Have any of you gone through a Varicocele removal or an embolization? Apparently having a Varicocele on your balls can lower you T levels by over 100 ng/dl
"After repair, testosterone levels increased significantly, from 358 ng/dl to 454 ng/dl.
There was a significant increase in testosterone levels in 70% of patients treated. Among the patients in whom an increase was noted, testosterone levels increased by 178 ng/dl."
I always used to think I was a "Hard gainer" and wondered why I lacked behind everyone here stating they went from no plate to lmao3plate on deadlifting in like 3 months, when it basically took me double the amount of time. Now, i finally figured it out.
So anyone else here with a Varicocele and has had it fixed?
I had one since 2015 or maybe even prior to that, not sure. Went to my doctor with it in 2016 and he said it was at stage 1 and not such a big deal, but it could become bigger because I lift heavy ass weights.
Flash foward to 2019 and it actually diminished. It's still there but not as big and as painful as it was back then. I think intermittent fasting and eating less crap has helped a great deal. Some days I hardly notice my varicocele while on other days it's bigger
But it does block testosterone yes, so I'm thinking of doing a removal operation
Isaac White
OP here. Im pretty sure I have a Stage III. it looks like a "bag of worms" just by visually looking at it, and it feels like them. I just cannot believe it decreases testosterone by that much. In my 30s now, but it sucks to learn I was screwed out of testosterone and could've been bigger.
Aaron Taylor
I googled the stages and I was probably at stage 3 all along, maybe the doctor uses different parametres
Yeah mine to looks like a bag of worms, but a rather small one. I think the type of underwear and pants also plays a role. Mine's bigger when my nut sack has been stuffed away in thight pants all day
Brody Wright
Best to get another dr's opinion who will agree to send you to a Urologist/Radiologist and have it fixed. I'm going to my dr this friday to have it checked.
Daniel Lopez
>embolization You're giving me an embolism
Nathaniel Torres
I also forgot to mention that my left testicle with the varicocele atrophied and is much smaller than my right one. If you're similar, state that to you doctor and also tell him/her that you're concerned about it lowering your testosterone and possibly making you infertile.
Anthony Bailey
Back in 2016 I went to my GP and to a radiologist, they both said it was nothing to worry about. To them a slight drop in testosterone is nothing to worry about, as long as your levels are still norma. But to me as a Jow Forumsizen however I do worry about a loss in T
So yeah, I'll probably go again one day and ask for an embolization
Jayden Scott
How do I know if I have one of those, is it noticable?
Jack Morales
It's funny because when I was around 19, i asked my doctor if this was normal, he was like "yea sure, nothing to worry about, its common" so i didnt even bother looking it up. If I knew what I know now, i would've gotten a second,third fourth opinion until one agreed to have an embolizatio on the varicocele. At least I know now.
Parker Flores
If its a Stage III like I suspect I do, it will be obviously noticeable and it will basically take up the space of your (usually Left side) scrotum. Also, your testicle affect by the Varicocele will be MUCH smaller than the right one. The only normal big vein you should be able to feel should be all the way at the top, close to your crotch which I believe is the vas deferens.
Parker Campbell
how long does recovery take after this surgery?
Mason Wood
Both of my testicles look of equally the same size. How big is yours? Mine is roughly the same size as the point of my index finger
As for the testosterone part: it could very well be that I'm affected by it but on the other hand, my progress in the gym has always been just fine and not particularly faster or slower as opposed to my friends. Just normal.
I do recall reading varicoceles are prevalent among soldiers and lifters
Robert Garcia
Can't check the size of my balls as I'm currently working, but I would say the one not affected by the varicocele is about an inch or less? and the one affected by the Varicocele on the left is half the size like the size of a dime.
Apparently after embolization or removal, the testicles grow back to almost normal size
"We present our experience with 89 infertile male patients with varicoceles who underwent operative repair. An increase in testicular volume was observed in 72 of the 89 patients, with the right side showing a greater increase, regardless of whether bilateral or unilateral left varicoceles were present preoperatively. "
Also I've read that your kidneys make up for any loss of testosterone caused by a varicocele
Jason Gomez
Taught I had those and I was really anxious about it. Had my balls checked and apparently, I have nothing. Urologist said my balls were healthy. My balls still hurt from time to time and I don't know why.
Grayson Butler
holy shit so that's what I have I've had it for like 10 years and always wondered why my nuts had noodles in them. In the last like year or so I've noticed them somewhat fix itself and I've felt a spike in testosterone and recently gotten into working out
I'm thinking of getting a removal now
Adam Sanchez
>I've noticed them somewhat fix itself I've also switched to more "free" underwear like boxers. I used to wear boxer briefs and I made the switch at around the same time I noticed an improvement
Benjamin Hernandez
I'm 31 now but when I was 18 or so I discovered I had it. Doctor told me to change to boxers to help with the pain, didn't notice any issues with testosterone then. Eventually got it surgically fixed when I was 23 because it started to randomly hurt, felt like I was punched in the nuts at random tines.
