Imagine doing something boring, like riding
the subway or typing away at an expense report, and suddenly your body sends you a very clear
message - you need to have sex. Not like a sex fantasy about someone you’re
attracted to. Rather, you get an intense feeling in your
genitals that can only be relieved by sex. You try to ignore it, but it’s not going
away - and it doesn’t care how inappropriate it is for the moment. For a small number of women, this uncomfortable
situation is reality - and it’s one of the rarest and newest sexual disorders out there. Titled Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder,
it’s not just a one-time thing that makes itself known at an awkward time. This disorder causes sudden and persistent
genital arousal without any current sexual stimulation or desire. This unknown disorder was at first mistaken
for hypersexuality by puzzled doctors, who assumed that this was normal sexual desire
gone out of control. But examining a few people who suffered from
this condition indicated that it was completely separate from sexual desire. This has led researchers to wonder if the
name is appropriate. After all, the women aren’t aroused. They’re being troubled by a nerve reaction
in their genitals that is giving them sensations they don’t want. One thing is for sure - the women experiencing
this condition all report the symptoms are extreme. When describing the symptoms of the disorder,
“arousal” is the furthest thing from the minds of sufferers. They feel intense pressure and irritation
in their genital area which can lead to contractions or vaginal congestion. Sometimes spontaneous orgasms can happen,
but not in all cases. Sufferers sometimes try to relieve the pressure
by masturbating and triggering an orgasm, but this only lasts a short time if that. Many sufferers report having to have multiple
orgasms in a short time to experience any relief - not something that’s feasible when
it occurs in the middle of a workday. So what causes this bizarre disorder? There are so few cases of Persistent Genital
Arousal Disorder that no definite cause has been determined yet. Studies indicate that it may be exacerbated
by stress, but that’s probably not the source of the problem. Originally doctors assumed it was psychologically
based, but attempts to treat the condition through counseling didn’t show results. Now it’s believed the causes may be neurological
or vascular, with conditions like Tarlov cysts or arterial malformations in the pelvic region
pressing on a nerve that causes this unusual condition. So what’s the solution? The women suffering from the condition are
desperate for a cure. Treatments have varied - and so has the success
rate. Most early cases were treated with a combination
of psychotherapy and pelvic exercises, and while the therapy may or may not have been
useful, some women report relief from the exercises. In cases where a physical cause can be determined,
some minor surgeries have relieved the condition by removing the pressure. But the disorder isn’t fully understood
yet, and no one is quite sure why a medicine called Varenicline, normally used to treat
nicotine addiction, relieved one woman’s symptoms. But many women suffering from the condition
have a bigger problem - getting anyone to take them seriously. When Jeannie Allen came down with the syndrome
in her mid-forties, she was one of the first people ever diagnosed - and she immediately
found out that her condition would make her the subject of mockery. One of the first doctors she talked to even
commented that she must be every man’s dream - to which she snapped back that he should
try to imagine what it would be like to have an orgasm every minute of the day. She was so frustrated that she eventually
went public, under the pen name Jean Lund, and became one of the first people to ever
share exactly what it was like to live with this condition long-term. She described it as taking the joy out of
life and leaving her unable to concentrate on anything else. Another woman, a forty-year-old flower vendor
who became the subject of an early clinical study, reported that the episodes happened
spontaneously with no trigger and left her exhausted and unable to plan her day effectively. She had previously had an attack of the condition
seven years before and found relief after a surgery that removed a ruptured ovary. But now it was back, and doctors were as clueless
as she was. They tried the medicine carbamazepine, an
anticonvulsant, on her and she stopped after a month due to a lack of improvement. However, in her case, supportive therapy sessions
seemed to do the trick as they reduced the frequency of symptoms and she was eventually
able to resume a normal life. Causes may vary, but one medical condition
repeats as a likely cause of the condition. What is a Tarlov cyst? The human body is sensitive with a lot of
little areas that can go awry, and even the smallest problem can have unexpected consequences. The Tarlov cyst are tiny cysts in the spinal
canal near the base of the spinal cord and are known for their walls filled with nerve
fibers. First discovered by Isadore Tarlov in 1938,
he at first assumed them to not cause any adverse symptoms. However, future investigations indicated they
can cause pain, spasticity, and muscle weakness, headaches, and bladder dysfunction among other
symptoms. They can wreak havoc on the nervous system
and create unpredictable symptoms - including genital dysfunction, as they happen to be
right by the nerves that affect the genitals. When Professor Barry Komisaruk, one of the
first researchers investigating Persistent Genital Arousal Syndrome, looked at the MRIs
of sufferers, he was shocked to discover that two -thirds of them had Tarlov cysts. So there may finally be hope for the women
being driven crazy by this strange disorder. Eleven women with the disorder had their Tarlov
cysts operated on by Dr. Feigenbaum, a spinal neurosurgeon who had been studying the disorder. They became part of a case study on the disorder,
and when then they were interviewed after their recovery, eight of the eleven said their
symptoms had gone away! The remaining three reported significant relief
from before surgery. This was the best evidence yet that sacral
nerve compression was the root cause of the disorder - but not all cases of the disorder
have the cysts, and not all people who improve have the surgery. And for Jeannie Allen, these advances weren’t
much help. She never had a Tarlov cyst, and doctors were
at a loss for how to treat her. She eventually quit her job to dedicate herself
