This forum is a godsend! (davyboy)

[figge]

According to "Ostergard's Urogynecology and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction, 6e" (Chapter9 - Pelvic Floor Tension Myalgia) by Donald R. Ostergard misalignments like leg length discrepancy or problematic posture play a significant role as both an initiating and perpetuating factor for pelvic pain.

http://books.google.se/books?id=r6q94qW ... =html_text

Basically what they say is;
If you have this postural stress on the pelvic floor and get trigger points because of tensing, stress or similar you will have a hard time getting rid of the problem. Even if relaxation and Physical Therapy manages to resolve the trigger points temporarily you are more prone to getting trigger points again until you solve the misalignment.

[davyboy]

Thanks Figge! I am hoping my PT can help me with the misalignment.

[davyboy]

Went to the doctor today because my eyelid is swollen and inflamed.

Doctor diagnosed it as being irritated from 'stress' and 'clenching'. Go figure hey!

[davyboy]

Should I bother getting my inguinal hernia repaired? It's tiny and doesn't even bother me anymore. I've been feeling good lately and the last thing I want to is draw any pain to the pelvis.

[webslave]

I'd say no. Unless your doctor advises it, leave it alone. Keep weight within normal range and don't do any exercise that may exacerbate the hernia.

[davyboy]

Update!

I noticed that I hadn't posted on here since April.

Things have being going rather well for me. I still live with pelvic pain but it doesn't affect my quality of life that much anymore. The only lingering symptom I have is post-ejaculatory pain and occasionally just discomfort while sitting. I am not in pain anymore. Simply occasional discomfort.

My lifestyle hasn't changed that much. In fact I still drink beer quite often with friends, I still exercise (I'm incredibly careful and extremely selective in the exercises I perform). I do my daily stretches and see a massage therapist once and a while. I try to eat well.

The biggest factor in feeling better for me was changing my mindset. It's no coincidence that when my pelvic pain began, I was incredibly depressed. I have done my best to improve my mindfullness, destress and to just learn to let things go. This year I've had two incredibly stressful events ( I rewrote the law entrance school exam and I had my significant other move away to another city). Both events failed to provoke a flare, simply because I managed my expectations of each situation and didn't let them shake me up.

I believe that above all the mind holds the key to managing your symptoms.

I should also note - I didn't get my hernia repaired. I asked my doctor for an ultrasound a few weeks ago and they couldn't find a tear. Perhaps it was falsely diagnosed? Anyways, I forgot about it and have moved on with my life.

I hope everyone is doing well!

[webslave]

Well done. Excellent.

My final lingering symptoms took a few years to clear

[Wolfcub]

webslave, are you 100% symptom-free?

[webslave]

Yes. For 10+ years now.

[davyboy]

Hello All,

Just checking in - I hope that the holidays are treating you all well.

It has been nearly 4 months since I last gave an update. You can probably assume by my absence that things are going well in terms of CPPS. In fact, they are. I am relatively symptom free. As far as management goes, I don't do all that much physically. I do yoga daily, eat pretty well, get some form of daily exercise, take some supplements and limit sexual activity. I'm relatively pain-free, I don't have much discomfort post-sex either. Yoga seems to be helping a lot. The breathing and stretching seems to just relax me everywhere. I am very pleased with this outcome. I realize that chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome is a lifelong battle, that you must wage, but ultimately I feel as though it has truly changed me for the better. I'm a far stronger, more calm and more independent individual as a result of this experience. I'm a nicer guy too. I realize and appreciate that everyone has their challenges. A person might be waging a battle that is not visible on the surface. It is worth noting as well, that I even rewrote the law school entrance exam a few months back (a highly stressful event) and I experienced no chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome issues during this time.

One of the reasons I decided to check in. I was reminded of how much anxiety can impact my life. Although I feel good these days, my anxiety and OCD has reared its head in other ways. I still resort to googling symptoms all the time. I'm over sensitive to my body. Any bizarre symptom I have I goggle. Over the past few months, I still convince myself that I have various physical disorders, which are incredibly irrational. I still see the hyper vigilance present in my personality and the catastrophic thinking that still inhabits my life. I convinced myself the other day that I had MS because I was having some muscle spasms. I actually forgot about how important magnesium is. I haven't taken magnesium supplements in a long time and I went and picked up a bottle of Natural Calm Magnesium Citrate and within a few days the spasms stopped.

But lately, I've been suffering with insomnia. I've never been a great sleeper. I usually wake a number of times a night. I'll get up and go to the washroom, even though I really don't feel the urge to go. I'm a light sleeper and basically hate the idea of going to bed. I basically wish that I didn't have to sleep. I tend to associate bedtime with stress. I lay there wide awake worrying about being tired at work the next day. With grad school starting up for me soon, I worry that if I'm tired I won't be able to perform well in my studies. You know, the typical catastrophic thinking that we all know too well. I know it's wrong but sometimes I struggle so hard to break that cycle of thinking.

