Does this sound suspicious?
Hi all,
A bit of my background:
I am 61, now. I never drank alcohol. l've smoked a fair amount a lot of pot and still do.
My body type is slim, 5'6" tall at 135 lbs.
These days, i am a light cigarette smoker since the past 2 years. I restarted smoking a little bit, recently.
I've had gout in my left foot since i'm thirty, which i manage with diet.
Since 2009, when i quit smoking, i started a plant-based diet lifestyle which i maintained for about 7 years - from 2009 until about 2016 i was plant based and not smoking cigarettes.
I've always been an all-season cyclist, so i am in pretty good shape. Every winter for many years, i've been shoveling snow and making occasional snow slides for the kids in the area and even made a skating rink a couple of years ago and i had to CARRY buckets of water downstairs from the second floor to water to ice. Lots of work.
All of this to give you an idea of my overall health
About ten years ago, i started having trouble peeing.
When i found out from my doctor a couple of years ago, that my prostate is a bit enlarged, i started talking saw palmetto supplements which does help a lot. However, it's not perfect.
I find i'm gradually having more trouble "emptying" completely, but, i do drink a lot of liquids (green tea and orange juice) in the mornings. It leaves me full of liquid.
I need to drink liquid to hydrate myself but i sometimes feel like i don't want to drink because i'll pee less and not have to go through this new and annoying routine i have to do now, in order to pee.
What i did at first when i kept waking up to pee was i kept a container beside my bed and (now) when i need to pee, i would lay on my side (in bed) and use the container, and then place it on my night table. I don't have to stand in the toilet and wake up - i can relax in bed and go back to sleep easier.
Here's where it's getting tricky;
Lately, when i need to pee, i sometimes feel the need to have a bowel movement, and that could happen whether i just emptied my bowels or not - it's not always like that but it's "safer" to simply sit when i use the toilet to pee. It's tricky, and quite deceptive, at times lol.
Also, when i am out somewhere on my bike, and even if i just had a few short, "successful" visits to the washroom, by the time i get home, i am struggling to get upstairs fast enough. I am "dancing" as i lock my bike up.
I am undoing my belt and removing clothes as i rush up the (apartment building) stairs just to save time.
And sometimes when i finally get to the washroom or grab a "nearby, purposeful, convenient container", nothing comes out.
Nothing comes out, unless (i've learned) i lay on my side with my bed-side container and, sort of, lay my tummy on the container in such a way as to put a bit of pressure on my tummy area to help move the bladder or whatever is inside to help the pee flow. And it always helps and i am able pee - however, sometimes ONLY when i lay down - or should i say, i have best results while laying down on my side. Otherwise, i might be sitting on a toilet for a long time, massaging my tummy area with my hands to help the pee flow (and, massaging, like that, helps).
Years ago, i found a red workout ball in a box of a Special K cereal that you fill up with water. It's about the size of a softball, Well, i kept it for some reason. And i find i can wedge that ball under my tummy area as i lay on my side, and doing that, helps the flow start. Handy little ball, after all.
Okay, now, here's where i am a bit worried and why i am talking to you on this forum.
I used to (until recently) wear my belts sort of tightly to keep my shirts tucked in right and all that. Also, to help keep my snow pants up to stop them from dragging on the ground, in the back, when i walk around.
My lower back started hurting a bit on one side - the same side as my gouty, left foot.
Now, i am NOT SURE exactly why my left side of my back has been bothering me. Maybe it's because i have been being sedentary lately and sitting, watching the internet for hours on end. I haven't tried to go swimming or running, like i used to do for years, because i keep stopping to "try" to pee.
The pain is not going away.
Today, i rubbed some Heat ointment on my lower back, and near my spine on the left side, i felt there, a bump, on the bone that isn't mirrored on the other side of my spine.
It's more on the back of the pelvis and beside the L5 (to give you an idea).
It's not on the spine, but beside it.
So, when i wear my belt too tight, if you put your index finger two inches ABOVE your navel and draw a line around your gut to your back, as soon as your finger reaches your back, that is where i feel this discomfort.
Maybe my kidney is acting up on the same side as my gouty, left foot?
