This annual holiday is celebrated on February 14th and originated as a feast day honoring the saint Valentinus who was said to have been imprisoned for performing forbidden weddings and ministering to Christians (the Romans tended to persecute these people).
The date has since become synonymous with romantic love and further commercialized in western societies as a top ‘date night’ or time to show your commitment to your special partner; however, for too many men with ED this can be a stressful date to plan for. Dinner, flowers and loving attention can go very far to proving ones adoration for their mate, but if a level of intimacy is not eventually consummated then the days after can become even more stressful.
It’s said the first real association of Valentine’s Day with romantic love was in the 1382’s Parlement of Faoules by Geoffrey Chaucer, where he wrote:
For this was on seynt Volantynys day
Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese his make.
[“For this was on St. Valentine’s Day, when every bird cometh there to choose his mate.”]
Researchers have also determined that the volume of oral ED medications prescribed is higher than usual the week before Valentine’s Day (from 4% to 15% higher)*. Not surprisingly all the expectations for men to perform can even exasperate the issue. When the dysfunction is physical and not mental, and when the pill option turns out to be a non-solution then men need alternatives. Intracavernous Pharmacotherapy (ICP) is a leading treatment option.
ICP is considered a very effective but often under-utilized treatment for ED, it involves an injection of a combination of FDA-approved vasodilators into the spongy tissue of the penis, using an auto-applicator. This combination causes an expansion of the penile arteries and penile tissues, resulting in increased blood flow to the penis. An erection typically develops within minutes and clinical studies show a 98% success rate in treating ED.
The severity of the condition will ultimately dictate which treatment modality is needed. Many men can get the performance they need with just orals, sublinguals or other types of treatments. CFH is also very encouraged by new techniques using non-invasive extracorporeal soundwave therapy; this, when paired with PRP and/or stem cells, has shown indications of promoting long term healing and actual rehabilitation of erectile tissue.
A little preparation before this big day can lead to less stress, better performance and a much happier partner.
Thou art my love and I am thine;
I drew thee to my Valentine:
The lot was cast and then I drew,
And Fortune said it shou’d be you
– Gammer Gurton’s Garland (1784)
*Source: athenaResearch
