I'm 29 years old, male. experiencing POIS for approximately 15 years, I was ignoring the symptoms when I was a teen, over the years new symptoms have started arising, A few years ago I've started to get small itchy bubbles on my left hand, Dyshidrotic eczema. I've visited 2 dermatologists, both of them diagnosed me with Eczema and prescribed steroid creams which was very effective to relieve the redness and itchiness.
I didn't realized this Eczema is just another symptom of POIS until I started to prolong my abstinence periods, suddenly after 2-3 weeks my skin is perfect with no Eczema. I visited different urologists and immunologists doctors, some of them diagnosed me with POIS, stated it's extremely rare, some of them referenced me to psychiatrist, I'm sure many other people with POIS have gone thru that fun experience. I was offered to do semen desensitization, from what I've read it's not really working for other people and it's risky, the doctor stated that he had never done that procedure. He also offered hcG treatment, which seems more promising but still very risky. I was prescribed with Prednisone, was effective but not suitable for long term use.
Primary symptoms:
- Flu/Fever-like symptoms
- Runny nose
- Fatigue
- Brain fog
- Muscle tightness/soreness
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Facial muscle weakness
- Dyshidrotic eczema on hands and feet
- Acne, Itchy and dry skin
- Perineum pain
- Frequent urge to pee
- Having difficulty to empty bladder
- Sinus issues, difficulty to breath easily
- Weight and muscle loss
- Dry hair
100% of those symptoms disappear after 2-3 weeks of abstinence.
Symptoms can be worsen by:
- Eating sugar
- Drinking alcohol
- Dealing with stress
- Hot showers
Having sex while avoiding ejaculation triggers symptoms with a lower degree of severity, same for nocturnal emissions.
Cleaning my diet helps, my diet is mainly meat, chicken, fish and vegetables, avoiding:
- Sugar
- Alcohol
- Most carbs
- Gluten
- Processed foods
- Soy
- Artificial Sweeteners
Fasting about 12-14 to allow the gut to heal. Recently testing L-glutamine on empty stomach.
Coffee is helpful for fatigue, gut and cognitive function, bad for stress and eczema (high histamine).
Natural Nutritional Yeast amazing for gut, skin and cognitive function.
Supplements I've tried:
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Quercetin/
Stinging Nettle - helps a bit with allergy-like symptoms.
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Niacin - probably the most effective supplement I've came across so far, the flush effect reduces recovery time, clears brain fog, improves skin condition, helps with fatigue. I'm still not sure about long-term side effects, I'm trying to stay at low dosages (<150 mg) on empty stomach to maximize the flush effect. I've also tried Niacinamide, didn't felt much.
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Vitamin D - currently trying high-doses of ~20,000 IU, Prednisone was effective, Vitamin D is highly important in healthy immunity function.
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Tongkat Ali - helped with brain fog and fatigue, made me on edge.
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Ashwagandha - not sure about that one, I'm usually feel emotional distress on it .
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Taurine - Tried high doses, not sure it helped.
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Alpha GPC/Citicoline - good for brain fog.
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Oregano Oil - effective for gut distress.
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TUDCA/Ox Bile/Silymarin Complex - good for liver, helped me get rid of yellow eyes.
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Magnesium Glycinate-
Zinc-
Vitamin C-
B Complex - looking for a recommendation for a high quality natural one, I currently have NOW B-50.
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Vitamin A-
Omega 3 (DHA/EPA)-
GSE-
B12 (methylcobalamin) / P5P-
Methyl folateMedications I've tried:
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Fexofenadine (Anti-histamine) - very effective for the skin symptoms like dyshidrotic eczema, not so for the other symptoms.
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Pseudoephedrine (Sinus Decongestant)- very effective for sinuses symptoms like difficulty to breath, also helps with fatigue as it has stimulant properties.
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Silodosin (Alpha Blocker) - Tried once, fainted 40 minutes after taking it, I have low blood pressure, and alpha blockers lower blood pressure. probably won't try again.
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Prednisone (Oral Steroid) - Tried it for a couple of months, low dose of 5mg a day, saw positive improvement over time, felt much less fatigue. unfortunately its not a long-term friendly solution, every doctor I saw told me to stay away from it if I can.
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NASIDs - When taken close to ejaculation it reduces the recovery time and some of the symptoms, not valid for long term use as it can damage the gut.
Root cause theories:
Genetic Mutation/Mercury Toxicity: I've came across posts talking about toxic metals like mercury could be the root cause of POIS or any other auto-immune disease. My mother have to this day amalgam fillings, she got them before I was born, I've also had amalgam fillings when I was a kid. I've did a
hair test, results showed mercury was slightly above reference level. I've read The
Mercury Detoxification Manual, got my fillings removed, started ALA protocol using DMSA for 3 months, then DMSA with ALA and finally just ALA, increasing dosages like the protocol stated, I've done that for about 7 months, a lot of things changed since then, I'm feeling better and a lot of the symptoms have reduced but I was going thru many changes and experiments so I'm unable to pinpoint what contributed the most, could the chelation, could be the diet changes, could be the supplements, could be mindset changes, life situation changes, etc.
Gut/Liver Damage: During my late teen years I've gone thru a difficult period, I drank a lot of alcohol. I think I might caused myself some serious damage, POIS symptoms are very similar to
SIBO/Leaky gut/IBS symptoms, my sensitivity to food has increased over the years, I've used to be able to eat anything, now if I eat the smallest amount of sugar or alcohol I get skin reaction (eczema worsening) in a couple of minutes. I'm pretty sure I had POIS symptoms before that period, In my opinion this theory is less likely to be the root cause, but maybe that what took it to the next level.
I've done a comprehensive blood test panel that showed nothing (at least by the doctors I've visited). Is there any gut test I could get, maybe a gene test, I don't know, I'm open to suggestions and ideas, hoping this information will be useful for other people out there. stay strong.
