Anyway You Look at it, Pain is Pain

I have a lot of entries on this blog that describe various types of pain and sensations. Some hurt really, really bad, while others are just annoying and bothersome. Today, in fact, I had an old pain, caused by something entirely new. I had a bowel movement...five minutes later, I had right inguinal nerve pain that wouldn't go away. A couple minutes went by and I sat there wondering, why I was hurting. I hadn't been sitting or squatting, bending or lifting. I just went to the bathroom.

Then my stomach started feeling a little upset. Then I passed a little gas, which my kids thought was hilarious! Then I thought that maybe I should go to the bathroom again. Maybe the pressure in my colon was causing the pain. As that idea was milling around in my mind, the nerve pain ended and hasn't returned.

So it seems like exerted pressure, no matter what the source, will cause my nerve pain. This makes me think there must be something like scar tissue pushing on a nerve. I imagine this glob of tissue occupying a space that it shouldn't be. So when I bend, stretch or get a little gas, it ends up irritating something it shouldn't be. Perhaps maybe they'll come up with a test that will determine things like this. Like some kind of a scan or something. As my mom used to say, "If they can put a man on the moon...why can't they figure out what is causing my pain!".

But in the end, pain is pain - no matter where it comes from or how it got there. I think that's part of the mental aspect. You just have to accept the pain isn't going away. That it's no worse than a pulled muscle or cut or sprained ankle. Some how, that helps me with the mental aspect of it.

Spasm in the Large Intestine

Okay, I'm going to pull the curtain back a bit. This post will not be for the tender-hearted. Last night I had a peculiar happening. This may provide some insight into what nerves can do when they're angry. But before I get into this, I want to update my walking program.

I walked 30 minutes yesterday and did no core stretching afterwards. Thank the Lord, I had a pretty good day. No real pain to speak of except the random, but brief, sensations around my scrotum which seems to be with me everyday. It's uncomfortable, but not too painful, thankfully. I also had to readjust myself down there to make sure my boys had enough room to move around. But that was about it. All and all, a manageable day.

I just finished walking today and will again, avoid the core stretching. I did have a very brief right inguinal pain while walking, but it passed before I realized I had the pain. I simply decided to walk a little slower from that point on.

Okay, back to what happened last night. Remember, this is going to be kind of graphic in a toilet kind of way, so stop reading now if you want. Otherwise...I warned you.

I sat down at the kitchen table to have a snack with my daughter, when all of a sudden, I had a severe twinge in my right inguinal area. It really came out of the blue. Then, almost simultaneously, I had a severe nerve-type pain in my perianal area. That's the space between the scrotum and the anus. Anyway, this pain was debilitating. It felt as if my colon was in spasm. Like a foot of large intestine wanted to exit my body all at once. I went into the bathroom thinking that may help.

I sat on the toilet and endured excruciating pain for the better part of 15 minutes. The spasm actually made me have a very small bowel movement. Trust me, I'm Mr. Regular in this area. You could set your clock by my bowel habits. So this was highly irregular. But then after I went to the bathroom, the spasm let up and the pain went away.

I've had this horrible pain before. But never associated with the PVPS nerve pain and never this bad or this long...and never just out of the blue like that. It normally happens when I strain a little too hard on the toilet.

So there you go. I'm not sure if it was related to PVPS. I hope this isn't some new ugly turn my syndrome is going to take. I don't think I could keep my sanity if that were the case.

PVPS Keeps You Guessing

I've wondered if I should stop blogging about my vasectomy side effects. But then something happens and I realize that I should stay at it. My goal is to keep track of my symptoms and let other passers-by know that there are, indeed, vasectomy side effects. It's not the all-safe procedure that many would have you believe.

Today, I want to record that while I was blogging on my other "real blog", I started having nerve pain on my left side. Haven't had it there for a few days, so it was kind of jarring. Then I realized I had been sitting for probably too long in one place. Then I also realized I had to go to the bathroom. That got me thinking. I've noticed that when I have to go to the bathroom, I see an uptick in my pain and other weird sensations. I guess as things are moving through your intestines and as your bladder is filling up, the amount of pressure placed against your pelvic nerves increases. Because after I go to the bathroom, I generally feel better - from a nerve standpoint that is.

Just chalk this up as one more impact the vasectomy has had on me. I now have a built in nerve alarm telling me when I have to go number...    Well anyway, you understand.

Other than that, my right side is a little better. My wife and I were together again last night. That seems to help with the pain on the right side. I'll be curious if my left side starts to hurt or ache a bit more. I've already had nerve pain on my left side, so maybe that is related to having sex.

Today we're going to a water fun/splash park for the kids. I'm not going in the water though, because it's only 75 degrees and I know the water is going to be freezing. I don't even want to go, but the kids' classes are meeting there for an afterschool get-together. I'm staying out of the water for sure. No sense in putting myself through that kind of pain. The sad thing is, it looks like it's going to rain also. But we've already committed and my children's friends are looking forward to seeing them.

Until next time...