David Morgan
Do they have to ultrasound your balls? I've read in some places that they do this and I'm afraid it will hurt like a motherfucker
Tyler Lee
funny, my doc told me to switch from boxers do slips. wearing slips really helped.
thought that I had ball cancer for the first 6months because I didnt knew what a varicocele is and was to scared of cancer diagnosis. its piss
Ethan Young
lol same got it in highschool and shit myself thought it was cancer!
Adam Adams
yeah, I literally wasted 6months of my life because I was to scared of a cancer diagnosis. thought about cancer, chemo, losing my job/gainz shit like that on a daily basis for 6months. I think I lost a few years of my life due to stress because of this shit.
Wyatt Butler
could be prostatitis
i have chronic prostatitis and it makes my balls hurt from time to time, especially when i’ve been drinking or smoking several days in a row
Julian Rivera
Seems legit. Sometimes my prostate hurts after I cum and even if it happens rarely, I get dizzy too.
Daniel Gomez
I'm a vascular surgeon who specializes in deep venous endovascular work (varicocele embos, embos for females with pelvic congestion syndrome... Blah blah)
Varicocele embo is 100% the way to go, way better than open surgery. It takes me 10 min and I use the greater saphenous vein for access so the procedure doesn't hurt at all.
The only downside is varicocele embo can be pretty painful afterwards, for up to a week. I even had one really anxious patient who said it hurt for a month.
But, a jockstrap-type of support underwear helps a lot with pain post-op.
We use it as a primary treatment for almost any male infertility with sperm abnormalities of any kind. Sperm count or irregular morphology.
It cools off the testicle, helps to restore cremasteric muscle function and basically makes the testicle more optimized for sperm and hormone production.
Not to mention th cosmetic benefits of not having a huge spermatic cord on one side
Daniel Gray
yes, I had mine embolized about 6 months ago. Recovery is far faster than microsurgery, and I was in and out of the hospital in about 4 hours, no general anesthetic. I was lifting again in about a week, after a day or two in bed. My test was about 750ng/dL a few weeks after the surgery, and about 9 months earlier it was 520ng/dL, but I also have been lifting far more regularly since the first test, and been taking zinc and d3 and such. As far as lifting goes, you won't notice a difference between 350 and 450 anyway. There's still some varicocele left, but it's not visible and I doubt anyone but me or someone looking for it could notice it by touch. The veins are just slightly swollen. This is common with embolization, sometimes small amounts of blood can still pass through. My left testicle is still smaller than my right, I haven't noticed any growth there, but I simply might not have noticed. I'm curious if something like nolvadex would cause growth from increased testosterone production, but I doubt there'd be anything significant.
Evan Hall
I had a pretty bad varicocele (basically OP's pic) and got surgery 12 years ago. Then at some point I realized it was back but not as bad as before. I figured I didn't give a fuck about having kids anyway so I left it that way and stopped caring. Any idea why it would come back after surgery?
Charles Sanchez
hm i have this. went to Doctor, and then to urologist. Both felt and looked at my sack, and said it was quite common and not an issue.
I don't know what to believe anymore!
Michael Nelson
it is common, and it's not a major issue. It decreases fertility and hormone production by a significant degree, but not by a huge one. Sometimes it causes pain. Get it removed if you want.
Ethan Torres
Do these hurt?
I have that wormy feeling in my left my ball but it doesn't hurt, maybe once a year I'll get a serious ache in it which makes the whole balls extremely tender, I've been to a doctor before but not for this specifically, they never seem to see anything
Gabriel Kelly
yes, they often cause soreness
Levi Collins
but is it often, I do get the odd strange feeling in my left ball but its not painful, might go for a trip to the doc anyway
Liam Campbell
if you're having pain in your left testicle and you have a varicocele, it's probably caused by the varicocele 95% of the time. If it was epididymitis or torsion or cancer you'd probably know
Brody Brown
its maybe like once a year though, sounds like these cause constant pain
Robert James
no, they usually just cause soreness after ejaculation. If they caused constant pain people would actually get them removed usually
Brayden Wilson
Seems to be the right thread to ask in, Can a small cyst on my epididymis lower test or harm sex drive or anything like that? My urologist seemed to think it wasn't a big deal at all, got a urine test and it was clean, hormone test was "okay." I'm only 22 so I'm surprised I even have one, just wondering if it's something I need to worry about even if it doesn't get bigger.
Carter Robinson
hey doc, can you take a look at my balls please
Levi Gonzalez
shit I actually do have one, I can feel it when I stand upright it above my sack, brb going to doctor
maybe this is the cause of my shit sex drive?
Gabriel Sanders
I have a small varicocele Holy shit do need surgery? Fuck me bros
who gives a shit what women think, im not gonna let myself get mutilated for no reason because some coalburner arthoe thinks my dick looks ugly fuck you you absolute fucking mongoloid
Ryder Rodriguez
SEETHING I'd tell you to have sex but no woman wants to go near your dick
Joshua Wright
You know when the penis is erect girls cant even tell the difference, right? Unless you have phimosis. You're just coping for falling for a jew meme.
