Well, I have finally admitted it....

[tennisea Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tennisea]

Hello all. I am new here and have finally admitted that I have ED. I am 62 and used to get an hard erection any time I wanted. I am in very good health with the only two issues being hypertension that is well managed with Quinapril and a very large prostate. My prostate is healthy but my doctor wanted to put me on Finasteride. I looked at the side effects and found that it could CAUSE ED so I opted the natural route using a prostate formula supplement from GNC and eating avacados and healthy foods. It seems to be working well.
I plan to be married soon and am sexually active with my partner. She is very understanding about my condition but we both know that it would just be great if I could get the thing to get harder. We wanted to bring in the New Year with a bang but it was a fizzle as the thing just would not get up. I felt so bad. And I am sure that that could be part of the issue, a fear of failure.
I have decided to go with the "five Gs" for better erections plus other supplements mentioned on this site. I hope they work for me as they are cheaper than Cialis and seem to work with the body to produce more immediate results. I also walk regularly and eat healthy foods. I no longer watch porn although in the past I did some. I am not sure that jelqing is something I want to do at this point but will consider it if I can get the other methods to show any kind of results.
Any other suggestions would be appreciated as I really want to get back into the game with my partner. Tennisea.

[CUSP82 Administrator Admin of the Month Dec 2014PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close CUSP82]

Oh there is just something to be said for some nice slow jelqs to get the blood flowing and wake up some areas that may have gone to sleep. It really works well for older guys. No you don't have to do it as part of any type of enlagement but if you did 20-30 of them nice and slow and easy you may help yourself geatly. Oh welcome to the gym; just thought I'd say that as I was passing by.

[litopita Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close litopita]

Thats Good. Acceptance is always the first step and solves half the problem. And now for your case it becomes about how best to "manage" your ED so that you can have a relatively fulfilling sex life. So your next step is to accept that you are not a 23 year old with SPA but a 62 year old with hypertension and chronic prostatitis. And its because of this that you should be weary of the five G's, particularly Ginseng and Gingko. They could just worsen your problems. Only if vasolidators like Cialis are too expensive for you is when I would recommend trying the G's. Otherwise a regimen of Viagra (generic) can do wonders for guys like you and it does not bear a daily threat to your nervous system. Discuss this on your nest visit with your doc.

Cheers

[MrsLooking4more Retired Super Moderator Member of the Month Feb 2013PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close MrsLooking4more]

Welcome to the Gym Tennisea. You will love all the support you get here. I need to agree with the previous posters the jelqs did wonders for my husband EQ. I wish you luck on this journey and remember we are here to help out in whatever capacity we can.

[Dr Pepper Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dr Pepper]

Good job avoiding Finasteride. If anything, estrogen is the likely culprit to your prostate problems, not DHT. DHT has been demonized. It could also be your dht/androstenediol ratio.

If your taking something with saw palmetto, it can also decrease your libido by lowering your DHT. I would look more into prostate enlargement if i were you, and the hormonal causes. Dont take anti-androgens. Period.

[tennisea Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tennisea]

Thank you all for your kind welcome and support. Litopita, it does pain me a bit to admit that I have an ED issue. But I look forward to the journey of learning more about myself and how and why things work so I can improve on them. I look forward to any help you might be willing to impart. MrsLooking4more, I especially look forward to hearing a woman's perspective and suggestions. My fiance is a breast cancer survivor. For a long time after the cancer was no longer detectable she could have no orgasms or had much desire for sex. Her last relationship went bad in part due to this. But her doctor allowed her to go back on female hormone supplements (I don't know what kind) and now she is really a sexual woman! She loves me and due to some creativity on my part we have a great relationship and a great sex life. But we both know even if it not spoken that the erection issue is the piece of the puzzle that is missing.
I have some Cialis on order. A doctor friend is sending a few pills as samples that I can try to see if they work. But they are VERY expensive otherwise. I also ordered some from on line but am not even sure if they will arrive or work as I have heard some horror stories about ordering from out of the US.
Anyway, How much is my prostate issue contributing to my ED? Is there anything I can get over the counter that Will help. The product I am taking has Sawpalmetto and Pygeum and a lot of other stuff. I thought it would help. Have any of you tried a product that actually does work? Is there anything on the market from a supplement or herbal product that will help with erections? Are the "five Gs" better than Cialis? I am sorry for all of the questions. Questions that I thought I would never have to ask. :-( At this time I don't really need bigger, just firmer for now. Tennisea.

