I was having a ten day long flare up which began to calm down a few days ago. At the same time, I decided to start stretching. While doing stretches from the HITP book, especially the one with squatting with back pressed against the wall, I felt the pain returning, and I am flared up again since then.
While browsing the forum, I saw that it is mentioned a couple of times that stretching can produce initial flare ups, but I can't find any more information about it (and I've been using the "search" function for about an hour, trying to find out more).
Can someone tell me - how do you determine if a flare from a stretch is a good initial sign that you are hitting the right spots, or is it a sign that a particular stretch is not good for you?
Also, what approach would be good to take? Is it better for a beginner to do all HITP stretches from the very first day, or is it better to do only one type of stretch, see if that one makes any difference in symptoms, and then include other types as needed?
Age: 31 | Onset Age: 28 | Symptoms: pain in the area just above the penis root, lower back pain, pain in a buttock, some burning inside rectum, frequent urination, urination at night, post urination dribbling, spraying urine. | Helped By: doxazosin, naproxen, avoiding red meat and milk products. | Worsened By: cold weather and possibly stress.
Is this such a stupid question that it doesn't deserve a single answer from any of the 23 people who read the post?
Age: 31 | Onset Age: 28 | Symptoms: pain in the area just above the penis root, lower back pain, pain in a buttock, some burning inside rectum, frequent urination, urination at night, post urination dribbling, spraying urine. | Helped By: doxazosin, naproxen, avoiding red meat and milk products. | Worsened By: cold weather and possibly stress.
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I can't explain enough how important I believe stretching is in fact its all I do now, dont expect anything on the improvement side for a weeks or months, a bit like lifting weights it takes time to change muscle. Just stick at it and ask your self in 1-3 months if you feel its helped etc.
I found my own stretches which help similar to the ones in the book but I've adjusted them slightly to my own benefit. For e. g I use a chair to do a deep lunge with one foot on and the other on the floor and drop my body stretching the groins and pelvic floor quite aggressively
Age:33 | Onset Age:19 | Symptoms:burning urethra, deep sore stinging around the perineum, dribbling | Helped By:when flare starts deep relaxing over a toilet to let out dribbling urine, hot bath, rubbing a heat cream on the perineum, Tens with a pad on the perineum, running, medication (solpadol) for pain. Current treatment: PT. | Worsened By:sitting, stressing over it, ejaculation, sometimes alcohol but I risk it. Been feeling a lot better last 6 months about 85% with a few flares lasting about 5 days. No longer having PT. Stretching every other night and I believe time is also a big factor for me
I am pretty new to this condition but I went through a routine of yoga stretches I found on this site two nights ago and my "golf ball" feeling has gotten worse since. It was pretty bad shortly after the stretching and has receded some but still worse than before. I don't know if it's good or bad but I guess you can know that you are not alone in regards to the stretching causing a flare.
Age: 27 | Onset Age: 27 | Symptoms: Started with Epidydymitis like pain and swelling in testicle, and nerve pain radiating into abdomen and leg from there, turned into "golf ball" feeling and urinary irratation/burning, tightness/twitching in perineum | Helped By: Sailing, golf, family gatherings (i.e. distraction) Have been avoiding caffeine and overly hot chiles | Worsened By: Getting depressed and dwelling, plus more than one alcoholic drink causes urethra burning for about 24 hours
mleach350 wrote:I am pretty new to this condition but I went through a routine of yoga stretches I found on this site two nights ago and my "golf ball" feeling has gotten worse since. It was pretty bad shortly after the stretching and has receded some but still worse than before. I don't know if it's good or bad but I guess you can know that you are not alone in regards to the stretching causing a flare.
Hi,
I can't say whether or not this is the case for you, but general opinion seems to be that certain forms of Yoga are not good for CPPS. In my case, my stretching regimen consisted only of what was in HITP (version 4 was the latest at the time), until I had a physical therapist who knew what else would be a good idea.
Having said that, stretching and physical therapy both can cause and/or exacerbate symptoms, particularly early into your work. The muscles are not accustomed to being removed from their troublesome states, and so they rebel when they are forced to stretch. As you do it more, and combine that stretching with regular muscular work, this becomes less of an issue. That's how it was explained to me!
I am not a physician. This is not medical advice. Consult your doctor!
