Persistent genital discomfort symptoms... could it be TMS?

Edit: I'm so sorry, I made this post before realizing that the support subforum was a better place for it... unfortunately I can't delete it. very sorry!!

Hi I'm a 27 year old male. I've been through a lot this year and I found this forum because I don't really know where else to turn for input. I've typed out this story so many times lol but I'll try to keep it not too long. Basically at the beginning of the year I had unprotected sex with a friend and was totally fine for a little while until late Feb. In this stretch of time I was abusing weed and decided to quit and was hit with loads of withdrawal symptoms like sweating at night, chills, tinnitus, sweaty palms, heavy chest, vivid dreams, stuff like that and it really started freaking me out because I knew i needed to get tested due to my encounter but hadn't gone to the appt yet. So, I started really thinking I had an STD. This was all precipitated by me having just graduated school so I was under a lot of pressure from my friends and family to find a new job and especially since the pandemic was still raging I was very lost.

Anyway, I had gone to a clinic because I felt an ache downstairs and they told me there were abnormalities in my urine like trace blood and ketones, and that it didn't point to infection but that I need to see my doctor. I think it's because I wasn't eating bc of the withdrawal but I totally freaked out and went to a local ER and they tested me w/ bloodwork and did another urinalysis and everything was fine. I went home but was still freaking out thinking I had an STD.

Then, the very next morning I felt like my penis was being squeezed and it was like an irritated feeling inside, like a leaking/crawling kind of feeling. It was incredibly distressing (still is) and I inspected, formulating a lot of OCD and anxiety in an instant, and went back to the hospital thinking I had an STD and that I was discharging. I had a CT scan there and nothing remarkable was noted. My std tests also all came back negative. I got tested numerous times since then and EVERYTHING has come back negative... besides trace blood appearing in my urine a couple times between now and then there's no sign of infection, my prostate exam was fine. I've seen 3 urologists who find nothing wrong on physical exam or urine exam. Testicular ultrasound... totally fine. Microscopic urinalysis... totally fine.

I've been extremely depressed and confused and anxious and paranoid as I'm sure my post can tell. I thought I might have mycoplasma or something but I've tested negative for that numerous times. I've also taken multiple antibiotics with no real change. My symptoms at their bests are still annoying, I'll have a wet feeling on my penis head and a tingly scrotum. At worst I'll have spams in my penis but that doesn't happen very often. Ejaculating also doesn't hurt BUT it did feel uncomfortable a couple times a month ago afterward.

But, I wonder if it's TMS because: 1. It all seems to go away when I'm with friends or at work (I love my job) 2. I also am dealing with extreme fatigue, I have a crushing feeling in my chest a lot of the time and feel very exhausted despite all the sleeping I try and do and 3. It seems to move around, like if I don't feel anything in my pevlis or groin it'll be in my chest or I'll have a headache. Today I've had a slight amount of that retracting feeling, chest heaviness (I had to go lie down because I felt like I could barely breathe), and an ache in my right side groin. I also had knee pain several years ago during college that had literally no cause (x-ray saw nothing wrong) and that has come back too. Also, when I got my covid vaccine in April things went away for the whole month but then came back when I got stressed about an STD. I don't know if it's really CPPS as I have no real pain, just these uncomfortable sensations.

I've been severely depressed and also impatient. I thought I was making decent progress at the beginning of the month as I was doing deep breathing exercises and thought I was getting better, the penile sensations started going away but this past Friday I felt so severely fatigued in my chest that all my depression about having an STD or infection came back and then naturally the next day my sensation of squeezing/having my foreskin retracted came back. It's been a really hard year. I usually would be a very lighthearted, joyful, and carefree person in my life and never really had any medical issues or anything until now. I've been so frustrated with being some kind of medical mystery and feeling like I'm not getting better... I also am totally stuck in a loop, I had accepted it wasn't an infection but then Friday was a huge setback and now I'm back to square one. I almost feel like my brain is playing tricks on me, it SEEMS like it all comes on during moments of stress but I can't tell. I feel like I have no sense of reality anymore or like I'm crazy, I used to be proud of my intuition and now that's out the window.

