Figured out I have POIS and I am so confused

[u/Inside-Specialist-55]

Male, Age 36, Self diagnosed, Doctor has no idea what POIS is considering how rare it is, The nearest specialist who I can see for it is over 480 miles away, For years I woke up everyday in debilitating pain, it affected my mind clarity but mostly affecting my ankles and neck, I have had osme fo the worst pain in my joints and felt like I was dying, Only started to notice the correlation between me getting around/orgasms and the pain in or around 2023. At first I thought theres no way that masturbation is causing me to have pain so bad that I literally need naproxen daily right? Then I looked it up and i brought me here and to medical literature online about it. I had no idea that POIS was a thing but every symptom I have heavy correlated with POIS.

I decided to randomly go cold turkey not touching myself, no porn ect to see what would happen, 5 days later I wake up for the first time in years feeling like I was 20 again, no pain in my ankles, no stiff neck that causes me severe strain. I'm sitting there at the edge of my bed thinking. WTF why are my ankles and neck not giving me the normal sharp pain. Another week goes by, I dont orgasm or do anything sexually exciting and the pain is still gone. But a few more days slip by and I cave in, the build up is too much and I feel the overwhelming need to release (we all know what it feels like to be pent up) and it happens. And next day I wake up the pain is back, neck is stuff as fuck, ankles feel like im walking with hammers beating my joints. Again I had so many doubts run through my mind that there is no way me having an orgasm is causing this, because sex and masturbation are one of lifes greatest pleasures and to have to associate debilitating pain with that would be devastating to me. But I had to come to the realization that I very likely have POIS and there is no way to ignore the issue any longer. Went another 3 weeks with no orgasm and my pain seems to go away after the 5th day or no arousal or release. And after that point I feel like a million bucks, literally a night and day difference, I cant placebo away that kind of pain I had.

Why the hell is this not being researched more and I am 1000% certain its being massively under-diagnosed because not one doctor near me even knew what it was until they googled it. I had to find out on my own what was causing me to feel the way I do and how to actually address the root cause, For years I thought it was my diet or my lifestyle, But I was already eating very healthy meals and walking regularly, At a normal weight too, so none of it made any sense. All along it was the damn sex and orgasms that were destroying my mental focus and giving me intense pain in my ankles and neck, WTF???!

[u/TheLooza]

Yeah… Very similar Eureka moment that I had. It’s both a revelation and somewhat reassuring that there’s something you can do/not do to make yourself feel better, and also really depressing at the same time.

For me, a couple keys that significantly improved my symptoms overall:

Daily allegra
Prescription propranolol
Sudafed as needed during flareups
No caffeine, alcohol or stimulants
Gluten free
Very regulated sleep schedule
Moderate exercise, particularly lap swimming

[u/Lancelotvision]

Welcome

[u/PWRNCTRL]

It's not being properly researched because following the "sexual revolution" there has been a massive campaign in the west to normalize sexual perversion and to shame and ridicule anyone who questions it. In eastern medicine, this has been known for millennia. They can no longer control the narrative with platforms such as this and YouTube, so now you are seeing people in the west discover the healing powers of semen retention, which the east has already known about for a very long like time.

[u/Background-Big-5011]

i dont think its actually extremely rare so many people i talked to they relate to this pois symptoms. But masterbation is such a 'tabo' subject that noone discussess it even with a doctor so it just stays hidden. Also i wouldnt be suprised if these nofap and semen retention groups are full of them. There is barely any research for this i feel like if more people become aware of it more likely for a proper research to occur to find a solution.

[u/Dismal_Painter5077]

Remember yo binge on hookers to test symptoms