Erectile Dysfunction overnight with type 2

Hi Everyone, I am new here.

My history, I was pre-diabetic about 11 years ago but reversed it with diet and exercise. About 10 months ago I had to travel and when I checked my glucose levels before travel I got the readings in mmol of 5.9 mmol.. I thought 6-7 mmol was pre-diabetic (100-125 in mg/dl scale which I was used to earlier) so 5.9 mmol might be in the 95-98 mg/dl range and boarded the flight. During the past 10 months away I had work related issues and family related issues (mostly my doing) with lot of stress and drank too many sodas, packaged juices and ate fast food (burgers).

About 3 weeks ago i.e., 2 days before boarding the flight I had tingling and some pain in the feet and I was alarmed as that was my first symptom as a pre-diabetic... so after landing from flight I immediately bought a home glucose meter to check fasting sugar next morning and the reading was 7.2 mmol this made me sad as it was in the diabetic range. I checked subsequent morning and was similar in the 7 range and after meals it was 8-9 range. I immediately began eating chicken, salmon, salads and walking 15-20 mins after meals.

After a week and a half I saw fasting results in 5.5-5.9 range and was a little happy. The next day signed up at gym and ran 25 mins and then headed to a wings place and ate 25 wings with lots of sauce (it was my go to in pre-diabetic) but this wings place had a lot of sauce on the wings. Now I checked my glucose after 15 mins when I got home it was 7.1 mmol (130 mg/dl) and then checked again as I curious how the saucy chicken wings would impact BG so after another 30 mins it was 14.1 (252 mg/dl) so I walked for 25 mins then rested and masturbated. I checked my glucose reading again after 1 hour from last reading and it was 7.8 mmol (140 mg/dl) then I went to sleep. Next day when I woke up there was no morning erection, also my tingling and numbness in legs and palms was more. Now I tried to check my erection but there was nothing no matter what I saw or imagined and the penis to touch felt numb not much feeling and no erection. I was really shocked and felt something bad happened to the nerves in my penis due to the high blood glucose after eating the wings and me masturbating with the high glucose running thru my penis. Now its been one week (last 4 days fasting sugars in 4.1 to 5.4 range .. ate only veggies and salmon and intermittent fasting of 15 hrs) and I took cialis (5mg) for last 3 days and its still the same numb to touch and no erections.

I am just so down I can't explain. I have been reading about Neuropathy particularly ED related and cannot focus on anything else. I went to doctor and he has order blood tests. Please advice.
Thanks in advance.

Edited by mods to remove graphic content

LittleGreyCat said:

I would cautious in drawing that conclusion.
Remember that correlation does not imply causation.

You list a number of different potential causes, including high stress, which could have the same effect.

It would be sensible to visit your health care professionals for advice.
{Edit: noting that you are already having blood tests, perhaps a specialist in ED could help?]

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Thank you had my first visit at a walk-in clinic and am waiting for the blood report.

I am trying to see if others with ED had any sudden changes they could recollect. Thx

TheSecretCarbAddict said:

@meddiabetic, welcome to the forum. As it has already been mentioned, ED can have different underlying causes, both physiological as well as psychological, and you need to work with your medical team to work out the most likely cause.

My understanding is that diabetic neuropathy is something that generally develops over time rather than something that has a very sudden onset.

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Thank you.
I did notice some changes about 4-5 months ago where my erections were not spontaneous I mean just visuals would not help I needed touch as well and also erections were not as firm on occasions I dismissed it as I was stressed with other issues.
So maybe there were changes happening in my pre-diabetes phase but dismissed them due to my life stress and not aware of being pre-diabetic.

But going from have erections to not having overnight is what I am trying to figure out if anybody else has seen sudden change in their ED situation.

Thanks

TheSecretCarbAddict said:

I had a period a couple of years ago where I struggled with some ED symptoms and got prescribed Sildenafil/Viagra to help me, but to be honest it was not much help as while the medication helps with blood flow to your organs, it does not do much for the psychological side. What I realised very quickly was that it was all in my head and mostly related to performance anxiety / fear of failure. The more I thought about me not performing, the more likely it was that I wouldn't. It was only when I allowed myself to relax and accept that I don't always need to 'perform' to satisfy my partner or to share intimate moments in general. Things have returned to normal since I changed my mindset and stopped putting so much pressure on myself and allowing myself to go with the flow.
for your ED, but it could also be psychological and you noticing changes and stressing out about them is what perpetuates the problem.