Age: 26 Onset Age: 17 Symptoms: Shooting, nerve-like pains throughout the penis, which abruptly hit and leave. Testicular pain, perineum pain, burning/irritative urination, extended pain after ejaculation. Occasionally, some allodynia or ache in the coccyx/sacrum/thigh/buttocks/legs. Diagnosis: Pelvic floor dysfunction, degenerated lumbar disk, and mildly herniated lumbar disk. Helped By: Physical therapy, pain management doctor, hot baths, therapy pool, stretching regimen, breathing exercises, relaxation, distraction. Worsened By: Arousal/ejaculation (worst), constipation, panicking/obsessing, other triggers depend upon current symptoms. Tests/Prior Treatments: Too many antibiotics to count, multiple urine tests (all normal), testicular ultrasound (normal), bladder and renal ultrasound (normal), lumbar and pelvic MRI with and w/o contrast (revealed disk problems), Elavil 25mg (caused retention), Flomax 0.4mg.
I've been at it with chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome for 18 mos now - I have days with no pain and most with low pain. I've been through a maze of stretches including the ones in the HITP book. IMHO I'm not a big fan of the stretching technique illustrated in the HITP book - I injured myself seriously doing some of them incorrectly. Basically, they are what are called *static* stretches and use a technique - stretch, hold for 30s, repeat - that most of us learned at one time or another. But stretching 30-40 yr old body parts aint like stretching when we were kids.
Many elite athletes and their coaches use a technique called dynamic stretching aka the Mattes Method. This involves what is called strain-counter-strain. You contract the opposite muscle of the one you want to stretch. You then stretch the muscle for no more than 2-3 seconds. Then relax. Repeat 10 times or so. As you do this you can feel the muscles release gradually until they are lengthened. Over time, many mos, you will notice that the starting position for the stretch is much farther than it used to be. This is a sign of progress.
I've done these stretches even while injured, and they are often prescribed by PTs for injuries. I seriously wish Dr Wise would talk with Aaron Mattes or any of the myriad of elite trainers in stretching on why people should not be doing static stretches. I can only imagine the # of guys who made themselves worse by jumping right into static stretching cold muscles too much to the point where they are torn (like I did).
Again, my opinion only, but you can do the research yourself by reading up on dynamic vs static stretching.
--mb
Age: 45; Onset: Jan 2007; Initial | Symptoms: perineal, pubic, penile, right testicle pain, pain while sitting; Current | Symptoms: 95% better; very seldom do I have pain now; caffeine was the culprit; Helps: No caffeine (even decaf), Red tea, Getting exercise, Pure Encapsulations Nutrient 950 multi-vitamin; Hurts: Caffeine, sometimes when my l5s1 back issue acts up.
Read thru my posts. Stretching may not be all its cracked up to be. Many pelvic pain sufferers report stretching programs or yoga before onset. A large subset of female pelvic pain patients are dance/ballet students. (very flexible already and sport highly correlated to pelvic pain) As you stated, the feverish/chills symptom (with actual temperature or not) is common upon onset of pelvic pain.
Avoid dynamic stretching, as this is much more vigorous than static. The muscle "tearing" feeling in adductors, hamstrings,back of calf, etc may be muscles in extreme spasm. Perhaps sit on a low box by the wall and squat with your knees close to chest level. Avoid stretches where you have to exert.
Age:43 | Onset Age:36 | Symptoms: First urinary and backside, golf ball feeling, now ok (no heavy exercise) . Major onset seemed to be with heavy coughing spell , felt "tearing" or nerve pain in rectum/prostate. | Helped By:Hot showers,sleep.Worsened By: Type A obsessiveness ... Stressing, what-if thinking, weights.
Not a doctor. -
The usual... anxiety prone programmer (my case), accountant, lawyer or self employed sitting 50 hrs/week combined with compulsively exercising on a bike,weights or running to compensate for stress. Also aka "graduate student syndrome" New email sigma556@hotmail
Actually, dynamic (active isolated) stretching, done correctly, is easier on muscles than static stretching. Since you hold a stretch for 2-3s and only to the point of tightness, not pain, there is much less chance of any tearing/strain compared to static where you hold it for 30-60s (ouch). I posted on this topic quite a while back with some links to books on Amazon.
--mb
Age: 45; Onset: Jan 2007; Initial | Symptoms: perineal, pubic, penile, right testicle pain, pain while sitting; Current | Symptoms: 95% better; very seldom do I have pain now; caffeine was the culprit; Helps: No caffeine (even decaf), Red tea, Getting exercise, Pure Encapsulations Nutrient 950 multi-vitamin; Hurts: Caffeine, sometimes when my l5s1 back issue acts up.
I do stretching regularly when in some discomfort. I have found that it really helps to sit in my jacuzzi or bathtub first to loosen the pelvis. I always sit in the hot water for at least ten minutes before I do the stretches. It really helps and I have found much better results with this rather than just the stretches. The muscles are tight so you have to treat them with care. My PT taught me the most effective stretches to do and I have added the pigeon which really helps. All the best to you.
