Hello everyone.
Previously I've dealt with lower back tightness/pain/slight sciatica which I never really dealt with. For about 6 months before this, I noticed that I'd have to push a little bit more times to get the last bit of urine out, and would dribble a couple drops after finishing. No other symptoms.
On March 17th, my wife gave me the last of three massages on my piriformis muscle since I had a knot/trigger point there, and we move it down into the butt cheek thinking it fixed the back issue. At night I went to a couple bars and drank a lot (I never do this); got home and went to sleep. I woke up at about 4 AM and urinated for about 45 seconds non stop. I ever thought "Wow I was really full". Then I went back to sleep.
Next morning I sat down on the computer; masturbated once and noticed not a whole lot of semen came out although this is normal when you do it too quick. About 10 minutes later I felt a very strange sensation in the penis/urethra (might be what I feel now but now used to it). I went to the bathroom and urinated but it didn't really stop the discomfort. Told my wife I might have a UTI. About an hour later I had a powerful bowel movement (I have dealt with what is most likely IBS for a while, get that about twice a year) which made me feel a lot better. I even told my wife I think I just had a big gas bubble and went on with my day.
That night the discomfort came back. I went to the clinic at my base (I am in the military) and the PA tested for STIs, urine test, mentioned the urethra looked a little red. Urine test negative for bacteria. SO he was about to send me on my way but I told him it was painful and uncomfortable especially to sit down. So he gave me the STD regimen of Azythromycin and the injection.
I went to work and started to get constant pain in my perineum IMMEDIATELY behind the point where the scrotum and perineum meet; made worse if palpated. It was pretty much the only symptom.
Spot of pain: https://imgur.com/a/uQ94FFK
I went to the ER where the doctor touched the spot and it hurt. At least she was honest and said "I don't really know what your issue could be". She ordered an ultrasound of scrotum and testicles and the spot where it hurt, all normal. No bacteria in urine.
Next day I went to the clinic to follow up the ER visit and saw another doctor who I explained my symptoms better to. The only real issues was a pain the "perineum" that was made better (felt relief) when spreading my buttcheeks with my hands (basically stretching the anus ). He did a rectal exam and said he couldn't do it super well because I flinched but he did not feel anything out of the ordinary. However he said he would treat it as an acute prostatitis and prescribed Bactrim DS twice a day for 1 month.
I went home and took the bactrim and went to sleep. In the morning I had bactrim side effects like anxiety, tingling etc, but the perineal pain was a lot better than before. Doctor called me and said it was good news that I felt that way.
I took the bactrim for 2 weeks during which time I made some lifestyle changes such as walking around for a couple hours a day to "get my mind off things" and stopped being excessively worried about the issue. During this time I would feel better each day but every once in a while I'd feel the pinch/pain either in the perineal spot or farther up along the urethra at the spot where the scrotum meets the penis. I imagined it was just the "infection" being wiped out little by little.
The bactrim made me start having digestive issues. First I was constipated so I took one senna pill and next day I was having watery diarrhea. Not to mention it made me feel very weak and a little anxious. End of week 2 I started having muscular/joint pain on my right leg which I never had before (back leg pain had always been on the left) and I could still feel the pinch and I ended up having a panic attack from catastrophic thinking amplified by bactrim. At the clinic the doctor said he wouldn't think bactrim could cause the issue but changed me to Cipro. I have a molecular biology degree and know what Cipro can do; so I said thank you, received the Cipro, went home and continued with bactrim. Each day my stool was a little different, and I always had a bunch of gas, most of it trapped. I could feel the gas pressure (or it may have been muscle soreness) in my anus and rectum especially when sleeping. 5 days later I'm at a park and get a lot of itching in my anus; when I had a bowel movement my anus burned like mad and there was a little bright red blood when wiping: I developed a hemorroid (or this whole issue might be a big hemorroid; who knows?). The perineal pain kind of came and went but overall it was mostly gone. I developed jock itch and fungal balanitis a couple days later, as well as oral thrush due to the bactrim killing off all my bacteria (so it did work...) I had to start taking Nystatin for the trush and antifungal creams for the crotch fungi. No big deal. I stopped taking the bactrim but still had the pinch in the urethra/forward perineum even the day after. I became convinced this was not a bacterial infection.
I didn't follow up more with this including PT because I was set to fly out to a training school I have waited over 3 years for. The school is across the country for 3 months. I flew out and had only a little discomfort on the flight. I arrived at the school and we got our asses chewed out as tehy do in the military which flared up the urethral/perineal pinch/pain once again. I also had to sit for a long time in class. It wasn't unbearable like the day I went to the ER, bu constant and annoying. This was this week.