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Thank you for your kind words.
Im not able to get an erection while doing it myself. I don't think I have had trouble when alone in my room just trying to get a release it just happened overnight and that's what is worrying me. I will try to give it some days but also will consult a specialist soon. Thanks

I got the blood work results HB AC1 is 6.4% on their scale its diabetic so I'm diabetic. Cholesterol (5.58 mmol) is high and HDL is low(0.67 mmol), while LDL (4.41 mmol) and non-HDL are high (4.91 mmol). Also, Alanine aminotranferase (ALT) 81 u/l, uric acid and ketones are high.

I would be seeing the doctor next week but Can anyone tell me if these numbers require me to get on medications? Thanks

Hi All, I have a few questions based on my observations the past 3 weeks about my ED I am hoping someone can provide opinions on my observations and assumptions.

Just going back a little, since I found my blood glucose on June 25th about 5 weeks ago to be high I have been on Keto diet almost no carbs / low carbs.

So when I was on Keto (no carbs) for 8 days I ate spicy chicken wings and my erections went away the next day (July 4th), then after 10 days (July 14th) it came back. In the mean time I had my blood and urine test results come back on July 11th (HB AC1 is 6.4% on their scale its diabetic so I'm diabetic. Cholesterol (5.58 mmol) is high and HDL is low(0.67 mmol), while LDL (4.41 mmol) and non-HDL are high (4.91 mmol). Also, Alanine aminotranferase (ALT) 81 u/l, uric acid and ketones are high).

I was ok for next 7 days (until Jul 21st) eating mostly eating green vegetables, Tofu and Salmon but on July 21st Sunday I ate Basil chicken at a Vietnamese restaurant and the next day my erections were weak (reduced 30-40% and couldn't maintain for long), then the next day (July22nd) had more of a concentrated lime juice about 1 cup and erections were gone completely for next 5 days.

On July 27th (Saturday 6 days later) my erection was normal, and I thought the erections being impacted is when I ate highly acidic food adding to the acidic Ph of me being on Keto diet (maybe was in Diabetic Ketoacidosis .. my blood work had high uric acid) so I tried to introduce some carbs and after introducing carbs got very gassy for next 2-3 days but erection was good.

On July 30th (Tue) in the night I took 5 Tums antacid tablets and drank 1 bottle of Diabetic Boost drink (something like Glucerna, Ensure) and lost my erections next day. I didn't realise before drinking the diabetic drink had artificial sugars (sugar alcohols and is acidic). It's 5 days and my erections is not there.

My observations is I was on keto as a Diabetic and every time I ate/drank something more acidic I lost my erections. Is it the acidic food on top of keto (acidic ph) is damaging my nerves or is something else happening that's causing this. I plan to eat more carbs with more alkaline foods to balance my Ph.

I appreciate it.

lovinglife said:

Hi @meddiabetic

We can’t diagnose or give medical advice on the forum. I think it’s best in your situation to speak to your health care team, your question is very specific and I doubt that anyone here will be able to give you a satisfactory answer. Maybe chill out about it a bit? Stress and anxiety can be one of many reasons for E.D.

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No problem. I have seen health care provider they didn't seem to know what the cause could be ..they said give it time. In the mean time I am trying to see if others have had any similar experiences with more acidic diet.

Chris24Main said:

Not entirely sure about the acidity.
Can I just push the point that keto eating isn't purely about reducing carbs, it's about swapping carbs for fat. The direct link with ED is to do with nitric oxide (allows for vascular dilation which of course allows for that all-important blood flow...) which is all about the additional fat side of the equation. May be something to consider for you. Hope it works out.

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Thanks for your input. yes I have reduced carb intake but haven't increased fat consumption .. I mostly eat lots of veggies and protein .. I will try to improve my diet by adding more fats or eat a more well rounded diet with complex carbs. Thanks

Chris24Main said:

I'm only an enthusiastic amateur, not a nutritionist, but when you say "improve my diet" - these two choices are not the same...

Adding fat goes against all the laws of what we have learned for our whole lives, but (it turns out) is really the thing that makes the difference.

"rounded" and "complex" are really just things we tell ourselves - it's all sugar in the end.

At least that's the way I'm coming more and more to see it; You don't need to eat animal products to increase fat.. but if your specific worry is ED, then everything points to swapping sugar and starch for good fat (and again, by improving Nitric Oxide, which is only associated with fat, the sugar side of things is more about damage to the small blood vessels, a longer term issue... getting an erection is more about your blood vessels dilating, which you will improve with fat) - which could be Avocado or Coconut based just as easily as animal fat..

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Thanks much. Yes I was eating some tofu but will increase it and add Avocados, Coconut and slowly add chicken .. appreciate it.