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I was implanted back in February 2020 (right before the pandmeic turned everything upside down) and wanted to share some of what I went through in case it helps anyone else considering this option.

Some background: I was 28 when I got the implant, but I'd struggled with ED pretty much all my life. Both getting and maintaining an erection were difficult, for both intercourse and masturbation, although masturbation was somewhat easier, I think due to its non-interactive nature (I think focusing on my needs made completion easier). Girls/women my age I hooked up with rarely, if ever, took it well when I couldn't get hard. It made life miserable for me. I eventually tried to avoid sexual contact whenever possible and this took a huge toll mentally.
I talked with multiple therapists over the years, telling them my problems and would usually get the same "You're young, it's just in your head" over and over again. I tried using pills, but they rarely made any difference and usually gave headaches and congestion. I felt so helpless and alone I eventually started seriously thinking of taking my own life. One time when I was especially down I did some searching on the internet and found this article that probably saved my life https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/ ... 54df4ba76a. Benn's (the author) problems felt so similar to mine that I was immediately convinced that I likely had a venous leak. I went in to see my urologist and was diagnosed with a VL that day. I scheduled the surgery as soon as possible and I couldn't be happier with the results.

Since the surgery, I've had one girlfriend (we broke up in July), and my implant was never a hang up for her. She didn't even know I was implanted until I told her after the third or fourth time we'd had sex. I haven't had sex with anyone else yet, but the simple fact that I don't have to worry about getting an erection around women anymore has taken an enormous weight off my shoulders.

Clearly, I'm incredibly happy with the life changing result of this implant, but I would like to highlight some experiences I had that I haven't seen described much on this forum to give them some visibility.

Pain. I read so many accounts of older guys going back to work and doing laborious work days after surgery. I was 28 and in an inordinate amount of pain at times nearly every day for the first 3-4 weeks. Different parts would flare up in pain (sometimes shaft, sometimes balls, sometimes everywhere) at different points of the day and I'd essentially be writhing in bed for a good 20-30 minutes until painkillers or ibuprofen helped a bit. I guess I'm just a wimp but I have no clue how so many other guys take it on the chin and got right back into work.

Impacts in day to day life.
Flying-of the few times I've flown since the implant, I've always gotten a pat down.
Biking-the pump is very uncomfortable for me when I bike. I can't find a good place for it to rest without annoying other things. I don't like to bike for long at all now, although I wasn't a huge biker in the first place. If you are, I'd definitely ask your uro about biking post procedure.
I actually feel more selfconscious in my swimsuit now with my much larger flaccid. I know the fabled merrix feels like it's not an issue for him (and we're roughly the same size, it sounds like his member is a tad larger if anything), but I can very clearly see the bulge as soon as my shorts get wet and often need to readjust if things get jostled.
Wearing jeans all day makes my shaft sore by the end of the day. Playing in the ocean (with the pulling of the waves) makes my shaft sore by the end of the day. I hope this will get better as time goes on, but it's nothing like the soreness/pain I felt right after surgery.

I hope this provides valuable information for you if you're considering surgery, and please feel free to reach out and ask me any questions you have!

I'm now 11 months out, and things have settled down. You aren't a wimp, that was tough surgery. I didn't sit down in a chair for 7 weeks, and hurt for nearly 5 months. Then it started to get better, and month by month less discomfort. I just started wearing jeans again recently, but sweats have been the norm since surgery. For flying you should have gotten a card stating you have an implant. That's all the plane police need to know, not what or where. I don't ride a bike and haven't been swimming since surgery. I know once a swimsuit gets wet on me the bulge is gonna be very noticeable.

Old Guy wrote:I'm now 11 months out, and things have settled down. You aren't a wimp, that was tough surgery. I didn't sit down in a chair for 7 weeks, and hurt for nearly 5 months. Then it started to get better, and month by month less discomfort. I just started wearing jeans again recently, but sweats have been the norm since surgery. For flying you should have gotten a card stating you have an implant. That's all the plane police need to know, not what or where. I don't ride a bike and haven't been swimming since surgery. I know once a swimsuit gets wet on me the bulge is gonna be very noticeable.

I had no idea there's a card you can get to show TSA, I'll call my doc and ask about that tomorrow.

Glad to hear things are going better for you now! Sure is a long process getting accustomed to the new hardware.

bird_law, did the surgeon have to do any extra work, like breaking up scar tissue or anything that would cause a longer recovery time? From what I've read, the infrapubic technique has a shorter recovery time. Have you talked to him about this?

