Weed withdrawal - erectile dysfunction

[JimBob8873]

Hey guys, figured I'd chime in here, I have been having ED for the entire time I quite, been just over 11 months now, I definitely have seen an improvement. Almost to the point of having normal erections. I still have low libido most days. Turns out my Testosterone is actually pretty low, like 60-year-old man levels. Really took a blow to the self-confidence to be quite honest. My doctor is really unsure why it's so low and we are both attributing it to PAWS. Before, my T levels were excellent! I really think weed and withdrawal totally mess with your hormones to the point of them BARELY functioning.

Maybe everyone should get there T levels tested and report back! We might help others with this issue as well.

[SparkleFly12]

@Jimbob good to hear from you again. Ive been curious over the past year to see if my T levels are low; never got them checked before though so nothing to compare to. So even if I got tested and it came back low...not sure what I would do; wait or try and get treated for it. I know for a fact I used to have a higher sex drive than I do now (just how I felt when I saw attractive things), but was not sexually active during that time so not sure if I had ED. Hoping it is all PAWS making this happen. Planning to go in for a physical in another month or so; if I still have any ED at the time Ill ask the doc and see if I can get T levels tested.

At 12.5 months post-weed now. Over the past few weeks I do feel like Ive been feeling more easily turned on like I used to feel; not as easily turned on but like a milder version of who I used to be. I am able to get moderate/normal erections now with a partner (not the best); where a couple months ago I used to need viagra...hoping that I improve more in the coming months. Ive also just started exercising; last time I exercised regularly was a few months ago and I had a much lower sex drive; so hoping that makes a difference too.

Cheers, thanks for sharing.

Sparkle

[Durango2]

@Jimbob Did you notice any physical changes to your penis like shrinkage and loss of sensitivity. I still can't understand why mine changed so drastically.

[SparkleFly12]

@Durango now that I am starting to do slightly better, I do also notice that my penis (flacid) is larger than it was when I was going through intense PAWS/ED.

[Durango2]

@ sparklefly what about "fullness". Because I swear my penis feels lighter now. It doesn't feel as plump as before. Just like a deflated balloon.

Well its 35 days for me and I feel pretty great mentally and emotionally. My sleep has normalized and can get a full 7-8 hours of sleep. My only problems now are the sexual ones. My libido has been practically 0 the last 6 weeks. In that time I have only had 2 instances where I was horny. I can't get an erection without physical stimulation from the gf and my penis had lost a lot of sensitivity.

This has been a nightmare for me and it started after a masturbation binge while on vacation in mexico.

Is it possible to masturbate/smoke into a flatline?

[SparkleFly12]

I would say yes, its much more "full" now compared to when I was going through it all; its more plump now. My libido was 0 for 6 months; low for another 6 (still had ED); and is low-moderate for a month or so (have mild ED now). Erections/orgasm is not nearly what I used to be like - used to be waay more intense and pleasurable but I, still hoping it improves in the coming months. I still have a few other symptoms that are decreasing; seemingly as my libido increases.

Penis was very insensitive over the last year. Actually, I couldnt get hard without heavy stimulation from the gf; and sometimes even then I would only get hard for a few secs then get soft again...even while being physically stimulated.

Everything is getting better with time though. Now I finally feel turned on again. I randomly find myself staring at a picture or billboard with an attractive woman on it; something I never did for the past year. Im certainly not who I was years ago; but Im getting there. Only cure was time.

[biohack9]

Is it possible to masturbate/smoke into a flatline?

Hell yes, happened to me!

@sparklefly12 great feedback man... thanks for continuing to share, even if I don't agree with your "timeline" due to your short relapse. The counter has to be reset! lol

I made it to 13 weeks and the on New Years Eve relapse because of a short love affair. The next 3 months were filled with daily vaping and sex multiple times a day (with Cialis). I think my dose was too high though because it just didn't feel good because I think I was "too hard". My orgasms just aren't the same, which is due to the dopamine depletion I think.

So here I am starting from scratch again and it sucks of course! Was a blast for the 3 months though lol

[SparkleFly12]

@biohack I know what you mean by "it just didn't feel good because I think I was "too hard"" thats exactly how I felt when I was flatlined and took viagra...and sex was just boring.

About the counter, I still consider my counter to be at 1 year and 1 month! I didnt really have a relapse since then; just smoked a small bowl on two different occasions. I dont feel that those two smokes had any effect on my paws symptoms but who knows.

As for me now...3 weeks ago things took a big step back; and I feel like I did 4 months ago in terms of symptoms... low libido got really bad again and headaches and trouble sleeping got a lot worse. It may be because that day I cut out sugar from my diet cold turkey (was eating a lot of sugar/soda/sweets the weeks before that); I cut them out and started exercising a lot. I suspect no sugar made things worse for paws, but now 3 weeks later I am still not eating sugar and am feeling a bit better; but the low libido is still an issue. Just hope the low libido gets better.

