Patient's question:
I am 25 years old. Around the age of 13 or 14 in middle school, I suddenly lost the ability to get a normal erection (the kind that is hard all the way up) and it has continued until now. I have been very distressed about it. Before that, I was able to get erections normally. I would get hard immediately upon seeing stimulating scenes, and I often had fantasies. Sometimes the erections would last too long, causing pain in my perineum. Then one morning, while I was still in bed and having morning fantasies, I suddenly realized I couldn’t get a normal erection, and it has continued until now. I am quite thin, currently 175 cm tall and weighing around 55 kg. My body is slightly weaker than average, but still healthy, and I occasionally get colds and fevers. During middle school, I had a period of severe headaches, but they improved after taking some Tianma pills for a while.My current situation is: I can get an erection, but it’s not hard enough or firm enough. I have nocturia only occasionally, with no frequency or urgency. Regarding morning erections, sometimes I get a bit erect, but it’s not the kind that is hard all the way up. I have nocturnal emissions about 2-3 times a month. I have never masturbated. I do have sexual desire, but it’s not the same as it was when I was normal—like the kind where hormones surge, but I can’t describe it clearly. In winter, others often say my hands are very cold (I’m not aware of it myself), and my lower limbs feel cold. Everything else is normal, like sleeping and eating, just like an average person.
In May 2009, I went to the traditional Chinese medicine hospital affiliated with our provincial college of traditional Chinese medicine for treatment. A doctor around 40 years old diagnosed me after asking some questions and feeling my pulse. He prescribed two bottles of Qilin pills, and the diagnosis is shown in the picture at the bottom of the article.
After taking the medicine, I didn’t see any improvement. In February 2010, I tried my first sexual experience, but I couldn’t get an erection. When I touched the other person, I didn’t feel the pleasure I had imagined, and even when they manually stimulated my penis, I still couldn’t get hard. It ended in a shameful failure.
The next day, I went to the urology department of our provincial People’s Liberation Army hospital for treatment. (That department was outsourced, so payments were made at the department’s counter, not the main hospital counter). A doctor around 30 years old examined me. After asking some questions, he ordered some tests (the test results are shown in the picture at the bottom of the article). The doctor said my sexual dysfunction was caused by prostatitis, with some premature ejaculation, and a small stone. These could not be cured with medicine and required instrument treatment. He recommended ZRL-cavitation intervention therapy. I first had a treatment where a cup-like device was placed over my penis, and a catheter was used to inject herbal water into the cup, then flushed into the penis using air pressure. It was called herbal massage. Next, a catheter was inserted into the urethra to administer fluids. Then, a tube was inserted into the rectum, supposedly for some herbal wash. The next day, I lay under a device that emitted electromagnetic waves to the area of my penis, supposedly to kill germs and reduce inflammation. (The instrument treatment was supposed to last several days, but I didn’t have enough money. I had spent all the 4,000 yuan I had saved from working for six months after graduation, and my family had to transfer the money to my card to pay for my return trip). Finally, the doctor prescribed some medicine—several boxes of ProstaEase and one box of something else (I don’t remember the name)—to take twice a day, one pill each time. He said this wasn’t true impotence and could be cured, so I shouldn’t worry. So, I took the medicine for 10 days at home, but there was no improvement, and the medicine ran out.
Two days ago, I called the doctor at the People’s Liberation Army hospital to ask why there was no improvement and why I had some pain in the perineum. He replied that the pain in the perineum was normal because the medicine was detoxifying and reducing inflammation, and it was expected. The instrument treatment was supposed to last a week, but I only used it for two days, so it wouldn’t work. During this time, I could take ProstaEase capsules, and I should come back for follow-up treatment later.
This is my situation. I am asking all the doctors, what should I do? I am truly at my wit’s end. I am 25 years old, and I am still a virgin. I am very desperate!!! Please help me!!!
Once again, I beg for everyone’s help!!!!!!!!!
Doctor's answer:
From your description, the main issue you are facing right now is still psychological. In other words, what you call erectile dysfunction is psychogenic. As for those so-called treatments, they are inappropriate. The transurethral resection will also increase the risk of urethral injury, and microwave therapy only improves local blood circulation, which does not help with your condition. You don't need to be anxious right now. As long as you can let go of your psychological burden, especially not to have mental pressure during future sexual life, to be brave in practice, and to cooperate with each other, this situation will gradually improve on its own. Remember, sex is a human instinct, but sexual skills and coordination require a process. This has no direct relationship with prostatitis or pelvic congestion symptoms.