I'm also told that people with reddish hair are more sensitive to pain (a reddish-blond friend of mine claims this is a proven fact, something about genetic disposition). What is your hair color?

Thank you for your contribution to FT.

sweaterfan wrote:bird_law, did the surgeon have to do any extra work, like breaking up scar tissue or anything that would cause a longer recovery time? From what I've read, the infrapubic technique has a shorter recovery time. Have you talked to him about this?

I'm also told that people with reddish hair are more sensitive to pain (a reddish-blond friend of mine claims this is a proven fact, something about genetic disposition). What is your hair color?

Thank you for your contribution to FT.

No extra work during the surgery, although I did have a varicocele removed less than a year prior to the getting the implant. I asked my surgeon if that might have impacted my recovery, he said he didn't think so, and that some people do just have a longer, more painful recovery-impacting maybe 5% of his patients (his guesstimate).

I have blond hair. I'm not sure exactly why the recovery was particularly difficult. It was far worse than recovering from the varicocelectomy, which I felt very little pain from after about 2 days.

Are you in any pain now? Is there any discomfort during sex? And I always wondered this is it harder to maintain bodily fluids like peeing after surgery?

Rawness1111 wrote:Are you in any pain now? Is there any discomfort during sex? And I always wondered this is it harder to maintain bodily fluids like peeing after surgery?

My answer to the pain question is sometimes. If I sit wrong the pump can squash a testicle. Doesn't happen much anymore so not sure if my sitting has adjusted or things are just used to the new. Occasionally have some discomfort along the side of my shaft when we start sex but once we get going it goes away. Peeing was a sit down thing for me for a long time because I never knew which way it was going to go, or just spray everywhere. But other than that nothing different with urination.
I got to add having the implant is great. Last time we had sex I shot off early, that was a first since surgery because it has been taking me a long time. But the wife hadn't cum yet, so instead of getting soft (like before) we changed positions and I was able to keep going and get her off.

Rawness1111 wrote:Are you in any pain now? Is there any discomfort during sex? And I always wondered this is it harder to maintain bodily fluids like peeing after surgery?

There definitely was discomfort, usually after ejaculation, but after the first three months that pretty much went away. Nowadays I don't notice much discomfort at all unless I'm wearing jeans for a while or other circumstances where it's being jostled more than normal (like biking or being in the ocean for a while).

Great question about peeing-I totally forgot to mention that. I've noticed my stream feels weaker than it did before. I'm not sure if that's because the urethra is essentially longer now or is getting squeezed by the rods beside it or something else. But peeing feels like it takes a bit longer now. And I have to take more care to try to squeeze all of the urine out of my urethra, especially from the perineum. Also, if I probe my left lower abdomen, I can feel the reservoir a bit. I'm pretty low body fat, and I really do have to search a bit, but I am able to feel it knowing that it's there.

Similar to what Old Guy said, about the only pain I have is occasionally the pump which hangs very low and when my scrotum is slack, it can cause some mild itching or stabbing pains in my sac. I also have near full-time itching and ache where the tubes come out of my dick and where the connector for the reservoir tube run down the left side of my dick.

Other than that, whenever I am fully deflated, sometimes the folds in the cylinders, near the base will cause a bit of sharp twinges (I just add a couple of pumps to get rid of the folds and I'm fine).

bird_law wrote:

Rawness1111 wrote:Are you in any pain now? Is there any discomfort during sex? And I always wondered this is it harder to maintain bodily fluids like peeing after surgery?

There definitely was discomfort, usually after ejaculation, but after the first three months that pretty much went away. Nowadays I don't notice much discomfort at all unless I'm wearing jeans for a while or other circumstances where it's being jostled more than normal (like biking or being in the ocean for a while).

Great question about peeing-I totally forgot to mention that. I've noticed my stream feels weaker than it did before. I'm not sure if that's because the urethra is essentially longer now or is getting squeezed by the rods beside it or something else. But peeing feels like it takes a bit longer now. And I have to take more care to try to squeeze all of the urine out of my urethra, especially from the perineum. Also, if I probe my left lower abdomen, I can feel the reservoir a bit. I'm pretty low body fat, and I really do have to search a bit, but I am able to feel it knowing that it's there.

I've noticed the same thing about peeing. It comes out much more slowly than before, I have to give a bit of an internal valsalva/push to get the last bit out, and if I don't thoroughly milk out the residual urine in the shaft, I'll end up leaking and you'll see a spot on my pants which is pretty embarassing. I leaked a bit prior to implant, but it's worse now. One trick that seems to help, if I sit to pee, I have much less in the way of leakage issues. Standing at urinals is an almost automatic pee spot on the pants.