[needingalift Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close needingalift]

Tennisea, I have also had a few prostate issues over the years (I'm now 54) and found that Saw Palmetto helps in a very subtle way. For one thing, I'm sure it's increased my urine flow although I sometimes have so many ongoing initiatives that it's hard to pinpoint exactly which one is producing the results. For example, I've been doing Kegels and eating healthily whilst on SP but, if nothing else, after almost a decade I can assure you there are no nasty side-effects to it (at least not for me anyway).

I can't resolve this ongoing controversy about whether SP raises or lowers the libido because I had no sex drive before I started taking it and still have none now so nothing has changed for better or worse in this respect. I have read reports of it causing ED but there appear to be far more that claim it's an aphrodisiac so you couldn't get much more of a divergence than that! As with all things on the Internet, you have to weigh up all of the evidence available and then make an informed decision.

[litopita Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close litopita]

Anyway, How much is my prostate issue contributing to my ED? Is there anything I can get over the counter that Will help. The product I am taking has Sawpalmetto and Pygeum and a lot of other stuff. I thought it would help. Have any of you tried a product that actually does work? Is there anything on the market from a supplement or herbal product that will help with erections? Are the "five Gs" better than Cialis? I am sorry for all of the questions. Questions that I thought I would never have to ask. :-( At this time I don't really need bigger, just firmer for now. Tennisea.

Yes chronic prostatitis does affect erections through stuff like perineum pressure and hormonal imbalance. But it doesn't affect them as much as hypertension does. When it comes to physical ED, hypertension is a BOSS. Unfortunately these "other" cures and supplements for ED/Prostatitis that you hope for just dont exist right now. All these other names and brands of drugs are mainly rip offs of sildenafil. No the 5 G's are not better than Cialis at effecting erections. Not even close. The only thing better than Cialis is Viagra. But if Cialis is what is available for now then you stick with that. You can alternate later with Viagra. You should have no qualms about starting on these drugs because you will be using them for the foreseeable future, come rain or shine. The only other very important factor for you now is good EXERCISE and good DIET. That is far better than any supplement. For the exercise on here most likely to help you, start with a good regimen of kegel routine.

Cheers

[tennisea Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tennisea]

Litopita and needingalift, thank you for your timely replies! I will look into starting the kegels and for sure I will give the Cialis a try. I guess I like the idea of Cialis because they have discovered that is also helps with BPH issues. But It is expensive. Would it hurt me to go ahead and use the "five Gs"? I mean, it might help some as well as other regimens. And I would be glad for any kind of improvement. Tennisea.

[MrsLooking4more Retired Super Moderator Member of the Month Feb 2013PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close MrsLooking4more]

Thank you all for your kind welcome and support..... MrsLooking4more, I especially look forward to hearing a woman's perspective and suggestions. My fiance is a breast cancer survivor. For a long time after the cancer was no longer detectable she could have no orgasms or had much desire for sex. Her last relationship went bad in part due to this. But her doctor allowed her to go back on female hormone supplements (I don't know what kind) and now she is really a sexual woman! She loves me and due to some creativity on my part we have a great relationship and a great sex life. But we both know even if it not spoken that the erection issue is the piece of the puzzle that is missing......

See as I said the support here is amazing. A lot of women lose their libido after cancer treatment due to hormone imbalance and mental stress. My mother is also a survivor and in her case it was not the hormones but the mind. After the mastectomy she did not feel pretty or sexy anymore and it took years for her mind to cope with that. Once she got it then she was just so happy to be alive that she decided to enjoy every day. About the EQ just follow the members advice they have "been there and done that". Best of luck with this journey.

