Health Organization for Pudendal Education

Hi all,

This is causes and effects section , okay. This query is about effects.

Given that the clitoris and the penis are, I think, the most sensitive parts of the anatomy to give ecstatic pleasure what effect therefore, does long term severe pain from these parts have on the brain.

I was trying to explain to a pain doctor that rubbing the arm or the leg did not give any great sense of pleasure but the same action on the male or female genital organs has tremendous outcomes. I was using this example to try and get through to him how terrible this PN pain is. He didn't reply. So I rubbed my arm and said "there, that didn't give me any pleasure' in order to demonstrate my point.

So my question is: does anyone know of any studies showing what effect penile/clitoral PN pain has on brain chemistry given the chemicals released during sexual orgasm have obvious effect! And the psychological issues, too.

I know this question may seem a bit academic, given the obvious effect of pain, but does anyone know of any studies? I guess a cure is the main issue at this stage. It's just that I think I'm going mad at times when lying in bed in pain. Other pain makes me miserabe but this pain makes me mad-I think.

Cheers

Bill it s difficult to say, but things are not that linear. I am a psychologist, although not active in the clinical field.
The link between chronic penile pain and the state of your psychological situation might be hidden in many layers, but two of them I wouold see as the most obvious:

1. Chronic pain is enourmouos pressure on the emotions, behavioral patterns, concentration etc. It is very well known trigger of the many behavioral disorders and might lead to severe depression, anxiety, etc. In this layer it is the same as any other chronic pain. I would say that people chronically suffering from low back pain would refer the same experience.

2. Of course, that in more hidden level, genitals are perceived to be very vulnerable parts of the body and many psychosomatic issues might be reflected in problems/pain in the genital region. There is certain chance that the chronic genital pain is one of the manifestation of some psychological problems/disorders and does not have any clinical/anatomical background. But in these case, there are also some other manifestations of disorder, and genital pain is only one of the several symptoms. I guess that majority of us is suffering the "classic" organ-related pain, due to some irritation, mechanical entrapment etc. of pudendal nerve. At least my case is such, pain started after mechanical irritation without any relation to lets say emotional, social, relational problems etc. I try not to "overpsychologize" that. But every case is different.

You cannot simply "go mad" solely from the pain. However, in longterm, your personality might be altered in direction to anxiety and depression related behavioral and emotional patterns. But you cannot go "insane".

Matt

Got to agree with you Matt.
I really wouldn't want to ever say 'my pain is worse than your pain', because it concerns an intimate area. Although, if you want the sympathy vote you will usually get it if you are brave enough (or intimate enough) with someone to mention "severe penile/clitoral pain" .
I know that trigeminal neuralgia (facial nerve pain) has been termed the suicide disease. I had to google it as couldn't spell it and found a site that said this;
Official site of the Trigeminal Neuralgia Association UK, providing support and advice for sufferers of the most painful affliction known to man.
So that's official then
I have discovered that pain is a very complex subject but so interesting too, as the brain can be strange.
I suppose that when acute pain, which does serve a purpose. . .ouch that's HOT! or Don't move that arm. . it's broken, becomes chronic pain, it comes down to how one manages it.
I would have to say that it's the lack of understanding and recognition that makes any pelvic nerve pain so difficult to deal with, for me anyway. I had a disc herniation 12 years ago that got progressively worse and I ended up having the protruding bit sliced off; the largest slicing off my surgeon had ever done, bet he said that to all the girls
Admittedly I didn't have any good drug regime in place then (no clue why) but I honestly could not have gone on like that. . . .thing is, I didn't have to !. There was an abundance of surgeons to choose from.
Pelvic nerve problems do become their own beast because of this I think.