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TMI ALERT: Sometimes wonder can be an indecorous business. Like when it involves some of the essential functions of the human body. So…fair warning, this is one of those topics.
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For as long as I can remember, just as I start to urinate, I get this brief surge of what feels like a mild electric current coursing through my body. It’s never concerned me in the slightest—in fact, it’s kind of a pleasant rush. And it's never occurred to me to mention it to anyone.
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| PHOTO: Mental Floss |
Then, just yesterday, it dawned on me: Hey, Mister Wonder Man, isn’t this little tingle tidbit exactly the kind of small wonder you’re supposed to appreciate and share with the world?
It is indeed.
So I googled my experience. I did so with some concern. I mean, what if Google—or its little AI gofers—came up with some dire diagnosis? Your bladder’s on its last legs. Or Next to go are your bowels.
EASY FOR YOU TO SAY
Thank God, the answer’s more agreeable than those prospects…and way funnier. Turns out what I’ve got is something with the highfalutin technical name, the Pee Shivers.
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| PHOTO: 123RF |
The actual medical term is post-micturition convulsion syndrome (PMCS) It’s a harmless reflex where releasing urine causes a brief drop in blood pressure, that triggers a sudden release of catecholamines (sympathetic nervous system neurotransmitters such as adrenaline and dopa-
mine) and results in a momentary shiver or “buzz.”
No one’s sure exactly how common the phenomenon is, since large-scale clinical stu-
dies of it are limited. However, informal polls and social media discussions suggest it may affect as many as 80% of all men. (It seems to happen mostly in men be-
cause standing during urination causes a slightly greater blood pressure shift than sitting. And that’s borne out by my experience.) *
We tend to talk far more about the things that
go into us…than the ones that come out.
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| PHOTO: Kommissar via Wikipedia |
PROPRIETY BE DAMNED!
Among the thousands of small wonders I’ve celebrated on these pages, those found in our own bodies are, if nothing else, the closest to home. Phenomena like hic-
cups, yawning, eye floaters and lunula (those little light-colored crescents at the bases of our fingernails) are always right there for us to consider.
Yet we take most of such bodily wonders for granted. And we tend to talk far more about the things that go into us—like sights, sounds, smells and tastes—than the ones that come out. I guess you could call it propriety.
But c’mon, the pee shivers are just too…wondrous to censor. Don’t you agree?
Well, if you like the pee shivers, let’s talk about poophoria. Yup, that’s a real thing too. But that’ll have to wait for another post.
* “Watch a Doctor Explain Why Guys Sometimes Shiver After They Pee”
By Philip Ellis – Men’s Health, Mar 24, 2021
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