I mainly felt the pinch when actually placing or raising my butt off a chair. Right in the spot of the image. Also sometimes when lifting my knees towards my chest or turning my body sideways; I could feel the pinch for a second or two. It kind of came and went last week. I had bought a foam roller and tennis balls to do trigger point and stretches such as Uptown Mike's and made the mistake to release a trigger point in my left psoas/other muscle around there between the leg joint and lower stomach. It hurt like hell when doing but seemed to release it. Next morning I took a PT test and did exercise as were required to do a lot of exercise here; and all day I had muscular stomach pain, urge to urinate constantly, and shooting sort of "electric/pressure" sensation down my penis/urethra but this time from the top part mostly. I also dealt with gas and reflux the entire week. That was a very difficult day.
At night I went to sleep with a LOT of abdominal pain (I began to think I might have a colon/GI issue - kind of lead me to make this post) and catastrophized it might be colon cancer/Crohn's/Diverticulitis etc. and became super anxious; eventually I fell asleep when the bod and mind relaxed.
The next morning (3 days ago) was a GREAT day (maybe due to the exercise the day before). No constant perineal pain; even when sitting or standing from a seat; even touching the spot would not cause the pain. I thought I was 100% cured. However I still had a lot of gas and began to notice that I could "feel" gas pressure/gas pain in my urethra at the spot. My stools have been very mucusy and kind of fibrous but this started after bactrim so it may be an issue of the gut flora; for which I'm taking probiotic pills. I also noticed when I went to the bathroom and had a bowel movement or contracted my anal sphincter (same muscles you use to push out urine when finished) I would feel the pinch in the regular spot in the urethra. Sometimes it would last a couple minutes or hours after; sometimes it would not last long than putting my pants on. Yesterday and today have been pretty similar. My only symptoms remain to be sore back/glute/between leg and pelvis muscles, hemorroids are pretty much gone but sometimes I feel the burn, the pinch in one or both of the two urethral spots when moving a certain way or during/after using my anal muscles to close and open the sphincter; lots of gas that creates a weird pressure feeling in my urethra when rectum has the gas; also very very rarely I'll feel the urge to urinate but its not as bad as to be a concern and usually I am not empty anyways. As for ejaculation it's not really painful at all, however the semen does not shoot out forcefully as usual and may just dribble out/be very watery; and the actual semen is very stretchy and snaps when stretched kind of like the slime toys they make nowadays but maybe it was always this way. Sometimes when I feel the pinch ejaculation or simply getting and erection make it go away. I suspect a bulbospongiosus muscle cause.
That's where I am at; at this point its more of an annoyance and worry regarding "could it be something more serious" than painful but it's still there. I have good days and bad days; but I haven't even started the stretching/yoga/trigger points.
I feel like this might actually be muscle related more than anything but I am not ruling out some sort of growth in the rectum that is causing referred rectal pain in the urethra through some shared nerve. In any case I'm hoping stretching and exercise these three months will cure this thing. I feel that either the puborectalis muscle, levator ani muscle and/or bulbospongiosus muscle (right below where I feel the pinch) or an entrapment/issue of some part of the pudendal/perineal nerve may be the cause of this issue in my case. If anyone has experienced these issues (mainly pain that spot/urethra WHEN/DURING/AFTER/EXACERBATED/CAUSED by opening/closing of the anal sphincter or bowel movement, please please please let me know.
Also any and all advice is appreciated
Not DURING but maybe 5-10 minutes after urination or a bowel movement (which usually is accompanied by urination of course), I'll feel a very specific pinch/stabbing/burn/internal paper cut/ grain of sand feeling in the same spot of my anterior urethra basically right in front of where the front of the testicles connect to the penis. Should also mention its right in front of where the bulbourethral (Cowper's) gland should be.
If I touch this spot with my fingers and press, it hurts more. If I contract my Kegel muscles( same one used to push out urine), it hurts more while I do it. If I press my things together towards the center around where the perineum is, it hurts more while I do it.
Also the Perineum is also a little sore/tender when the urethra is. After 10 minutes to an hour, it's gone. Until I urinate again then it starts all over.
It is like my urine is acidic or some shit and is making that spot burn. Or somehow there is something wrong on the muscular level and I can feel it in the urethra.
What truly worries me is there being or developing a stricture - which seems like a huge pain in the ass to take care of. However my urine stream is not at all weak, I don't usually have urgency or frequency, I can urinate just fine. Only difference is before I used to push the last 2 or 3 spurts of urine out using my Kegel muscles now nothing really happens if I do that.
On a separate but related note I don't produce nearly the amount of pre ejaculate I used to (I typically was like a fountain) and my semen has become highly viscous and elastic, it's no longer as "lubed up" as it used to be . But this wouldn't point to a muscle problem so I'm at a loss. Sorry for the graphic description. Any insight from anyone?
As you can see my symptoms have remained kind of constant and are turning into a huge pain. Unfortunately being in training I have not had the time to start stretches religiously as I should but I hope to do so once I'm out of training.
Any insight at all?
