Symptoms have come back big time

[Duke]

I have had chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome symptoms for a long time but through physical Therapy, relaxation and daily stretching I thought I had some control over them for the past year. Then this September my appendix burst & I was in the hospital for a week. They didn't want to take out the appendix then-said it would involve other organs and that I should wait some time until everything was quiet and cleared up.-Anyway-I had the appendix out last week with a laproscope-not a bad procedure-just 3 puncture wounds -no slicing. I'm feeling better with my stomach -had stomach problems a long time. However-since my first visit in the hospital in September my urinary symptoms are worse than ever. I have the continuous urge to urinate and an almost nonstop leaking and dripping problem. This has caused a lot of irritation in the groin area. I am also waking up at night more that I used to. I haven't been doing my stretches for a while because of the appendix problem and haven't been to the PT for a while also. However-it seems like this whole appendicitis incident has made everything terrible again. What is the connection? Can it just be the fact that I stopped the stretches and therapy temporarily? As soon as I'm healed up a bit I will go back to my stretches and the PT. Any suggestions or ideas are welcome. This is driving me nuts.

Thanks

[Clay]

The more I learn, the more it makes sense that my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome came on at the same time as a chronic diarrhea problem and a kidney stone. The nerves in the pelvis seem really, really badly designed. I just read a study where they put dye in nerves from one pelvic organ and found it in nerves from a neighboring site. Add in the subconcious guarding of muscles during trauma and it would be a miracle if we didn't get CPPS.

I'm going in Wednesday for extraction of a kidney stone that's stuck in a ureter between my kidney and bladder. I'm really anxious about the outcome. I could either feel a lot better because the stone is referring the pain to my penis, or a lot worse, like you. The closer Wednesday comes, the harder it is to do my cognitive behavioral stuff, relaxation and meditation - like about impossible.

On the positive side, at least we know how to tame it, unlike men 20 years ago.

[webslave]

However-it seems like this whole appendicitis incident has made everything terrible again. What is the connection?

The connection is neurological. The nerves in the pelvis, which are almost over-connected (as the other poster indicates), have been "goosed" and have to quieten again before symptoms will subside. Help it along with all the techniques you already know, and give it time.

[CppsDad]

I agree. Continue to do the things you know you can do safely - relaxation, light stretching, and light massage. Modify your therapeutic routine to achieve at least minimal results. I've had to modify my own personal therapies as other injuries have gotten in the way. For example, back pain has forced me to do my squats differently, and I have found ways to do them that weren't as difficult on the lower back and achieve nearly the same results. Recently, I've had tendinitis in the wrists and forearms that make many of the stretches and poses hard to hold. I've had to modify things a bit for this condition too. The key is to keep doing things that give your body a fighting chance to keep a good thing going, as well as keep your mind focussed on doing "something" for your chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome even when you can't do as much as you want to or need to. Also, the odds are that while this flare-up is bad, that it will subside quicker than it did your first go around with CPPS. Your muscles and nerves do not just revert back to prior form with 1 month of neglect. Also, you now have the power of belief, belief that you can beat this thing now because you beat it before. You didn't have THAT the first time, and as we all know, the psychological side of this condition is as important as the physical.

Hang in there! I hope you feel better soon.

Mike

[Duke]

I have actually felt a little better this long 4 day Thanksgiving week. I think the extra sleep and relaxation helped a lot. Also we had great weather here in NYC the last 3 days and I did a tremendous amount of walking -the walking definitely helps. I'm going to go back to my stretches this week which should further help. I'm also considering a shrink as I know there is a major psychological aspect to all of this.
I also will get back to the PT in a few weeks. Thanks for all of your comments and suggestions. Hearing from others who are going throught the same miserable ailments helps more than going to countless urologists.

[kevin]

Hi Duke,

These are classic nerve-related Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS), possibly involving disturbance of some sacral inhibitory mechanisms. (You have almost all the symptoms of LUTS or storage/voiding dysfunction.) In addition to what has been mentioned already, I would get this worked up by a neuro-urologist if this hasn't been done already. A voiding cystourethrogram, along with a test of your Valsalva leak point pressure, would probably be useful.