that the ultimate causes lie in our evolutionary past.

@Violet Thanks for sharing that link and confirming what I suspected. I couldn’t remember what the hormone was called!

@lonelydragon I thought I knew the answer, but I went out to do some research for a good answer. I didn’t realize there was a difference in sleepiness after sex between men and women
and @pdworkin – it does. I didn’t want to post the entire article, but when I was doing research, I found a ton of info about procreation, evolution, etc.