9 months of pain. Prostatitis?

I recommend Hatha Yoga. It keeps my lower back aligned - particularly the twisting poses - when I don't go to my weekly class, Sciatica returns.

Hi Michael, it's a fact that men's pelvic pain is often caused by stress of some sort.  You've had all the tests which came back clear and I have no idea why a urologist would 'assure' you that you have prostatitis if you don't have any symptoms (maybe it gave him job satisfaction!).  I think the fact you have a slight hip misalignment should have answered the question - all your nerves run through the sacrum so the pain signals can get confused.  You have no doubt been stressed by all these tests and the waiting which could easily have added to your pain.

Exercise is probably the key for you.  There is a site called the pelvic pain clinic.  He's a private practitioner but has posted some very informative videos which may help you.  

I'm saddened to see you have been given so many antibiotics (for, probably, nothing!).  They haven't helped you but they may well have harmed you.  All antibiotics do damage in that they get rid of your good microbes as well as bad ones.  Ciprofloxacin is the master of this art - it will kill off anything (which is why it's so popular) but this means it will kill off things you desperately need.  Studies show the gut biome needs a year to recover after Cipro compared to 4 months after Cephalexin and 1 month after penicillin (I can't provide a link unless you message me!).  Cipro also damages your mitochondrial DNA.  The mitochondria are the 'powerhouses' of your cells - they convert food molecules into energy.  So this isn't damaging your cell nucleus DNA, but it is depleting your energy supplies (feeling more tired and 'out of sorts' than usual?).  Cipro also does other serious damage such as to tendons, joints and muscles,  plus it can cause anxiety and depression (it acts on the central nervous system). 

I'm not trying to worry or scare you but you have had 5 courses of this stuff so I very strongly recommend you never have any more of it, or it's siblings - their 'family' is called the fluoroquinolones and their names generally end in '-floxacin' e.g. Ofloxacin. 

There is a discussion about the serious side effects they can cause here on this site - go to the fluoroquinolone antibiotics forum. Some of the stories are quite distressing - which is why I'm warning you now!  Some people have been affected after just a few tablets while some take many courses - like you.  Some have no apparent side affects until they take a NSAID painkiller such as Ibuprofen - or Naproxen - and then their symptoms start.  There's something in NSAIDs and steroids that kick start the side effects (there are studies to show this also!). 

I suggest you switch now - this minute - to paracetamol for the pain.  The Amitriptyline is to help you sleep, also to help deal with any anxiety you may be feeling.  Perhaps you have a lot to be anxious about - would you say it's increased since you've taken the Cipro?  It's relief that you've been told you can't have any more ABs but I wonder why they would give you so many in the first place! 

I also suggest you don't smoke (if you do!) and don't drink alcohol for a good few weeks.  Also clean up your diet so that you don't have sugar or junk food but concentrate instead on good useful food so that your gut has less work to do.  Take probiotics (capsules, live yoghurt etc) to help your gut repair itself - the danger is that bad bacteria will take over down there and cause further problems.

It is a fact that Cipro + Ibuprofen are the NICE guidelines for treating prostatitis - I am in touch with NICE to try to help them understand how many men have been seriously affected by this treatment.  Please reply if you have questions or want more ideas about the pain or the antibiotic situation.  You are young so it's likely that you'll get none of the trouble that I've just described but the fact is that you will have some damage in your cells even if it's not enough to have an impact on you yet.

There are many exercises you

Michael, proper alignment can cure a lot of ailments so my advice would be to go to a chiropractor and make sure you are properly aligned. I'm not saying that is the root cause of your problem but that is where I usually start with my mystery ailments and I find that it works about 75% of the time. I have a particularly good chiropractor. A bone crusher - as I refer to them - can cause more problems than he/she can fix. My guy moves things back into place much more gently. I jokingly say that he coaxes them back into alignment so as not to cause other damage. But, he's also not one of these guys who requires a dozen visits. He doesn't turn it into a money making scheme. He usually nails it in one or two visits - three at the most. Hey it's worth a try. But, you must do your Patient comments research and find a good one in your area. My wife recently had a mystery ailment that she had been battling for close to a year - xrays, mri etc.  She finally went to see my Chiro - who put her back into alignment in 3 visits = mystery solved. So, I always start with alignment. Sometimes, in troubleshooting excluding various problems lead to solving the problem. Best of luck to you in solving this one. But, you seem to have done an awful lot already so I applaud you for the action you've already taken.         

Hello Michael

I agree with  miriam65408, don't take cipro any more.

But the key symptom in this case is: "You feel fine through the night and the pain seems to start after you have been moving around for an hour or so in the morning"

I think you have a problem with your pelvic floor.

Michael, you're an anxious and nervous person, am I wrong?

Well, what is happening is that unconsciously, when you get up in the morning, you start to tighten the muscles of your pelvic floor. You concentrate the tension in that area. Those muscles are weak and sensitive, and they hurt if they are stressed.

Search in google: tight pelvic floor, levator ani syndrome, prostatodynia, nonbacterial prostatitis, .... They are all the same.

There is many information about this syndrome, but you have to search for it. Don't worry: you are not alone. On the contrary, it is quite common, but doctors do not know how to treat it, because they do not know how to diagnose it. There are many, many people, poorly diagnosed around the world with this problem.

A slight misalignment of your hips may influence something, but it is not the most important.

The key is: RELAX, exercise for relax pelvic floor, NOT kegels, keep well hidrated (2 l/day). Focus your attention on other things. Anxiety make it worse.

Is not easy, and take time. Perhaps some weeks or months, but slowly you are going to stop thinking about it, and you will feel better.

A physiotherapist can be helpful.

Good luck.

I had great success curing non-bacterial prostatitis with a mind-body approach. Sounds crazy, I know, but in my case at least, it was a type of learned pain (think of phantom limb pain). I'd had so many possible causes ruled out and tried so many different cures, with no or only temporary success, that the only thing that made sense to me was a psychosomatic condition.

I'm now cured and my life is back to normal. Not saying your case is like mine, but maybe something to consider if other approaches don't work for you.

I went to a PT and tried alignment, but no lasting luck. My pain subsided for a week or two, but then returned even with further treatment. And now I'm pain-free and cured, typing this while slumped in my chair with horrible posture.

I wonder if your doctor is thinking similarly, since amitriptyline is often used for neurogenic pain, which it can help to some degree. I was prescribed it too but never took it.

Thankyou for all your help and advice. I forgot to mention, I've been getting on/off ear pain also. Ear ache inside and behind my ears. I've had my ears checked by my doctor and there is no signs of infection. He prescribed me antibiotic ear drops but they haven't seem to clear it. Is this something that could potentially be linked to my other symptoms with nerves etc? Thanks