to advocating for more research and support for women with her condition. Despite the growing awareness, it’s still
a very rare disorder - while it’s believed hundreds of women may suffer from the condition,
case studies have only looked at a population of under thirty women. How is the growing awareness of this disorder
helping these women? For the first time, women suffering from this
strange disorder have a source for help other than doctors who may not fully understand
it. They can find fellow sufferers online and
learn how they’ve been coping. This allows them to try various solutions
including exercise, meditation, and medication that may or may not be helpful. While many find surgery as a solution, local
anesthetic hasn’t been successful in preventing the disorder - while the intense feeling is
concentrated in one specific area, it doesn’t originate there. It’s generated in the nervous system, and
any solution has to go deeper than skin deep. Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder only affects
those with a certain set of equipment, so those with the other set have to be breathing
a sigh of relief...right? Not exactly. There’s a similar condition that affects
men, and it may be even more challenging and uncomfortable. It’s called priapism, and it causes similar
persistent arousal of the genitals - that manifests as a prolonged, uncomfortable erection
that persists even in the absence of any stimulation. Most men remember that awkward moment when
you really can’t stand up because the bulge in your pants has decided to make itself known,
but this is an extended erection that can make it difficult to walk, urinate, or concentrate. Like Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder,
it can be caused by a number of causes, including sickle cell disease, nerve damage, drug use,
or trauma to the penis. Another reason to be wary of getting kicked
in the genitals. So is there any good news for those suffering
from this uncomfortable condition? Well, priapism is more common than Persistent
Genital Arousal Disorder, and doctors know a lot more about how to treat it. Unfortunately, it also carries more health
risks. An erection that lasts too long can cause
serious damage - as many ads for erectile dysfunction medication have warned. As most cases of priapism are caused by the
inability of the penis to drain blood properly, the most common treatment is to numb the area
and drain it with a minimally invasive procedure. If blood drainage isn’t a problem, treating
it can be as easy as cold compresses, but in worst-case scenarios, surgery may be performed. And the clock is ticking - permanent damage
can begin after only four hours. It’s an embarrassing but not uncommon medical
problem - it’s estimated that it may occur in as many as one in twenty thousand men a
year. These have got to be some of the strangest
sexual disorders doctors encounter, right? Not quite! Doctors have encountered some genuinely bizarre
sexual disorders - some of which they don’t have any real answers for yet. One of the most troubling sexual disorders
is retrograde ejaculation, which has terrified quite a few couples. In this disorder, everything goes perfectly
normally - until it’s time for the guy to ejaculate. He feels like everything went fine, but nothing’s
coming out. This is a rare disorder caused by a malfunctioning
valve between the urethra and the bladder, where the semen doesn’t travel down the
escape hatch and instead shoots backward into the bladder. It can make it difficult to conceive but doesn’t
really have any serious health risks. The usual culprit? A side effect from medication. There are few things better than that post-sex
bliss, right? Not for the people with the next condition. Post-orgasmic illness syndrome is another
condition that has puzzled doctors. For those few men suffering from it, whenever
they ejaculate they immediately come down with a series of flu-like symptoms. That pleasant feeling of an orgasm is immediately
replaced by a feverish feeling, a runny nose, and the intense need to lie down. Not exactly a happy ending, and the cause
may be even more bizarre. According to Dr. Marcel Waldinger, one of
the few doctors to study this condition, the men may be allergic to their own semen. This has led doctors to experiment with a
cure by injecting these men with a diluted solution made from their own sperm. Most of these conditions only manifest during
or after sex - but this next one might be painfully obvious much earlier. Phimosis is a malformation of the foreskin
surrounding the penis that makes it too tight, essentially forming a band around the tip
that can make sex - or any other pressure on the penis - extremely painful. This disorder exists from birth but only becomes
obvious when someone tries to have sex or masturbate. The good news is, this disorder isn’t nearly
as mysterious as the others. It’s a simple skin problem and can be corrected
by a circumcision procedure that’s slightly more extensive than the average, removing
all the foreskin instead of only a part. The biggest challenge for sufferers? Going into the doctor and admitting this embarrassing
problem. The next disorder might sound less terrifying
than the others - but it can make for some awkward conversations. Due to a problem during the development of
the fetus, it’s possible for male children to be born with two penises. Called diphallia, this is a rare condition
that’s most surprising for the fact that in some cases both penises function for both
urination and ejaculation. One is usually smaller than the other, but
that’s the only distinction. This disorder can also manifest as part of
larger developmental abnormalities that require surgical intervention, and each case is handled
independently as doctors figure out an approach that will lead to the most normal life for
the affected child. It’s rare for adults with diphallia who
have not had the condition treated to be found, so unpleasant surprises in the bedroom are
unlikely. With many sexual disorders like Persistent
Genital Arousal Disorder, doctors are often unsure of whether the cause is physical, psychological,
or due to side effects from an exterior stimulus. That’s why those suffering from these rare
disorders often find that their fellow sufferers are the best source of information as everyone
tries to puzzle out these weird quirks of human sexuality. For more on another bizarre sexual disorder,
check out “What Is Sexsomnia (Sleep Sex Disease?)”, or check out “Female Orgasm
vs. Male Organism - How Do They Compare” for more on the nature of sexuality.