I went to the doctor last year and had all the regular blood, urine and stool tests done and they never called me back for anything.
Maybe i should try stretching that side of my back? I haven't been stretching a lot. Maybe, it's a muscle reacting to being lazy and then being compressed by the tight belt?
I don't have fatigue, weakness, or any blood in my urine or semen. I have no trouble with erections and ejaculations.
I do find after having an erection or an ejaculation, i can pee strong like i am twenty-years-old - for about 40 seconds. Sometimes, i do THAT just to have a long pee.
I do find if i gain 5 to 7 extra lbs, it's makes peeing more difficult. When i am at 130 - 135 lbs, it's generally much easier to pee
I am taking a 320 mg saw palmetto with a cranberry extract supplement daily and it's been doing a good job so far.
Anyway readers, that is where i am at.
I am wondering if anyone has experienced what i am going through. Maybe, someone is exactly like me and can give me some advice.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, i will make an appointment with my doctor for complete checkup and see what's going on with me.
Hi
. It is certainly understandable that these issues would be a concern and I'm glad to hear that you are making an appointment to see a doctor. Have you seen a urologist or a rheumatologist? I ask because there is really a lot of potential avenues to look at for answers. A urologist can look for any issues with the prostate, urinary tract, and bladder. I mention a rheumatologist because gout is an inflammatory rheumatic condition. The inflammation in the feet can actually cause urinary issues at night, in particular the need to urinate while lying down. Gout "can cause similar symptoms to cystitis, such as a frequent, urgent need to pee and needing to pee during the night:" https://www.avogel.co.uk/health/cystitis/is-there-a-link-between-cystitis-and-gout/#:~:text=This%20can%20cause%20similar%20symptoms,uric%20acid%20can%20cause%20both. I want to note that cystitis can also cause pain in the side, although I don't know if gout mimicking cystitis issues can cause this.
I mention all of this to illustrate that only a doctor (and it may take a couple of specialists) can perform the proper diagnostics. We are not medical professionals and, for your safety, cannot give medical advice over the internet. That said, I hope this information gives you a place to start. Hoping you get some answers and relief soon and feel free to keep us posted on how you are doing. Best, Richard (ProstateCancer.net Team)No, i have not seen any doctor, at all, since my last checkup when she felt the prostate and told me it's about as large as a walnut.
I've read later that it's supposed to be the size of a walnut.
When i found out the prostate was causing the issue, the saw palmetto supplement worked, i felt okay and i still do, most days, sort of.
I say 'sort of okay" as i don't work at a job, so i don't have any serious issues like being in a meeting or being on a job site and having to use the toilet for 20 minutes several times per day.
I have no responsibilities, so, i can lay in bed for an hour, some days, trying to pee. It usually works but it takes a while at times - most times.
I lie on my side because i can place the container in different spots of my midsection to help the flow to start. Otherwise, i find it helps the flow to begin when i sit and push on my gut with my fists.
One time, i was out, and i had to pee really badly. I was full of green tea and orange juice. I went to a gas station and tried all the usual methods but nothing worked. Seeing the washroom floor was very clean, i decided to try laying on the floor on my side and unzip and direct "the flow" into the drain on the floor. That worked like a charm,. Instant relief for a little while.
I, actually, doze off sometimes at home while in bed trying to pee lol.
Yea, i am looking at myself doing all of this and i'm wondering,"How long can this go on for if it gets worse?"
I can deal with this as it is - i can work around it, i think. But if it's causing cancer in my hip bone...then, i am really screwed.
I "hope" this bump on my bone is just the gout spreading, or just a stressed muscle or a misaligned joint.The pain is not in/on the side of my torso, it's in my lower back beside the spine and up near the kidney. And it's not really a "pain", it's more like a constant discomfort, really. Like a muscle that is having a spasm - sort of.
Yes, a urologist should be in the cards for you. A psa test (your family doc can order that) Your prostate doesn't sound enlarged by much, so ruling out any inflammation would be key. I've had severe pain in the side before, went to emerg and got cat scan within 12 hours, showing a kidney stone. It passed without incident. I've also had bladder stones and found peeing was restricted with those. Hope you get some answers soon!
