Q&A: What’s caused my erection recovery setback? (FirmTech to the rescue!)
Here's a question from my inbox this week, Gary is now a member of our Hub Community (our 220th member!) and I felt this could be a great one to share with others questioning their progress:
💌 Subject: "What caused the setback?"
"So I am now 19 months post-surgery. Up until a couple of months ago, I was getting strong nocturnal erections which was a hopeful sign. I have had success using Trimix which has been my only reliable source. Pills have not worked (Cialis 50% firm, Viagra zero).
I tried Botox and to be honest, since then I've had few, if any, nocturnal erections. I recently had a few PRP (Platlet-Rich Plasma) and Shockwave Therapy Treatments - no noticeable difference. I work out 5-6 days a week, maybe I could increase intensity? I do Kegels at least once a day, trying for 2 to 3.
I'm a little disappointed and wondering what could be the cause of the setback and if there is anything else I should try?" (Gary)
Thank you for reaching out, Gary. It sounds like you’ve been doing a lot of strategies towards optimising rehabilitation and you've now noticed a setback. I can imagine that would feel pretty disappointing.
Please know that erection recovery post-procedure surgery is rarely a linea line. It's much more common to have dips and what feels like 'setbacks' during the process since so many factors contribute to erectile function (for example: illness, sleep quality, medications, and stress can all affect erection quality beyond physical rehab efforts - our latest webinar in the Hub with Dr. Elliot Justin discusses these factors in more depth).
You mentioned you're seeing a 50% response with Cialis - I want to focus on that for a second because that's quite significant. The only way a PDE5 inhibitor can have any effect on erectile function is when the 'cavernous nerves' are back online in some capacity (the ones surrounding the prostate that are currently 'offline' post-surgery). Here's a refresher video on how PDE5s work.
I'm wondering how you're aware of your nocturnal erections changing? Are you using a device to measure nocturnal erections like the Firmtech Tech Ring? I feel this could be an excellent addition to your toolkit if this is the first you've heard of it. Since you're clearly highly motivated and trying different interventions to see what works, this device gives you an objective accurate measure of your erection health and recovery.
The FirmTech is worn at night and tracks your nocturnal erection activity. This is an important indicator of erection health since cortisol (you might have heard me call this ‘erection kryptonite’) is at its lowest during deep sleep. I've heard from many Firmtech users in the Touchy audience who ended up pleasantly surprised to discover they were getting better nocturnals than they realised. Here's a link to the Firmtech ring to learn more.
Another idea is to join our Private Membership Hub to learn more about other ideas you can try, ask our members if they've tried similar strategies like Botox, and what they did to overcome setbacks on their recovery journey (we have men in the Hub who have recovered their erections acting as 'ambassadors' to help men earlier on in their journey).