[litopita Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close litopita]

Litopita and needingalift, thank you for your timely replies! I will look into starting the kegels and for sure I will give the Cialis a try. I guess I like the idea of Cialis because they have discovered that is also helps with BPH issues. But It is expensive. Would it hurt me to go ahead and use the "five Gs"? I mean, it might help some as well as other regimens. And I would be glad for any kind of improvement. Tennisea.

You can go ahead and try with the 5 G's and make a report after a month or so. But I know a few hypertensive men that have had dangerous side effects from the use of Ginseng and Gingko. You have to keep a keen eye on your pressure levels and possibly do it with the knowledge of a practitioner. As for the Cialis, it can help you with "instant delivery" and especially if anxiety has entered the picture as well, it can settle you down. Am not a fan of its half life when compared to Viagra but its better on the heart so there you go.

[tennisea Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tennisea]

Mrslooking4more, I really appreciate a woman's perspective. I am still not sure that the this awesome sexual experience that we share is a fair fight though(the words are just a metaphor...). She is taking the hormones and it gives her a great sexual appetite and likes it very often. And here I come with an ED issue that is caused by who knows what. I am still trying to figure that out. But I am creative and she says that we have a great sexual relationship. But the erection issue is the piece that is still missing and we both know it. I am sure that as litopita has stated that Cialis might help in the short term to get my head back into the game. It is very expensive here in the US and that is why I was hoping I might have some success with the 5 Gs. But I will do what ever it takes to get success. I am sure that my head game is not all there also. I lost my wife to cancer a year ago. That and other things that have happened to me has caused some loss anxiety issues that I am going to counseling for. I guess I am afraid to lose again. And so I have been a bit anxious about my relationship with my mate. Afraid of losing her. As sex is very important to both of us, I want to perform well so she does not want to "look around". And so on, and so on. I am learning that I must let her go. I can't control everything and don't want to. I am trying to learn how to take her down from her pedestal. Damn! I wish I could just go and buy that Cialis right now!! Tennisea.

[litopita Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close litopita]

And here I come with an ED issue that is caused by who knows what. I am still trying to figure that out.

^^ Up until now I have been under the assumption that you had established HBP and prostatitis as the causes of your ED and so my advice has been under that premise? Now it looks like you think its something else/SPA? Its important to provide detailed profile information in your posts otherwise you cant get meaningful help. Especially on an online forum/platform.

So you have been having good erections about until when? Was there any trigger event? Have you ever spoken to a urologist? Have you ever failed sexually before and how many times and with who? What makes you think you have SPA? Whats loss anxiety? Can/Do you masturbate successfully?

[tennisea Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tennisea]

Hello litopita. You are correct. I have HBP and BPH. Just how much they contribute to my ED is anyone's guess. I have been doing a lot of reading on this site and others and am trying to eliminate possibilities. I would assume that even though the diuretic might contribute to ED, the higher BP without it would be worse. As far as the BPH is concerned, it is healthy, just very big. I don't know how much it contributes. There are times when I can get a pretty good erection even so. Just not all of the time and not as firm as I would like. Right now, all I can do about the prostate is have it checked periodically on it's condition and take care of myself.
But I am sure there are some anxiety issues that I am dealing with due to the many things that have happened to me over the last 4 years including the death of my wife almost a year ago. I am going through counseling to talk about a lot of it. But I admit that there are times when I hate the thought of losing the woman I am with and it might be a factor in the whole sexual "head game". You mentioned on another thread that the person needed to take the woman he was seeing down from the pedestal. That was very good and I have taken it to heart. I would not want to risk losing this wonderful woman because I smothered her to death. Translation: perhaps some or a combination of factors do manifest themselves in bed at times. I am formulating a game plan for myself. I want to excersise more regularly, manage my BP, eat better and more healthy, take a good supplement for prostate health, do Kegels, keep going to counseling, take Cialis when I need to to help with performance. How does all of this sound to you? Tennisea.