Well, I know I'm just as baffled by all this as the rest of you, but I wanted to share a few thoughts I've had recently. It seems to me like we might all be dealing with variations on a theme here...

From everything I've read on the net, it seems like scrotal pain can have many different causes. If it's epididymitis caused by a bacterial infection, some guys are lucky enough to be cured by just one course of antibiotics. (I've actually seen that happen with my dad and a friend of mine.) That's undoubtedly why there are so many posts on this board about doctors and their lack of concern for our condition. Since germs are constantly mutating and becoming stronger each day due to the overusage of antibiotics, doctors have gotten used to needing to fire more than one "magic bullet" before they find one that actually works. That's why the only "solution" they're willing to provide is continuous courses of antibiotics over and over. I think most of you would agree though that doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results each time, is the definition of insanity...

It's when the pain becomes chronic, that's when the real puzzle begins... It seems to me like it could be due to a number of different things. I've seen things like cysts and other abnormal growths mentioned here, which may require professional treatment (although the body does have a way of healing almost anything, given proper nutrition and rest...) I think for most of us though, the main problem is just lingering, chronic pain with no apparent cause. It seems to me like that could be caused by several different things as well -- lingering inflammation after an infection, fluid congestion, or muscle or nerve damage...

I can see why the herb fenugreek would help if the main problem is fluid congestion. Before I was forced to quit my job recently due to this chronic pain, I had worked as the manager of a health food store for nearly seven years. Fenugreek is a great expectorant, meaning it helps to thin the body's secretions. I've heard of it being used for everything from nasal mucus, to ear wax, to soothing the digestive tract, and in women, promoting lactation during nursing. (Some women even use it just to increase the size of their bustline!) That's why I can understand why it would help "unclog the pipes" in the male reproductive system too, by making the semen more liquid and easier to ejaculate. Unfortunately though, it didn't seem to help me...

In my case, the sharpness and severity of the pain has me thinking it's more likely coming from nerve damage, probably caused by the inflammation during the infection. Since I've given up on MD's and antibiotics now that I've gotten past the acute infection phase, I've been consulting with my chiropractor. I know that will sound crazy to some of you, but I really do think it's helping. Each time I go in, he says my nervous system is showing signs of stress down near my tailbone (the part of the spinal cord which controls the genitals), and his treatments do seem to be helping. I finally realized that the reason my pain seems to flare up each weekend is because it's always within 48 hours after having seen him on a Friday. But then, later during the week, things do seem to improve a little more each week. The bad spells of pain each weekend might seem like a high price to pay, but like my chiropractor says, keeping things stirred up is preferable to being stuck in one rigid position where your body doesn't stand a chance of healing itself... (His treatments also help keep my neck and lower back properly aligned since I have to sit in such awkward positions to help take pressure off my testicles.)

I've also seen a lot of discussion here lately about ejaculation, and whether it helps or hurts... That seems like another thing that varies a lot from person to person, judging from the widely diverging posts which recommend doing it every day, to never doing it at all. I suspect that, like so many things in life, moderation is probably the key. I think it's unrealistic to think we should never do it at all since it's apparently a necessary bodily function that your body will eventually perform on its own during a wet dream. However, ejaculating every day while you have epididymitis seems a bit to me like trying to run a marathon race with a broken ankle... The problem here is determining what would be a moderate compromise somewhere in between -- once a week? Once a month...?

What do you guys think about all this...?