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Forum Home| Forum Rules| Moderators| Active Topics| Help| Log In

ANYONE RETURNED TO ERECTILE FUNCTION THROUGH NATURAL HEALING?

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Prostate Cancer
Have you recovered from ED without medication?
What is your age? - 0.0% - 0 votes
How long after your operation did you take to gain successful erection? - 0.0% - 0 votes
Did you use partner oral stimulation? - 0.0% - 0 votes
What do you think helped most in your erectile recovery? - 100.0% - 2 votes
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Thomson58
New Member
Joined : Oct 2012
Posts : 4
Posted 10/17/2012 5:55 PM (GMT -8)

idea  

There is very little information from prostate cancer survivors who have opted not to use any of the recommended methods (pills, injections, etc) to regain erectile function.  There is a risk that taking nothing will end up in failure but with drastically differing recovery times, is there anyone out there who used nothing and just waited for the spared nerves to heal naturally?  I wonder if all the treatments are absolutely necessary.  Has anyone successfully used oral sex (for those fortunate enough that their surgeon did just the right amount of stitching to prevent leakage) to help rehabilitate the penis instead of a vacuum pump, pills or injections?

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142
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 7298
Posted 10/17/2012 6:02 PM (GMT -8)
I would find it difficult to believe that a patient who has done all of the prep and work to treat PCa would then refuse the possibility to use proven tools in an effort to recover erectile function. I would certainly not go to all the efforts of my surgery and RT to then trust in, well, what? We tend to throw all the tools we have at the enemy.

Welcome to HW. Perhaps you can give us some background on your PCa journey.

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davidg
Veteran Member
Joined : Feb 2011
Posts : 4093
Posted 10/17/2012 6:17 PM (GMT -8)
I was told ED pills would help for rehabilitative purposes, I took them and I healed to the point where I don't need them anymore and if I do choose to take them from time to time its like taking a recreational drug. I know that's not what you're asking, but I would recommend taking them post surgery as there is a purpose to taking them.
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davidg
Veteran Member
Joined : Feb 2011
Posts : 4093
Posted 10/17/2012 6:27 PM (GMT -8)
I was guessing he meant that his partner would blow him until he popped a chubby. Not the way to go about it and imagine the strain on the partner.
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Thomson58
New Member
Joined : Oct 2012
Posts : 4
Posted 10/17/2012 6:34 PM (GMT -8)
New Zealand male, 54 years old, PSA testing since 2009; starting level 3.8 but increased gradually to 6.9 in 2012. Doctor recommended biopsy; found cancer in 4 of 7 cores left lobe and 1 of 9 cores right lobe, Gleason 4+3=7, adenocarcinoma of the prostate. Bone scan negative, MRI scan showed left side bulge. RRP done 24 Sep 2012 and subsequent histology confirmed pT3a Gleason 3+4=7 with seminal vesicle negative, lymph node negative, focal margin positive. Waiting for 6 week post op PSA test!

It definitely takes time for the area to heal after a major operation. Medication is recommended but I can't find specific proof that it really helps remedy ED. It would be good to know if there are reputable studies to prove the efficacy of medication.
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142
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 7298
Posted 10/17/2012 6:44 PM (GMT -8)
I would advise you search for Dr. John P. Mulhall, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He has a very detailed book titled "Saving Your Sex Life, A Guide for Men with Prostate Cancer". It goes painfully deep into the details and mechanics of the different ED meds and injections.

There is no guarantee that the best of the drugs will recover ED issues if the nerves are removed or badly enough damaged, but doing nothing is right up there with doing nothing. In the worst cases, injectables have a very good track record, and can also help wake up an otherwise dead member nerve-wise.

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PeterDisAbelard.
Forum Moderator
Joined : Jul 2012
Posts : 6408
Posted 10/17/2012 6:45 PM (GMT -8)
Hello Thompson58,

Assuming you are talking about recovery after radical prostatectomy, with a decent surgeon somewhere around two thirds to three quarters of men will recover some of what they had before surgery within two years without rehab. They tend to move up one notch in the ED hierarchy. Men who had the erections of an 18-year old will come out with the sexual vigor of a thirty-something. Men with mild ED will come out with moderate ED. Men with moderate ED will come out impotent. In general, the best you can hope for is that you will come out with your dad's pecker.

If you want to do better, it's pills, pumps or injections, depending what works for you.

I'd write more but tonight is a Trimix night. Gotta go stick a needle in my member.
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142
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2010
Posts : 7298
Posted 10/17/2012 6:45 PM (GMT -8)
Mulhall also has several on-line videos that complement the book. You should be able to find them through the MSKCC site.
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PeterDisAbelard.
Forum Moderator
Joined : Jul 2012
Posts : 6408
Posted 10/17/2012 8:01 PM (GMT -8)
This paper seems pretty good.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3151582/
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Tigerfan53
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2011
Posts : 933
Posted 10/17/2012 9:07 PM (GMT -8)

Thomson – Welcome to Healing Well; glad you found us.

 

The longer you go without erections after surgery, the more likely you are to suffer permanent erectile tissue damage, called atrophy.  Erections are needed to bring fresh blood and oxygen into the penis which rehabilitates the erectile tissue.  And the medication is needed to enable you to have the erections after surgery, while the nerves heal.  You need to have erections that are penetration hardness (60%) or better for 10 to 15 minutes 2 to 3 times a week.  This will maximize your ability to recover your erections back to what they were prior to surgery.  And the goal is to eventually get off of the drugs.  Realize also that ED recovery takes time, usually around 18 to 24 months.

