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jamesqI'm posting this because there's a good chance I know at least one other person suffering from this, and this might prompt them to do something about it.
So I've been vaguebooking about medical problems the last few months. Here's what's been going on. Be advised this is about my genitals, so if you don't want to hear me talking about that, you should leave now. Short version: No one dies from it, it's treatable, non-contagious, and mostly a quality-of-life issue more than anything else.
It all started a few months ago when I became vaguely aware that erections were painful. In the beginning, the pain was minor and didn't last long. it was more like a tightness. Because I'm easily distracted when I have an erection, I didn't really take note at first.
Later it got worse, and happened more often. To the point where I started thinking "Geez, this ain't normal, I should see a doctor about this". Sigh. Anytime you think to yourself "Maybe I should see a doctor", go see a doctor.
When my cock started to bend, I went to the doctor.
Of course, I know that, if you complain about pain in the penis, the very first thing a doctor is going to do is tell you to go to the STI clinic and get tested. So I opted to simply go to the clinic without prompting. As expected, everything turned out negative. Ladies, you'll be happy to hear that my wang is contagion-free.
Subsequent visits to the non-STI clinic prompted visits to get a battery of blood tests done, and to have ultrasounds of everything between my knees and bellybutton. Oh, and I got put on anti-cholesterol meds and was told to lose some weight. Fair. I do need to lose some weight. If it's affecting my health now, then I should get back up on the wagon.
Around about this time, with my problems being the great unknown, that I made the mistake of reading WebMD. WebMD likes to give the worst-case scenario, and in my case that would be penis cancer (I don't have penis cancer). Some treatments end with -ectomy. Imagine how that thought will bounce around in your head prior to a visit to the hospital.
Anyway. I got an appointment to see a Nurse-Practitioner and a Urologist at the opposite end of the city. She (the NP) assured me, with the tone of someone who has to explain this all the time, that she's had as much training as a doctor in her specialty. She proceeded to ask me a boatload of questions and gave me a brief physical exam.
Her diagnosis (drum-roll): Peyronie's disease. The Urologist confirmed this in about two seconds.
*feels penis* "Yep. You have Peyronie's Disease."
"Seriously? That's the diagnostic? There's no blood test or anything? You can tell that with one hand?"
Apparently, that's all there is to it.
There's a doctor in Calgary who specializes in treatment, so they're referring me to him. Haven't seen him yet, but the NP prescribed verapamil in the mean time. In the three weeks since I've started taking it, it seems to be doing something, since the pain is going away. Here's hoping it does the trick.
I'm talking about this here mostly because one in twenty men will suffer from this in their lifetime, but since it involves the penis, a lot of men are too embarrassed to go see a doctor about it. Since it's one of those effectively random thing, I don't see why you'd be ashamed of it - it's not like Isauntered limped into the emergency room with a Teletubbie up my bottom. Apparently, the main correlations are being white (it might be genetic) and middle-aged (it might be related to age). I'm two for two there.
So what does this mean for me personally? For one thing, it doesn't bother me unless I'm erect. Not being a teen anymore, I can control my urges effectively. I'm pretty sure I can have sex, though I'm weirdly reluctant to find out. Mostly this is because I'm worried about hurting myself further. If it comes to it, I'll just warn any hypothetical partners before it gets that far (*waves* "Hi, hypothetical partner! Please don't yank on me like you're trying to start a lawnmower.")
So there you have it, Peyronie's disease. It sucks, but I seem to have a minor case of it and it seems to be responding to treatment, and it's not contagious.
"I went to the Doctor and he told me I had to stop masturbating. I asked why, and he said 'So I can finish my exam'."
So I've been vaguebooking about medical problems the last few months. Here's what's been going on. Be advised this is about my genitals, so if you don't want to hear me talking about that, you should leave now. Short version: No one dies from it, it's treatable, non-contagious, and mostly a quality-of-life issue more than anything else.
It all started a few months ago when I became vaguely aware that erections were painful. In the beginning, the pain was minor and didn't last long. it was more like a tightness. Because I'm easily distracted when I have an erection, I didn't really take note at first.
Later it got worse, and happened more often. To the point where I started thinking "Geez, this ain't normal, I should see a doctor about this". Sigh. Anytime you think to yourself "Maybe I should see a doctor", go see a doctor.
When my cock started to bend, I went to the doctor.
Of course, I know that, if you complain about pain in the penis, the very first thing a doctor is going to do is tell you to go to the STI clinic and get tested. So I opted to simply go to the clinic without prompting. As expected, everything turned out negative. Ladies, you'll be happy to hear that my wang is contagion-free.
Subsequent visits to the non-STI clinic prompted visits to get a battery of blood tests done, and to have ultrasounds of everything between my knees and bellybutton. Oh, and I got put on anti-cholesterol meds and was told to lose some weight. Fair. I do need to lose some weight. If it's affecting my health now, then I should get back up on the wagon.
Around about this time, with my problems being the great unknown, that I made the mistake of reading WebMD. WebMD likes to give the worst-case scenario, and in my case that would be penis cancer (I don't have penis cancer). Some treatments end with -ectomy. Imagine how that thought will bounce around in your head prior to a visit to the hospital.
Anyway. I got an appointment to see a Nurse-Practitioner and a Urologist at the opposite end of the city. She (the NP) assured me, with the tone of someone who has to explain this all the time, that she's had as much training as a doctor in her specialty. She proceeded to ask me a boatload of questions and gave me a brief physical exam.
Her diagnosis (drum-roll): Peyronie's disease. The Urologist confirmed this in about two seconds.
*feels penis* "Yep. You have Peyronie's Disease."
"Seriously? That's the diagnostic? There's no blood test or anything? You can tell that with one hand?"
Apparently, that's all there is to it.
There's a doctor in Calgary who specializes in treatment, so they're referring me to him. Haven't seen him yet, but the NP prescribed verapamil in the mean time. In the three weeks since I've started taking it, it seems to be doing something, since the pain is going away. Here's hoping it does the trick.
I'm talking about this here mostly because one in twenty men will suffer from this in their lifetime, but since it involves the penis, a lot of men are too embarrassed to go see a doctor about it. Since it's one of those effectively random thing, I don't see why you'd be ashamed of it - it's not like I
So what does this mean for me personally? For one thing, it doesn't bother me unless I'm erect. Not being a teen anymore, I can control my urges effectively. I'm pretty sure I can have sex, though I'm weirdly reluctant to find out. Mostly this is because I'm worried about hurting myself further. If it comes to it, I'll just warn any hypothetical partners before it gets that far (*waves* "Hi, hypothetical partner! Please don't yank on me like you're trying to start a lawnmower.")
So there you have it, Peyronie's disease. It sucks, but I seem to have a minor case of it and it seems to be responding to treatment, and it's not contagious.
"I went to the Doctor and he told me I had to stop masturbating. I asked why, and he said 'So I can finish my exam'."