I've finally caved and I'm undertaking some Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. I realize that I have to break this catastrophic thinking and anticipatory anxiety cycle. Much like chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome tends to cause sufferers to associate sex with pain and stress, I now associate bedtime with stress. I do realize that it is in our mental capacity to break away from this type of thinking and that we are capable of changing it. I'm finally getting around to meditating as well and trying to just have at least 30 mins a day where I'm just relaxing with no stimulation whatsoever, trying to get a clear head.

I had a number of months where I felt great and relaxed, but the anxiety has reared it's head again. Although it's not manifesting itself in the form of CPPS, I'm not sleeping again at night. To me these experiences just truly reiterate that the underlying foundation of many of my problems are anxiety and worry. Battling anxiety is a lifelong pursuit, it is a work in progress, an absolute journey.

Just a reminder to not let this condition get you down! I feel better but I STILL struggle with anxiety and catastrophic thinking. I still believe that chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome sufferers are predisposed to the syndrome by being anxious people.

Get your thoughts sorted out and the chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome will follow suit.

Good luck all, stay strong. Happy holidays!

[davyboy]

Just checking in...

Things have been going well. Been making good strides with meditation. Feel pretty much 100% mentally and physically. So to me it's very strange that I started having these problems recently.

However, over the last week I've had some really strange prickly, burning and tingling sensations that radiate throughout my abdomen, groin, hip and inner leg. It's very distinct from the buzzing and fluttering I've had in the past. It tends to come and go very intermittently. I've never had this feeling before and I haven't been really stressed or anything. The only thing I think that could have caused it is in the intense massage I gave myself a few nights ago and perhaps I've irritated the nerves as a result.

Sometimes it burns so bad it's hard to sit and it's uncomfortable to wear pants. It seems to have absolutely no effect on pelvic dysfunction (sex, no issue). I've never had this problem before. My doctor thought maybe it was the beginning of Shingles despite no rash cause it seems to be localized to one side of my body and basically describes nerve pain.

Anyone relate?

[Caedar]

Sounds like neuropathic pain from central sensitization, which can be caused by chronic pain. I have this same deal, mostly on the right side of my body.

[davyboy]

Still experiencing bizarre symptoms on my right side in my hip. Mostly when I'm wearing clothing and sitting. I had to untuck my shirt today it was so irritating. It's not painful. Things just feel irritated. It's not the skin. I can touch it and it feels fine. I can also push on it and it feels fine. I suspect a nerve is being pinched or something when I'm sitting. Could it be from nerve sensitization? Just trying to make sense of this annoyance, but also trying to ignore it. Everything else is completely fine!

Edit: Did a bit of research on Allodynia and Central Sensitization - any tips for overcoming this?

[Caedar]

Still experiencing bizarre symptoms on my right side in my hip.

Yup, this sound almost exactly like what I'm experiencing. I doubt a nerve is being pinched, unless you're losing sensation completely. Research on central sensitization and allodynia is still fairly young--many pain researchers didn't think it existed until the '90s--so there aren't too many treatments other than tricyclic antidepressants like Elavil, GABAergic medications like gabapentin and pregabalin, and NMDA antagonists like ketamine (which can be dangerous and have lots of side-effects). I have found the following things to help a lot with this pain component: getting plenty of sleep (bad sleep can cause pain inhibition mechanisms in your body to stop working), doing anything that calms the central nervous system (relaxation, meditation, yoga, etc.), TENS, and in some cases topical anti-inflammatory cream (such as Penetrex; only when something has irritated my skin and set off the sensitized area). Repetitive transcranial magnetic therapy (rTMS) and transcranial direct current (tDCS) therapy may also help. In many cases, it might just take time for the central nervous system to reset back to its less excitable state, as long as you remove the primary source of the pain (CPPS). Fibromyalgia is believed to have a strong central sensitization component, so I'm considering going to see a fibro doctor to get an opinion on treatment options.

[davyboy]

Thanks for the insight. I thought I had shingles or something for a while. It just seems like my hip doesn't like clothing being rubbed against it.

I did give myself a really intense massage in the area a week or back so I think it has really irritated things down there and I got all wound up.

Again, I am recognizing that it seems this is just a problem with being over-stimulated and my anxious disposition. Story of my life!

I'll stick with my meditation regime. I'm approaching 3 months of daily meditation! I don't have any other chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome problems other than this minor nuisance, hopefully the nervous system will calm soon...