Living with Erectile Dysfunction

My husband has had ED for about 12 years. We tried the pills and other things which did not help. He has high BP and diabetes so we did not want to risk surgery for penile implants as diabetics have a higher risk of infection and healing problems.

We have used a vacuum pump for years. It took some practice and trial and error to find the best techniques and the best ring size for us, but we have been very satisfied with the pump. There were times we would get frustrated in the beginning trying to use the pump, but it works great once you get used to some of the obvious changes you have to make, like getting the rings ready and putting them on the cylinder, after lubricating the cylinder, then pumping the penis to erection, slipping the rings onto the base of the penis. The penis is also cool on initial insertion which is different than a natural erection. Its just a little more work but well worth the trouble. We have found that two of the high tension rings gives us the best erection (which is as full as a natural erection).

Please talk to your husband about this, it is noninvasive and some insurances will pay for it. My husband’s insurance would not pay for it so we bought it ourselves. We have had ours for 12 years and have only had to buy new rings. We paid about $450 for ours. There are now nicer, newer models that are one piece.

Your intimate life together can be as good as anyone else’s if you are willing to accept a few changes. Be open with each other, give yourself time to get comfortable with your pump.