Grayson Hernandez
even the thot in the video said there's no difference
Michael Gutierrez
maybe, maybe not, maybe just go fuck yourself
Luis Stewart
Im this user got an ultrasound just to check out my boys since they seem really really tight sometimes for no apparent reason, slight aching pain very rarely too. Anyways. For an ultrasound a nurse/somebody will put some weird gel on your nuts, and gently kinda probe the area I guess is the best way to put it. They very *very* lightly press on your nuggets with some camera or whatever the fug, it doesn't hurt at all man. I got really sensitive nuts when it comes to pain, hurt a little just after getting fondled by the doc's. But the ultrasound doesn't hurt at all. The jelly stuff they rub on feels pretty cool desu.
William Price
>The jelly stuff they rub on feels pretty cool desu. oh fug new fear what if I pop a rod when I'm being jellied up?
Christian Martin
I had a stage 2. In the military, they often try not to give you you anything medical uplifting unless you are in pain or at risk of death, but if you say you are planning on having kids, they will schedule you for a varacocelectomy (I'm positive I misspelled it), since having a varicocele lowers sperm count.
I had mine done in 2013/14, and the engorged veins stick around for awhile, but now they are completely gone. Just seems like a regular old pair of dusty, dangly, white dude balls.
I never was planning on having kids, btw.
Anthony Morris
>tfw didnt even have to worry about this because no libido for unknown reason If it happens be thankful user. Look her dead in the eyes and say thank you. Or better yet, y-you too.
I hope I never describe my balls with the words “bag of worms”
Chase Martin
I've had it. There is nothing to feel or not feel - an ultrasound not a physical thing just an image mate.
Oliver Lewis
FUCK, I think this is exactly what I've had for years. Doctor literally said there was nothing unusual even though my balls feel like a bag of worms now. Worst thing is that im 18 and have had this since I was like 11 or younger so who knows how lower test has affected me going through puberty, especially given the size its reached. Fucking absolute state of the NHS where I only find out about this coincidentally on Jow Forums AFTER going to a doctor.
Is the surgery even permanent? I read an article that said the surgery wears off after a while and the swollen veins come back. The article said to know do the operation right before you want to have kids of it's affected your sperm count enough.
Christian Gonzalez
>going through a major surgery on your nuts just for a 100ng boost in testosterone
Wew lad. Imagine thinking 100ng is gonna make a huge difference in your overall life.
Eli Hall
I got surgery where they completely cut off the vein that feeds the swollen veins around the testicle. So, I'm guessing that should be permanent.
Joshua Howard
Unrelated but does fapping impact test level exam results? gonna check mine in a week
Michael Campbell
Interesting hmm. I need to get that surgery. My Cum is almost clear. I'm pretty sure I'm not even close to a sperm count to have kids.
Christian Diaz
I had issues with prostatitis. Probably since my early 20s. I would occasionally dribble pee but thought maybe I wasn't shaking it all out even though I never had that problem as a teenager. Got worse when I was 26 or so. Would seem some nights would piss all night and would have to change underwear. Then I started to get pain below my asshole and balls so that's when I saw a urologist. Finally I got a cushion for my office chair and I havent had a problem in a while. But if I eat like shit I can tell it gets inflamed.
Nicholas Lee
Usually Americans are always the most up to date motherfuckers in medicine but in this case I don't know why they still use coil embolization, that shit it nasty. Im from Germany and I had it fixed but they use a different technique over here (well it was developed here as well) called antegrade sclerotherapy. They basically access the vein via a small cut and then sclerose the varicocele after they have making sure they got the right vein with a contrast xray. Took about 30mins, went home 2 hours later. Had some pain for a week, didn't need pain killers though, just rest. Dunno about test levels tho, mine wasnt even big but it hurt a lot. It's all good now
Brayden Flores
*have made sure
Cooper Green
You're fucking insane. 100ngdl of test would barely make any difference to your training whatsoever. You just train and/or eat like shit or you have awful genetics. Getting something chopped off your balls isn't going to change that.
Gavin Scott
this
Lincoln Morgan
Keep positing cocks. Im about to cum.
Alexander Jenkins
lol
Robert Jackson
Had varicocele since 13. Now 25. Balls hurt and showed my father (a medical doctor) and he said he has the same thing.
Unless theres pain there isnt anything to worry about. Me and pops are both fucking yolked. He's 60 and still has 18 inch arms.
Ryder Gray
It's still better to just fix it. It can affect fertility as well, makes the testicle shrink, and is uncomfortable to explain every time someone sees your dick. Sometimes it aches too.
Luke Harris
>Jow Forums
Jackson Cox
thought I had this for like 2 years. I would have terrible pain in my left ball all the time. got an ultrasound and they found nothing. turns out I just had super tight hip muscles and had to stretch my groin. the first time I stretched my groin out I almost cried because it felt so good. Im posting this because I never could figure out what was wrong with my nuts till I found a forum post in a corner of the internet. remember to stretch your groin anons.
Michael Murphy
Please see and trying doing pic related a couple times a day. Make sure to keep your back straight and squeeze your glutes as you do it
I get it on and off, usually it comes back when I have super tight underwear that restricts blood flow but every time I get it it's super annoying. Mostly feels like the veins are just swollen up so I figure it's not a super worrying thing
