About history of ED
Before oral medications (such as cialis) became available, the management of erectile dysfunction was difficult. First, men wanted to know why they had problems. Despite the biases of medicine through the years that impotence was psychogenic in origin, most men knew there was more to it than that. Therefore they wanted to find out why they couldn’t get an erection. If they could only know why it happened, they reasoned, they could reverse the cause.
However, it was never that easy. Sure, it was occasionally obvious such as in cases where surgery had cut a nerve. However, recall that there are usually multiple issues causing erectile dysfunction in any given man. In chapter 6, Edward wanted to know whether his erectile dysfunction was due to smoking, diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), alcohol, medications, his weight, age, or sleep apnea. He was even willing to consider the possibility that the stresses between him and his wife could be the cause, or that job and financial pressures were taking their toll. In short, he wanted to know which one caused the problem. Unfortunately for Edward, it was all of them.
The major problem facing Edward was finding out that the cause was multifactorial - a combination of all these issues. The result was that even if he could change one, two, or eight of these concerns, he still had reasons remaining that could prevent his recovery unless he received treatment.
When multiple issues are present, some will inevitably be reversible and some will not. Edward was able to change a few things, such as his weight, blood pressure medication, and general health. He could manage his diabetes and hypertension, but they couldn’t be cured. In fact, the medications to manage his hypertension actually contributed to his erectile dysfunction. He could stop smoking and drink responsibly. But he still couldn’t make himself younger.
Before oral medication was available, the discussion with a urologist would center around changing as many issues as we could. However, men generally didn’t like that option. In an age when people were used to going into the doctor’s office with a problem and walking out with a prescription that would fix it, no man with erectile dysfunction liked what he was being told. No matter what the cause, men couldn’t walk into the doctor’s office and leave with a prescription that would magically cure all ills. These were the dark ages of erectile dysfunction.
