I had my vasectomy in Either August or September of 2019, I took a full week to recover, everything healed fine. I was even back doing Jiu Jitsu 1 month later and didn’t feel any pain or discomfort in the boys. February 5th I had some pain and tenderness in both, Urgent Care found some swelling and inflammation (ultrasound) so I was given antibiotics for epididymitis and everything got better. April 18th, it started again, severely. It started as I was taking my daily walk. I felt a random pinch in my left vas, and it lasted all day. Nurse advice line was scared for torsion so they sent me to ER. Ultrasound again, all was fine. Ice, call my urologist for followup if it doesn’t get better.
It doesn’t, so a week later Urologist calls me (damn covid, can’t get in person checks yet) does the usual asks, and tells me its probably a granuloma or PVPS. He thinks my need to pee all the time is just anxiety. (which I admittedly was having a bad episode) So I suck it up for a week. Eventually see an Urgent care doctor in person who says I’ve got some swelling in the prostate, its tender, so he prescribes me antibiotics. Coincidentally, my testicle pain gets better for a few weeks. Still minor nagging pain, but not enough that I need to take ibuprofen every day.
May 5th I go back to urgent care because now I found a lump, and it was tender, and I’m peeing more again. Ultrasound and pee tests later: its just a regular ol’ cyst. But doc gives me antibiotics again, just in case. While I was taking them, all the pain was completely gone, still had to pee though.
Two days after my antibiotics finished, the testicle pain started back up again, and after another follow up phone call with my Urologist, he’s convinced I’m just having neurological pain. But because it’s usually so minor except a couple random spikes here and there, he doesn’t want to prescribe nerve medication or shots yet, unless my pain becomes worse or interferes with my daily life. My pain is only usually a 2-3, and that’ll stay around for a few days, maybe two weeks. Sometimes I don’t even feel anything. The worst I’ve had it so far is a random spike that goes to a 5, maybe 6, but those moments are thankfully rare. The pain is most always located in what feels like my vas, shooting from inside down towards where the cauterization is.
So I’m here. Venting mostly. But I’m also wondering if neurological pain can appear much later like this, after a period of no pain and normal function. It feels out of nowhere. I’ve had several blood and urine tests (including cultures) from Urgent Care doctors and they feel confident I don’t have a chronic infection. So I’m left with the usual: inflammation, congestion, nerve damage, or pelvic floor.
I’m starting to do the usual suggestions to see if anything helps: Pelvic floor exercise, yoga, papaya seed, I’m finding an appointment to see acupuncture, see if that works. I’m also trying to get in contact with my Physical Therapist, to see if there might be any chance I’m experiencing a trapped nerve (because admittedly my lower back is generally in pain, and I’m a desk worker with awful posture).
Is it worth finding a second opinion from another Urologist? I don’t know if I could gen another diagnosis or things to try, but I’d at least like to find one that feels a little less flippant.