Cheers

[biohack9]

@sparklefly12 that's exactly it... and if it wasn't for the ed meds, sex just wasn't going to happen, but when it did, it was ok I guess, but nothing like it should have been, especially weak orgasms. I was doing nofap hardmode too but threw it all out of the window for a short fling with a really hot girl nearly 1/2 my age lol Busting nuts and getting high all the time for like 3 months.... but honestly, it did increase my sex drive. Even after it stopped, I couldn't stop looking at girls or thinking about sex. I still do, but i'm going back on nofap hardmode and abstaining from thc for a minute anyway.

Sorry man, I thought you have a stint where you smoked for a couple of weeks or something, but even if you didn't have PAWS symptoms for those couple of times, I think the counter needs to be reset.

Damn I can't believe what's still going on with you after a year though! I'm thinking it's maybe the lack of sleep that causes the headaches and low libido? Sleep is soooo crucial for health and well being..... you can have the healthiest diet in the world, but without enough quality sleep it doesn't matter and your health will decline. This is my life lol I really respect you for pushing through, but there is noway I could do it, especially after what I saw in the 3 months that I quit. Those sleepless nights tossing and turning, and sweating (during the first month) it's just too painful. And I realized that I was MUCH happier with weed in my life than not. OH, I also dropped the 15lbs that I gained when I quit and am super lean again which is very important to me. Weird!

Definitely stay away from sugar man.... that sh** is even more addicting and worse for health than weed!

Sugar.... the REAL "gateway drug" lol

See this is the thing, I see people on here quitting weed which is great and all, but not if they're going to get addicted to another drug, like a pharmaceutical, sugar (or food in general), alcohol, caffeine, etc...

I sometimes think i've passed the "point of no return" since I started using in my early 20's and now 20 years later, i've probably f***ed up my brain neurochemistry so much that it would take at least 1-3 years to recover, and that recovery wouldn't even be 100%, maybe like 90% or so.... but I dunno, i'm just way happier with my "meds" lol

I've heard of PIED cases taking over a year to recover, so hopefully you see some seriously bright light at the end of that tunnel soon buddy!

Keep us posted.... this is the only thread on the internet about ED, and it's a good one.

[SparkleFly12]

@biohack yea I did have two instances where I smoked 10-12 days in a row...and I did reset my ticker at that time. My paws symptoms all reset hard after those 10-12 days, on both instances.

My headaches are certainly linked to poor sleep - another of my remaining symptoms - but not possible to say what causes what. Theyre certainly weed/paws related though. When I used to smoke a lot less and I would quit for a few days, Id feel something like I do now; much milder symptoms. So Im still persisting and hoping things improve, even though I havent had much improvement the past 2 months.

I was so happy when at 1 yr I felt a big jump in libido; I wasnt completely normal (could have sex, but only 80% hard) but even that went away when I cut out Sugar...hoping it comes back soon. I dont think going back to weed to increase my sex drive or help me work out, etc is an option for me; given the life Ill be living in the next 1-2 years so I have no option but to keep going. At least the PAWS symptoms arent so disruptive now, I can more or less be normal other than low libido / ED.

[biohack9]

That's amazing bro, keep it up..... I didn't know you reset after your last binge..... sounds like you really need an AntiDopamine Diet for a while if the sugar is also affecting your dopamine so much. sh** is a drug no doubt!

It just scares me how you are back at month 4, but that's kind of not surprising given the nature of how PAWS works. Sounds like you'll be waaaaay better in the next 6-12 months.

Do you drink alcohol or caffeine? How do you get your dopamine outside of sex and exercise?

[SparkleFly12]

Im not back at month 4; even when I stopped sugar in month 13 it only set me back to month 11, but its getting better.

I do drink every now and then; only 2-3 drinks a couple times a week nothing crazy. Coffee maybe 2 times a week. Sex or masturbation a couple times a week too.

At this point I feel okay, nothing is unbearable. but just wanting these lingering headache/low libido/insomnia to go away. Hope it does in the next 2-3 months...

[biohack9]

Ah yes, you did say you felt like 4 months back, not at month 4! Phew!!

My advice would be to quit drinking altogether if you value your penis... alcohol, unlike cannabis, is pure poison and destroys nerve sensitivity. I'd also do the same with coffee, and DEFINITELY stop the fapping!!! Dude!!! Sex or leave it the heck alone. Maybe look up NoFap... there is a massive Reddit community, and yourbrainonporn has lots of good info.

Gotta go all the way and do it right if you're going to do it, but that's just me... if you do what I suggest, and STILL have problems in 3-6 months, that's another story.

Glad you're feeling better though!

[SparkleFly12]

Yeah, I typically dont fap but this social distancing has kept me from my gf for a months now!

[biohack9]

Yeah, I typically dont fap but this social distancing has kept me from my gf for a months now!

Have you looked into Semen Retention? Really powerful stuff. I'm wondering if that's why my withdrawals are non existent now! Amazing stuff.