Pain with Intercorse

[mick]

I am a 37 year old male that has been diagnosed with IC for the last 6 months. I had a cystoscopy and hydrodistention back in Nov and I am curretly on Elmiron, Hydroxyline and Elavil. I have not been able to be sexually active without experiencing eaither severe pain or discomfort during intercourse and afterwards. I wanted to know if other men with IC have found the side effects to decrease with time, increae with time or just stay the same. I know that there are not a lot of men that read this message board so if there are any women out there that can know of men that have had the same side-effects of IC I would like to hear from the women on what they know.

I am wanting to have a better idea of what I can expect my body to be able to tolerate in the future. I have suffered with IC for 5 years and was miss dianogsed with prostate problems in the past.

thanks,

mick

[Shalai]

Mick,
Sorry to hear about the pain you're experiencing. I don't know any men with IC, but I also had a lot of pain until the meds really kicked in. I've been on Elmiron, Elavil, and Zyrtec for about 14 months now, and my pain has diminished greatly, so don't give up yet!


Sherry

[ICNDonna]

I have read reports from men with IC who have this happen. Hopefully when your medications have a chance to help you feel better, this will improve too.

Warm healing thoughts,
Donna

[hankto]

Hi Mick,

I am a 35 year old male with IC, I have been successfully treating it so far and have posted in this section, just check back posting last year. I did have a problem similar to yours when my IC was bad and I found that the most important thing was to treat the pain.

Only problem is if you are on alot of pain killers, you appetite for sex is not very high. I found that Viagra help with this. For me it was more psychologically.

Hope this helps,
Hank

[tjon]

If you have pain with intercourse, it's possible that you have prostate complications along with IC. I have these problems for over 18 years. Been diagnosed with Prostatitis then another Uro says IC. For the last year I have had constant pain with frequency and urgency and severe constipation. Lately I have been taking Clonazepam which is a form of valium that relaxes the muscles and nerves. It has brought my pain under control, got rid of constipation and allows me to sleep. I would recommend to any other males that they give this a try. Take 0.5 mg twice a day as it is a time release drug that stays in your systems. The uros just look at me funny when I tell them that it works for me as this drug if generally used for anxiety and panic attacks. For some reason, it controls my pain and improves all of my symptons. I am now going to pursue using a Tens unit to try and stimulate and relax the muscles and nerves as this is what the Clonazepan does.

[Katrina]

I know of a man who said he couldn't even get arroused without pain he couldn't handle. You are not alone.

[mick]

Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts and support. I have had anxiety about reentering the dating scene and how to handle the IC. I guess in the future I will bring the topic up early so that there are no flase expectations to be fair to everyone. My goal for dating anyway is more companionship than anything else. Don't have much of a sex drive anyway with IC so I hope there are women out there that appreciate other parts of relationships more than physical stuff.

mick

[jeanniebug]

Hi Mick. I don't have a man's perspective to offer, but I can tell you my experience. I was diagnosed a little over a year ago with IC after an abdominal hysterectomy. (I was mis-diagnosed for years but that's another novel..) I'm 35. When I was first diagnosed, I had HORRIFIC pain with orgasm. Sorry to be so blunt-but there you have it. I remember telling my husband and he said, "that would REALLY SUCK!!!" Ya think? I felt so maimed! I have chronic pain and am still searching form my niche with treatment. But by taking 2 mg of Valium per day, Mepergan and Lortab for pain, and Elavil for pain management I do not really have pain with orgasm much anymore. Now I just have pelvic and urethra pain. Diet can play a big part in controlling symptoms. I can understand your anxiety about entering the dating scene. Although I am married now, I used to date a guy who had herpes. He was TERRIFIED to tell me about it. He was a great guy. He definitely was not one to sleep around, and he sure as heck didn't go out and catch it on purpose. I didn't even blink..it didn't freak me out at all. We just refrained during his flare ups and used condoms. I realize that is really personal information, but, there are women out there who are not afraid of medical problems. I never wanted to be with a man who was afraid of medical stuff..I didn't want him to split on me if my health ever failed down the line. I was always wary of men who could not handle illness even when I was single and healthier. People who are only in it for sex and fun won't stick around. But, I'm sure you already know that. :) I used to work with a woman who ended a new marriage after her honeymoon, because her new husband developed chronic migraines. I'm sorry but I thought she was a very shallow person for doing that. Welp, good thing I had that 'tude while I was dating, cause I now have IC! Boo hiss! My husband is in the Army and never been sick a day in his life. I didn't marry him because he's so healthy...for me it was always about how good the person was inside. I knew a guy who was so freaked out about medical stuff he couldn't even bring himself to buy tampons for his girlfriend. :biglaugh: After they broke up he asked me out. I said uh...NO!!!! What a dork! So those gals are out there, and I always considered myself picky. Take care!!!! :grouphug: