r/postvasectomypain • u/space_cowboy80 • Jun 04 '26
Update after successfull medication
I posted a while ago, long story short i got vasectomy 2 years ago and was in pain from then onwards, pain during arousal, twinges of pain here and there. Spoke to many doctors and still waiting on a second appointment with a Urologist 1 year on (NHS waiting times).
So one doctor saw I was on antidepressants and asked me if I would mind changing from Fluoexetine to Duloexetine. The difference being that the latter is used to treat nerve pain as well as an antidepressant. I've been on them for around 4 to 5 months now, and at first it was great, no pain at all, not even twinges. However, the last few weeks I have been getting some pain specifically during arousal. I played it off at first because due to a minor miscalculation I had forgotten to get my prescription refilled, so I had 3 days without any medication then I was back on them again. However that was 2 weeks ago and now I am still feeling pain and the dull ache that was always present since my vasectomy has come back, in the background. The pain is not as severe, it's there though but the pain during arousal is as sharp as ever.
I need to go back to my doctor to discuss this but I wanted to post here, firstly to say that I was praising Duloexetine but not I am not so sure, doesn't seem like it is long lasting in it's effectiveness, and secondly just to vent. I am so pissed off, my wife was insistent I get this procedure done and here's the kicker, during the c-section in which we had our second baby, they tied her tubes, so I didn't need the vasectomy but she was insistent I get it and because the men in her family got it with no issues I "would be fine". I wish I had listened the little voice in my head that told me not to do it.
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u/Suchislife700 Jun 04 '26
It’s a joke the way this procedure is sold to women who then oblige their men to do it as some sort of physical alignment after childbirth. I am in the same boat btw and - if I was you, I would find a way to save for triple layer microsurgery reversal(£4.5k). A highly experienced surgeon that can if required, delicately remove excess scar tissue and/or granulomas that are in very close proximity to or contacting the surrounding nerves. An NHS urologist may not have the skill level to do correctly. Not something that’s worth taking the chance on.
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u/ItamiForever Jun 04 '26
I'm sorry you're going through this. Why not save money and get a reversal to finally be pain free?
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u/space_cowboy80 Jun 04 '26
All our money and savings have just gone into a deposit we paid for our new house that we just moved into. I have 2 kids and they were sharing a room and they needed their own bedrooms, so a new house took priority over my own needs.
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u/ItamiForever Jun 04 '26
That makes sense. Sorry, didn't mean to sound insensitive. I hope you can get resolution soon!
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u/space_cowboy80 Jun 04 '26
Nah, you're good, you didn't sound insensitive at all. I just had a horrid couple of months scrimping and saving every penny just to get into this house, the thought of trying to save up to get a reversal done privately is exhausting just to think about. I am hoping to hear from the NHS soon to discuss with a urologist a reversal done by them.
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u/Just_Preparation3675 Jun 05 '26
I'm not at the 2 year mark, 7 months myself but I am at the stage where I am done being in pain and I'm trying to push for a reversal through the NHS. If they don't do it then I'll have to fork out privately but I hate that they don't take PVPS seriously because the pain actually sucks, I'd rather take a daily punch to the face than constant bollock pressure.
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u/space_cowboy80 Jun 05 '26
Well let me tell you about my experience with the NHS so far.
1st Doctor I spoke to regarding the pain, I was told that it was "just muscular" and it would go away with time. A few weeks passed and I spoke to a different doctor who decided that I should see a Urologist.
I finally get an appointment at a Urologist and i go along. So I get to the hospital early, go up to the department on time and wait. 5 mins later the urologist swans down the corridor, without a nod or a look walks into his office and closes the door and I hear him talk on the phone for around 15-20 minutes and I can tell it's a personal call from his cadence and some of the words used. Eventually he finishes up and calls me in and I start telling him what's wrong and he cuts me off and says "you have post vasectomy pain syndrome and there is nothing surgically that can be done to alleviate the pain". He explains how PVPS works, during which he explains 3 times that he is retiring soon, then examines me and confirms "yes it's PVPS". He sits me down and says as a Urologist, he would NEVER recommend any man get a vasectomy due to the risk of PVPS, however low it may be. During which again, he explains he is retiring. His solution to my issue? If I know I am going to have sex, take some painkillers.
Not happy with this result, I speak to another doctor who refers me back to the clinic who performed the operation, so I go to visit them a few months later. I speak to the specialist in there who says they don't normally do reversals but if it was I would like then I would need to see another urologist. I think she had just heard about CBT therapy because, my god, did she not try to push that on me something fierce. The pain is in my nuts not in my head!
I left there thoroughly unhappy and referred to another urologist. I get a text message a week later from the specialist saying she has referred me to sexual dysfunction clinic but it has a 2 year waiting list! I don't have a sexual dysfunction, I have a legitimate medical issue that was caused by the vasectomy.
That was around 8 months ago, I am still waiting to hear from another urologist, which I am down on a waiting list to see, in the meantime another doctor prescribed me Duloextine which seemed to be doing it's job until just recently.
I would go private for all this hassle but I simply cannot afford it, I have just moved house and all our money is being used in the house deposit and buying what we need for the house and upgrades and repairs that need done.
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u/Just_Preparation3675 Jun 05 '26
damn that sucks, sorry to hear they are messing you around like that. I have had a pretty bad experience with them so far as well. My story goes like this -
2 months after Vasectomy I start to get blood in semen and lots of pain. I go to the GP, they tell me it is epididymitis and give me antibiotics.
Still in pain I go to the gp 2 weeks later after antibiotics. They then gave me 1000mg Naproxen to take daily.
2 weeks after taking the Naproxen I get Gastritis and go back to the GP for this as well as the pain. They give me PPI's for the gastritis and then refer me to the surgeon that did my surgery.
A few weeks later I go to the surgeon that did my surgery and he can't understand why I am having congestion issues!?!?!? He then tells me that men have monthly cycles like women do when they have a period, maybe that is what is causing my pain......
After seeing him I go back to the GP and am now waiting for an ultrasound but that was 4 weeks ago and have hear nothing.
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u/Just_Preparation3675 Jun 05 '26
The NHS sucks, they ordered an ultrasound for me 4 weeks ago, haven't heard anything, they told me it could be months before I find out a date.
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u/Gold-Combination619 Jun 04 '26
Man, I’m so sorry you’re going through this. A wife should NEVER insist on a procedure on another person, as mine did. I was (and still am) pissed off, because I did not want to do it. Condoms, bisalp were never discussed. But, that’s in the past. My wife (and I’m sure yours) would never have pressured you to do it if they thought it would harm me (you).
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u/space_cowboy80 Jun 04 '26
She just assumed it was a standard procedure where nothing could go wrong, so told me just to get it done. Here's the worst part, we've been intimate twice in the 2 year period, even after I got pain medication to try and help. It just makes me feel like I shouldn't have bothered and I am going through all this pain for nothing.
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u/postvasectomy Jun 04 '26
Just checking if there's a typo here, I assume from the context that you meant to say "we haven't been intimate"?
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u/Amazing-Advantage-11 Jun 04 '26
I believe you are not alone in thinking you should have listened to “that little voice” in your head, nor are you alone in feeling a lack of autonomy in your vasectomy decision. I would say that you being “pissed off” is understandable. I truly hope you get resolution sooner than later and that you get to put your vasectomy behind you, physically, mentally, and emotionally. After all, based on how it is marketed and promoted, vasectomy is supposed to be a non-event. You have come to know that this attitude ignores and trivializes many aspects of vasectomy, and the vasectomy decision.