FrankTalk.org

53 years old here. Retired Army, considered 100% VA disabled. My junk just stopped working all of a sudden 3 years ago. I have tried the little blue pill and others. Talked to my PCM at the VA but with no luck. LOL they sent me to get a VED(PUMP). It doesn't work and hurts like hell. Health is ok, could be better. Have factors that contribute, such as T2DM/HTN, etc. Any suggestions think i need to see providers outside of VA.

welcome to the forum! from reading your story, it just seems a bit sad/strange how you suddenly got severe ED, and that pills/pump don't work at all either. I know you mentioned T2DM/HTN, but there is a chance that some other underlying issue came up that led to your severe ED symptoms. I'd recommend getting a full check-up from an experienced urologist (in the ED realm specifically), preferably with a DRE and doppler ultrasound test as well

Welcome to the forum.

My brother is also 100% disabled, a VN vet. He goes to the Viera FL VA clinic and the big fancy new main VA medical complex at Lake Nona FL. I don't know which location his Uro is located at. Anyhow, his doctor put him on Edex. Keep pushing.

abnmi101 wrote:53 years old here. Retired Army, considered 100% VA disabled. My junk just stopped working all of a sudden 3 years ago. I have tried the little blue pill and others. Talked to my PCM at the VA but with no luck. LOL they sent me to get a VED(PUMP). It doesn't work and hurts like hell. Health is ok, could be better. Have factors that contribute, such as T2DM/HTN, etc. Any suggestions think i need to see providers outside of VA.

Welcome to the forum, abnmi101. Thank you for serving.

I am enrolled in the Alaska VA (40% service-connected) and had very little trouble getting authorized. One factor I opine helped was that I had done a lot of research on ED while oral medications worked (to lessening effect over the years). My ED was gradual onset. I got my Primary Care Physician (PCP) on my side with my knowledge. He told me at one point that I knew more about ED and its treatments than he did.

Some VA regions are more implant friendly than others. I hope that is not the problem with yours.

I used a VED for therapeutic purposes while I searched for a surgeon I wanted to do the operation. It was not difficult at all. One hint is to trim your pubic hair very short so it does not get tangled up in the device. I did not have any trouble at all with the constriction ring because, after two tries, did not use it for sex. I just pumped up twice a day for about 30 minutes each session. This was to maintain size and elasticity and to flush blood through my penile tissues. I used two protocols. 1) Pump up gently and increase the vacuum level as discomfort allowed. 2) Pump up for a minute and release to full flaccid (about 30-60 seconds) and repeat for the 30 minutes. Between the two protocols, I figure I minimized elasticity/size loss and maximized the flushing of healthy blood (as nocturnal erections are meant to do) through my penile tissues.

Many men (and all the manufacturers) recommend using a lubricant to help with the seal between the vacuum chamber and your skin. I never had to do that.

I don't have to use lubricant to achieve a seal. I do have to use lubricant to keep from ripping the skin off my shaft as I pump up. So I lube my shaft and the inside of the tube shaft. I often use a Viagra to pump as it makes pumping a whole lot easier even though the pills give me no erection on their own. Some sort of visual stimulation helps also.

abnmi101 wrote:53 years old here. Retired Army, considered 100% VA disabled. My junk just stopped working all of a sudden 3 years ago. I have tried the little blue pill and others. Talked to my PCM at the VA but with no luck. LOL they sent me to get a VED(PUMP). It doesn't work and hurts like hell. Health is ok, could be better. Have factors that contribute, such as T2DM/HTN, etc. Any suggestions think i need to see providers outside of VA.

Welcome abnmi101,

I'm Retired Air Force (22 years). In the early 70s, I was assigned to the Air Force 1st Special Operations Wing Combat Control Team. That's the closest I got to (I'm guessing you are 101st Airborne from your name) special ops.

My ED onset was gradual while using a little Viagra and a lot of Cialis. I tried acoustic wave therapy (Gainswave, etc), VEDs and constriction rings, kegels, and finally, injections. None worked. I told my uro that I wanted an implant. He scheduled me and his admin took care of the paperwork. Of course, I'm also on Medicare, but TriCare asked no questions and covered what Medicare didn't. If TriCare (or one of the variants) is your first or second payer, you should have no problems if your doctor approves. My only guess is that you may have to try injections (if you haven't).

Good luck.

Ken

abnmi101 wrote:53 years old here. Retired Army, considered 100% VA disabled. My junk just stopped working all of a sudden 3 years ago. I have tried the little blue pill and others. Talked to my PCM at the VA but with no luck. LOL they sent me to get a VED(PUMP). It doesn't work and hurts like hell. Health is ok, could be better. Have factors that contribute, such as T2DM/HTN, etc. Any suggestions think i need to see providers outside of VA.

Howdy from a fellow retired soldier.

VA disability only 20%, however. Degenerative disk disease, every L-disk ruptured, 75% hearing loss, and two torn rotator cuffs ain’t worth much to whoever evaluated my file. But I digress.

If you can handle it on your budget, I think you are on the right track. Since I retired I’ve relied on TriCare exclusively instead of VA or on post (I’m 50 miles W of Ft Hood). There are some really great doctors out there, who are in love with the art of medicine, and you have to look some but they can be found. If you are going to have somebody totally re-plumb your junk, you want to make damned sure you have trust, faith, and confidence in their abilities.

I’ll admit it your case is a bit different, sudden onset ED is not the norm. But if you can let the doctors do their thing and diagnose you properly, I have little doubt that it can be fixed.

Thanks all for the greetings and really just the understanding. It's really difficult topic to discuss. I don't know if I'm ready for someone to cut my junk and make it bionic just yet. And i do have Tricare for medical along with the VA. Just really don't know which is better to use or more understanding of the issue.