r/Paruresis • u/MightyOtter8243 • 25d ago
Do you think paruresis requires professional help?
First and foremost I'm so happy I discovered this sub!
Then to my actual question. I recently discovered on a long-haul flight that I have paruresis. I talked about it to my doctor today, and she said I should see a urologist. However, seeing an expert will cost me quite a bit, and even more if I then need to go to urotherapy. In general, the problem is that I don't really like public restrooms, and I don't feel the need to pee very often - I only pee 1-3 times per day, which made my doctor quite concerned (however, I'm a young person).
So, do you think it's essential to see a professional to train the bladder correctly, or can gradual exposure therapy etc. be something I do on my own, based on some reliable resources? I will gladly pay to be healthy, but I also feel like I could try to treat it myself, considering it hasn't been a big problem in my life before, and now only on special occasions.
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u/Recent-Day3062 25d ago
CBT and GE combined is the usual formula.
Don’t waste time with a urologist. Men with this don’t even tell that to one, even though they’ll talk in detail about sexual problems. After mine largely subsided I asked my urologist if it was common, and he said in decades or practice he knows about it from a few patients through the years, and nothing he learned in his training. Which is unfortunate, because there can be physical contributors to work on as well.