Is my pain coming from the pudendal nerve?

[serendipity]

I am very confused lately. Was told I may/may not have IC after symptoms for over 1 year. Doctors think my symptoms may be my endo from 8 years ago coming back. Anyway...whatever it is that I am feeling that has made me have bladder symptoms and painful intimacy for the past year...is nothing compared to what I have experienced this past week.

I was sitting at my desk when all of a sudden...out of nowhere...I felt like a knife was being placed inside me...right by the clitoris. It stopped within seconds. I got up and walked down the hall and was fine. About an hut or so later...while walking...I felt it again. This stabbing pain that got worse with each step. It again was right by the clitoris but felt like a "pulling" or "stretching" going between my legs (left side only). Any type of movement made it worse til it simply went away. Next day...about 2pm...while walking...in happened again...this time it stayed for a very long time. A few hours. Again...walking made it worse...sitting was okay but any type of movement was excruciating. Now I was 2 days late for my period...I finally got it and the pain went away. That is until the 3rd or 4th day. I got some pain again...this time woke me up from my sleep. Lasted a few seconds and then it went away.

My period is over now and I am still having some "quick jab" type pains. Last a milisecond. Nothing like I had a few days ago. But I don't know what this is. I never felt pain like this before. And I hope to never again. It's worse than anything I have gone through the past year. Other things I have felt this week is an overall "achy or sore" feeling right along the tip of the pelvic bone (vaginal wall entrance) and "flutter" type feelings. But the stabbing, tearing, pulling feelings were by far the worse! Any ideas? Anyone?

[Kara29]

The best thing you can do is to keep a journal for when these symptoms happen to you. There is something called Clitorodynia which mearly means a painful clitoris which is a common symptom of PNE when the nerve to the clitoris is involved. Pudendal decompression can be helpful even curative.

The best way to get a diagnosis for what is happening to you is to go and see one of the PNE specialists. I feel that the best PNE Specialist is the one in NH (but I am biased). He's really informative and supportive. He will email you if you want him to. He also talks to his patients by phone.

It's hard to tell what is what down there and the Pudendal Nerve branches out to so many different places. It can feel exactly like IC but in fact be just PNE or these conditions can overlap, making it real hard to diagnose. (For example, I have Vestibulitis, Vulvodynia, Clitorodynia and had IC) Over the past 10 years we have been searching for what is wrong with me.

If you can't get to a PNE Specialist, I would suggest trying to find a Chronic Pelvic Pain Doctor who can try and sort out what may be causing your pain.

For that I see Dr. Fred Howard in Rochester NY. I am biased on him but I feel that he is the BEST on the East Coast along with Dr. Conway.

Anything I can do to help guide and support you through this just let me know. I hope you can get a diagnosis very soon so you can be on your way to finding a treatment that can reduce this pain or to even get rid of it all together.

I have a list of PNE Doctors if you need it.

Warm Hugs,

Kara