 

Here is one of Dr. John Mulhall’s videos: http://www.mskcc.org/multimedia/penile-rehabilitation-after-treatment

 

Best of luck with your recovery -- Tigerfan

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Thomson58
New Member
Joined : Oct 2012
Posts : 4
Posted 10/17/2012 9:55 PM (GMT -8)
TigerFan53
Congratulations on your low PSA. Am hoping mine will be < 0.05 at 6 weeks post op too. Thanks for the excellent link. Have listened to a small portion of the video and will watch to the end after dinner. You have similar stats to me although not Retropubic open Prostatectomy. How has your journey to healthy erections gone? Early days for me at just over 3 weeks and still experiencing discomfort from the abdominal wound. First Viagra tablet 100mg on Saturday, 50mg on Wednesday, feels like I have a tablet stuck in my aesophagus (even next day) and slight nasal blockage. I believe not meant to be any action yet: just getting it into my system.
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Thomson58
New Member
Joined : Oct 2012
Posts : 4
Posted 10/17/2012 11:44 PM (GMT -8)
PeterD
Thanks for your post. Found the link quite full of jargon and was pleased to get to the conclusion and main points at the end but it definitely recommends continuing with medication...
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PeterDisAbelard.
Forum Moderator
Joined : Jul 2012
Posts : 6408
Posted 10/18/2012 8:11 AM (GMT -8)
Do watch the video that TigerFan53 recommended. It is the best thing available and will walk you though most of the jargon.

The only reason I didn't recommend it is that TigerFan53 already mentioned it. Also, since the video is a couple of years old, I posted a link to a newer paper that comes to the same conclusions so you would know that the info in the video is still current.
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56pontiac
Regular Member
Joined : Sep 2006
Posts : 240
Posted 10/18/2012 9:27 AM (GMT -8)
Welcome to the club nobody wants to be a member of. ED is a problem for most especially after surgery your body has been majorly invaded and is in shock. A lot of factors involved, like do you have a loving caring partner? If not then it is even more difficult. I am fortunate in that I have a very loving caring wife. Now six years later I do not need meds or any other help with intercourse. I did not get any real response to an erection for 11 months after surgery. I used a pump for therapy like brushing your teeth in the morning and evening. There was nothing sexual about it it was excercise progam to get the blood flow going and help the healing process. I have not used a pump for over three years now. Do not expect a little pill to do what will take physical work to accomplish. Best of luck I highly recommend getting a pump and blowing yourself up daily just like lifting weights, jogging, yoga etc.
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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25448
Posted 10/18/2012 10:37 AM (GMT -8)
Your poll doesn't make sense. Your questions are not set up to answer in the form of a vote, or I don't understand what you are really asking.

I was one of the fortunate few. Had left nerves removed wide, right side suppose to be removed, but surgeon couldn't due to surgical difficutlies in a deep and narrow prostate bed, right side left and noted as damaged.
Never had or still don't, any ED. Was getting natural errections while still on the catheter. Never have ever used any ED pills or injections, simply don't need them. Sex is as good or better than before my surgery.
-----------------------------------------------

to davidg: that was a pretty crude way of explaining oral stimulation, don't you think? that kind of talk is more suited for franktalk than at HW, we have all kinds of readers at HW, both male and female. I found it offensive personally.
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dude1969
Regular Member
Joined : Jul 2011
Posts : 438
Posted 10/18/2012 10:49 AM (GMT -8)
I didn't like the SE's and have not used them as the uro suggested. He did make it pretty clear that with or without, I was probably looking at a year or two before knowing what the outcome of the surgery might be. I had open, nerve sparring RP at Johns Hopkins, Nov. 4, 2011. G6, organ confined, 3mo psa <.1.

I did the rehab part, trying to have sex or manual stimulation, no pumps and without the meds. There has always been "life," but not quite good enough for intercourse. Recently, there's been more "life." Now, this isn't to say that I have completely sworn off the use. They work when I've taken them, so if I want a sure thing, I pop a cialis or viagra. I just don't use them often. I get extremely congested feeling and I feel my blood pressure climb.

This is the only surgery I've had, but with injuries, I've always let my body lead the way in recovery. I'm happy with the small, regular improvement I've seen without the use of the drugs. My wife, luckily, is with me and supportive in taking it slowly. She always gets taken care of so there's little performance anxiety which makes things work easier. I feel like I'll be good without any help in a short time.
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HCV
Regular Member
Joined : Jul 2012
Posts : 120
Posted 10/18/2012 7:39 PM (GMT -8)
I am six months out from RP and am getting some fullness/partial erections that seem to be improving in the last few weeks.  Ihave taken the very aggressive approach using the pump from the first two weeks and daily cialis 5mg or viagara 50mg.  I started caverject at month four.  I totally agree that causing erections helps recovery.  I don't care about the cost.  I don't want to look back and regret that I could have done more. I even stimulate frequently.  My goal is to get where I was.  I was discouraged until starting caverject.  I only need 5mg now for a good erection.  The injection is nothing and in fact, gives a better erection than pills ever did.  My advice is do everything you can.
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