How to end male pelvic pain

It’s one of the most frustrating and life-changing kinds of pain a man can experience … and in the worst place. I’m talking about male pelvic pain.

Male pelvic pain has a number of different causes. One of the most common types of male pelvic pain, affecting 50% of men at some point in their lives, is prostatitis.

If you have this, you already know that you want nothing more than to get some relief because it can drive you crazy.

That’s why today, I’m here to help. It often surprises the men with whom I speak about this condition that many of its causes originate outside of the prostate itself.

There are several types of prostatitis. Some are caused by bacteria, such as acute bacterial prostatitis and chronic bacterial prostatitis. However, about 90 to 95% of the men suffering with prostatitis have a nonbacterial form of chronic prostatitis, also called chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

This type is the most debilitating and hardest type of prostatitis to understand and treat. It is most often caused by tension in the pelvis.

Types of pelvic pain

There are several other similar conditions to prostatitis that may share some pelvic pain or sexual pain symptoms. These other conditions may stand alone, occur along with prostatitis, or may even be a cause of prostatitis. If you are not having any luck at getting to the cause of your pelvic pain, talk to your physician about the following possible conditions:

• Reactive arthritis (an autoimmune condition)
• Urethral stricture (narrowing of the urethra)
• Post-vasectomy pain syndrome (chronic testicular pain for over three months after the procedure)
• Chronic fatigue (often with fatigue and muscle/joint pain)
• Stress-related pelvic pain (may benefit from stress management and myofascial release or trigger point therapy)
• Pudendal nerve entrapment (causes urinary trouble, bowel trouble, sexual problems and neurological symptoms)
• Pelvic joint dysfunction (can be linked to pelvic pain syndrome and pain can also affect groin, butt, lower back, and hips)
• Enlarged prostate due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)
• Pelvic trauma (due to injury or irritating activities)
• Prostate cancer
• Testicular cancer
• Interstitial cystitis

There are a few conditions that often accompany men with prostatitis. These are called co-morbidities. Stress and tension and anxiety are related to prostatitis. Some men who have pelvic pain due to prostatitis also suffer from irritable bowel syndrome and leaky gut. This may be related to food intolerances or allergies.

Some men who have prostatitis also suffer from chronic sinusitis. Sometimes symptoms flare up at the same time, which make’s one wonder whether they share the same trigger.

Protocols to end the pain

A holistic approach such as naturopathic urologist Dr. Geo Espinosa’s prostatitis treatment program is one of the more thorough ways to determine what is contributing to your pelvic pain.

This program looks at a man’s diet, nutrition, stress level, exercise frequency and allergies. It employs natural treatments like elimination diets, well-researched natural supplements like phytotherapy (pollen extracts and quercetin) and probiotics.

This program also employs alternative therapies like acupuncture, prostate massage and pelvic floor muscle rehabilitation. And, of course, it involves lifestyle changes, chronic stress management and exercise.

Talk to your doctor about testing and diagnosis for prostatitis and other causes of pelvic pain. Keep in mind that a multimodal approach to pelvic pain is the most successful treatment plan, especially if traditional treatments have not brought success.

The least-known nutrient in Dr. Espinosa’s program is the flavonoid called quercetin (kwer-suh-tin).

Quercetin is something you can take preventatively because it protects the prostate by stopping the cancer cells that can form due to excess estrogens. ^[1]

But quercetin also has a lot of scientific evidence behind it that points to it being a very powerful tool to relieve prostatitis.

Onions and apples have quercetin, as does quinoa, the protein-filled plant from Peru. Black tea and olive oil have some, too. But even eating these won’t give you quite enough quercetin once you have prostatitis.

For that you’ll need around 500 mg per day. Talk to your doctor before taking more than 1 gram. Quercetin may cause some minor side effects like a headache or upset stomach, but these usually go away with continued use.

[1] Resende F, de Oliveira A, de Camargo M, Vilegas W, Varanda E. “Evaluation of estrogenic potential of flavonoids using a recombinant yeast strain and MCF7/BUS cell proliferation assay.” PLoS One. 2013;8(10):e74881.