Male Sterilization

I got thinking about PVPS the other day and what it means to me. So basically, my whole world has been turned on its ear in the last several years because of a decision. The decision making process involved in my male sterilization procedure (aka: vasectomy) was so warped. I mean, why did I have it done in the first place? It's kind of silly.

I wasn't ever going to have a vasectomy, in fact, my wife was going to have her tubes tied with the delivery of our second child. Again though, why had we settled on any type of sterilization procedure? I mean, for 20 years, we had successfully managed to have children when we wanted to and not when we didn't. So what was it about vasectomy or tubes getting tied that seemed like a good idea? Why did we want to change our anatomy?

The simple answer is laid out in my book, but I'll give you a glimpse here. The answer is...it seemed like the right thing to do. That's it. Getting fixed is just what you do when you're done having kids. We do it to animals without any regard and are praised for it by the SPCA. When men are sterilized, we stand around the water cooler and high five about convenience, while scaring the other men with our bag of frozen peas stories. Women may have the benefit of no more monthly cycles, depending on their selection of sterilization.

I have to laugh, because if I don't I'll just cry, about the reasons why we did what we did. Like I said, the book goes into much more greater detail about our decision to make male sterilization our method of choice.

So what is the take home message? It isn't to talk you into or out of a particular decision. Rather, I just want you to think about why you are doing what you are about to do. Is it convenience, is it fear you'll have more kids, what? Remember, permanent sterilization for both the male and female are procedures wrought with the promise of ease in the bedroom, but can also have uncertainty, pain and life altering consequences. So ask yourself why and get informed. Then decide whether male sterilization is right for you. I hope this challenges you and makes you think hard about your future.

Treating the Pain Like Any Other Pain

Every once in a while, I think of the pain I have. Well, actually I think about it all the time, but what I mean to say is, I try to think about the pain like any other pain. For instance, what if I had chronic nerve pain in my arm or calf. Would I be as annoyed by it? Would it dominate the landscape of my life? Why can't I just think of it like it's an old sport injury from college?

I think the problem is because a sports injury is an acceptable part of the game. There's a chance you might end up with a twisted knee or high ankle sprain or worse. I never knew the world of PVPS even existed. The concept of chronic pain or inflammation was never explained to me when I made the decision to have the snip or the reversal. So it's hard to keep in the same frame of mind. But I try nonetheless.

What kills me about the nerve pain is that I got it after my reversal. So in a way, I feel like I made a bad decision on top of an already bad decision. Like throwing good money after bad. This is turn creates a certain degree of beating oneself up. Not the best place to be mentally considering all the other garbage going on.

Today, I find myself recovering from a Saturday hike in the woods. Like an idiot, I tried to move a small tree that was obstructing the path of our vehicle. My wife and kids helped me, but I gave it a good strain. (Another bad decision). Anyway, I didn't feel any pain then, but I did feel a little pull in my groin yesterday evening when we arrived home.

This morning, I'm back to wearing the athletic supporter. I keep getting breath-taking pains whenever my left testicle moves forward and up within my scrotum. I have taken it easy today - to say the least. I'll probably take an ibuprofen tonight and then reboot tomorrow with a gentle walk around the neighborhood.

I've also had right sided inguinal pains, but nothing to write home about. So it's been two relatively good weeks before I screwed it all up yesterday. That's one of the tough things, when you're not having pain, you think you can do all the stuff you used to be able to do. It's a subtle trap that catches you off guard, when you're not paying attention. Then "whammo" you do something stupid like try to move a log off the road.

But, in trying to keep a little perspective, like I talked about last time, I will read a little more in my Bible and pray a little more to God. I just found out that a lady was praying specifically for me all week long last week. Not surprisingly, I had one of my best weeks in a long, long time. Time to get back on my knees and go to the Lord for some more help.

In the Pit of Despair

One of our favorite movies is the "Princess Bride". In it the heroic lead is taken to the pit of despair. There he prepares to be tortured and relies on his own strength to get himself through the imminent pain. In the end, the pain wins and the scene cuts away with him crying. That's how I feel today.

I know my own strength is not sufficient, God seems to be teaching me that everyday. Only in him can I get through this desperate time. To say the least, I'm really bummed! I woke up this morning to a nocturnal admission. I don't like those, but always think that maybe an E.J. will help the pain. This morning, I took my shower and then sat down to start home school with the kids. I was sitting down for all of 15 minutes when I started to experience severe inguinal nerve pain on my left side. I stood up and started teaching - lecture style, pacing back and forth with a sure grimace on my face. I also took some tylenol.

When will this thing stabilize to the point where setbacks either occur months apart or won't be so intense? Someone asked me the other day if I regretted having the reversal. I told them no. But one solid week's worth of pain later, I might have to rethink that answer.

I've even debated having another surgery to "clean out" the scar tissue that I am sure is causing this nerve pain. But will a third surgery in my scrotum make things better, or just cause more scar tissue in the long run? I simply don't have the answer to that question. I'm not sure anyone does.

So I'm just praying and coping and hoping for the best.  

Tips for Dealing With Vasectomy Nerve Pain

A lot of the people who read the forum/support group, all struggle with the same thing...what to do about their post vasectomy pain symptoms. Do they have a reversal, do they just try to manage, do they have their nerves deadened, do they have injections for the pain. These are all difficult decisions because so little is known about PVPS.

Experienced urologists may come across 1 or 2 patients in their lifetime who present with PVPS. This places those of us who suffer in a minority, where the patient typically knows more than the physician. But that is of little comfort in this case, because we can't just run out there and start doing research.

So we're left to fumble in the dark, looking for answers that we hope will come, but too often do not. Mistakes are sometimes compounded and pain is made worse. Sometimes your decision leads to a great success. We all hope for those successes.

But again, it doesn't really help us except to cause more confusion. Again, these patient reported results are too informal and wouldn't be considered medical science. So there we are, just groping for answers that will fit our unique situation. It also doesn't help having no clue why you have the pain in the first place. You assume there was nerve damage during surgery, but the doc doesn't think there was. So you try to trace down answers that are just not there. I feel like I'm repeating myself a lot. I guess you get the idea.

I am here struggling with what to do next. Paralyzed with the prospect of further surgery and just sitting idly by doing nothing. I would imagine a lot of people get this way when their health problems turn chronic and you're busy looking for answers.

Here is a list of things I've started in hopes of helping my situation.

1. Walking program
2. Sitting less at the computer
3. No stretching of my core muscles
4. No twisting in my torso
5. Sleeping with a pillow between and under my knees
6. Taking a multi-vitamin
7. Cut down on sugar - started this one today
8. Found a mentor to help my mental outlook
9. Started praying much more
10. Limit squatting and bending

There are probably other modifications to my lifestyle I've made, but these are the major ones I can think of quickly.