I guess I'm just looking for reassurance that it might be TMS. I don't really have pain or numbness and I know it could be worse but I'm uncomfortable very often and it's drastically interfered with my life... I just want my life back like the way it was and want to be cured. I'm afraid all the time and I don't know how to break it. Even at my best I was still dwelling on the symptoms hardcore. I was always very joyful and saw all the beauty in the world and this whole year I've just been trudging through feeling super impatient that I'm not better and that I can't figure out what's going on.

I wonder if this is because of all the years going through turbulence in my life trying to be cool and confident, as I don't get angry often but I do tend to repress any uncomfortable feelings or resentment... and then everything compounded and made me hit my breaking point. The only thing I can think of similar to past TMS in my life is when I first moved to my father's and started a stressful first job at 14 and had severe gas pain constantly. I'm sorry this is so long I failed in that endeavor lol but any input is super appreciated, thank you.

 

Probably spasming/cramping, infection unlikely

Be honest about your emotions, should go away after a while

 

"I guess I'm just looking for reassurance that it might be TMS. I don't really have pain or numbness and I know it could be worse but I'm uncomfortable very often and it's drastically interfered with my life... I just want my life back like the way it was and want to be cured.... Even at my best I was still dwelling on the symptoms hardcore. ... I've just been trudging through feeling super impatient that I'm not better and that I can't figure out what's going on.:

I could have written these words, and probably most or all of the people on here could have and/or can relate. It sounds a LOT like TMS, particularly if you are constantly dwelling on the symptoms. Your anxiety sounds like it is really high because of the setback. I am just another guy trying to get better, so take what I say with that in mind, but if you made progress before you will get there again. Hang in there, try to have patience is all I can say, and know you are not alone.

 

Thank you both, it's still a ROUGH time. I am still in this weird loop. I made the most progress I could recently where I wasn't focusing or dwelling for 6 days but on the 7th I got super stressed again. The cycle typically goes that on the 4th or 5th day I'll start struggling a bit. On the 5th day I had some really intense neck pain come on and throbbing in my pelvis too. And then on the 6th day I had probably one of the worse headaches I've had in my life, felt like my brain was in a volcano. And now I feel like I'm back to square one, weird sensations in my d*ck are back, no tingling but just weird stuff. I also have some really bad pain in my jaw on the left side and my chest is heavy. But I'm really trying to remind myself that if it were structural or infectious it would be a constant thing, and not stuff that pops in and out or moves around and whatnot. I'm filled with so much anxiety, my chest will become so heavy out of nowhere and when I breathe to try and calm down, my lower back will start sweating and my forehead will sweat a little too. I think I still have a long way to go unfortunately. But I'm not a quitter, I'm a fighter even if I am a perfectionist and ppl pleaser and all the perfect archetypes of a TMS person lol. I see a therapist tomorrow too so maybe this is the start of something better!!

 

It's a spasm. Spasms hurt, pinch, and burn, but they always go away. Look after your mental health and whole health but keep active.

 

Okay thank you so much, honestly this is the message that has helped me finally accept nothing's wrong with me. Something so simple! And I was telling myself basically the same thing but your message really helped me form that perspective, that it's totally spasms. They all just pop in and out and pinch, burn, ache, etc etc but never hang around too long. And in telling myself I'm safe and that it's just spasms, I've been starting to shed my anxiety. Which, there's a LOT of. I've been calming down and keeping my mind busy and breathing right (I was breathing super shallow) and I have been sweating profusely on my back and hands/fingers- absolutely an anxiety response. And my other symptoms seem to respond in turn as well. Thank you! I really feel like I can do this now! I'm going to do my best to shed the anxiety and update in a month. But in the meantime I already feel my digestive system going back to normal, I was constipated for the past 5 days until now lol.

 

How are you doing now