European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 16, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                To your use Tomies family planning for the 90 s by Rob Hiaasen Cox news Servic Vasectomy. The word makes some men wince like when we watch a football player get  the Groin. Vasectomies Are the stuff nervous laughter and Tenor joke s Are made of. Quot i m proof its no problem a says Albert Bakari a 33-year-old postal service worker. He and his wife have one child and one is enough. He had a Vasectomy two weeks ago. Bakari says Quot everything is just Fine thank  next Case. Quot i m sick of All the birth control methods Quot says 33-year-old Brian Tencza who runs a consulting firm in Jupiter Fla. He chose what Many Call the simplest quickest and safest form of birth control. This father of two had a Vasectomy. Neither Man wanted his wife to go through the More expensive and complicated female counterpart called tubal ligation. Neither wanted his wife to continue taking birth control pills. Quot in a concerned about the health of my wife. A drug is a drug Quot Bakari says. But both men had the common fears about male sterilization. They did no to know much about the operation. Would sex feet the same could i still get an erection will i want to have sex anymore Quot a lot of people think they Cut your Penis and you get a big scar and there a blood All Over the place Quot Tencza says. Quot there a just nothing to it. There really really really in  besides abstinence vasectomies Are the most reliable form of birth control health officials say. Less than. 1 percent of vasectomies fail. There Are no physical reasons Why vasectomies would affect erections orgasms or sex drive. This Isnit castration. The operation is usually done in a doctor s office or clinic. The outpatient operation lasts around 20 minutes. A local aesthetic is injected into the scrotum where two Small incisions Are then made. The two thin tubes that carry sperm Are sealed and the incisions closed. You rest for an hour then go Home. You can have sex again when you feel comfortable. Younger men Are choosing sterilization judging by planned parenthood a patients in West Palm Beach. More men Are in their Early 20s and 30s compared with patients 10 years ago who were typically in their late 30s and 40s, most Are married with kids. Quot More men Are taking responsibility for birth control Quot says or. Ross Cohen a Lake Worth Fla., urologist. Quot the Way the Economy is now it s not hard to figure out Why there Are More vasectomies being done Quot says planned parenthood Counselor Linda Thomas although it s minor surgery having a Vasectomy is a. Major decision. At planned parenthood men Are counselled before the $300 operation. The counselling is crucial men should consider other birth control and should consider Vasectomy permanent Thomas says. There Are always questions. What happens if you change your mind remarry and want to Sfart a second family what if you have a Vasectomy and your Only child Dies a year later Quot having another one does t replace him Quot Tencza says. Men do change their minds. About two in every 1,000 men who have vasectomies regret it. Vasectomy reversals Are More complicated and expensive. They be become More successful because of advances in microscopic surgery used to reconnect the sperm carrying tubes. Unlike vasectomies a $3,000 reversal is not covered by medical insurance. Cohen performs about five reversals a year compared with an average of one operation five years ago. He says there s a 90 percent to 95 percent Success rate for men who have had a Vasectomy within 10 years. After that health officials say the rate drops to 35 percent. Reconnecting and impregnating Arentt the same. Pregnancy rates following Vasectomy reversals Range a from 16 percent to 85 percent says the department of health and human services. Quot you should t have a Vasectomy if you re not As certain As you can be Quot Cohen says. So this All sounds easy enough. Both doctor and patient proclaiming vasectomies simple inexpensive and proven. If it were a Lawn Mower or personal computer there  be any hesitation. But this is much More personal than any computer. Rationality aside this can be about manhood. Quot you do have men who absolutely refuse to come in because they think it will affect them sexually Quot Thomas says. Forget the health pamphlets or news articles sometimes it takes talking to men who have had vasectomies to believe All the press about the operation Bakari says. It takes an eyewitness to Calm a petrified imagination. Quot if you re concerned about the size of your family by All Means it s a worthwhile operation Quot he says. Quot my wife was thrilled a by Rob Hiaasen Cox news service Here Are answers to some of the most common questions about vasectomies a will i still get an erection there is no physical reason Why not. The operation Only prevents the escape of sperm it does not affect the release of the male sex hormone testosterone. Although sperm and testosterone Are produced in the Testicles they leave by different routes. Remember Spear and semen Are different. You la notice no difference in the amount of fluid semen ejaculated during Intercourse. Only the microscopic sperm won t be present in the fluid. Ejaculations and orgasms Aren t affected. A will i still want to get an erection there is no physical reason for losing your sex drive. A Are there emotional effects about 1 percent to 5 percent of men have psychological problems after Vasectomy including a drop in sex drive. Counselling before the operation is strongly recommended. A what a the operation and does it Hurt vasectomies Are usually performed in a doctor s office or clinic. The outpatient operation lasts around 20 minutes. A local aesthetic is injected into the scrotum where two Small incisions Are then made. The two thin tubes that carry sperm Are sealed and the incisions closed. You rest an hour or two then head Home. You la feel the injection. You  feel anything during the rest of the operation. A does it Hurt after count on soreness. In about half the cases men complain of swelling bruising and pain. In most cases the pain goes away in about a week or two. Ice packs non prescription pain killers and rest help. Avoid strenuous work or exercise for about two Days. A How soon can i have sex at least wait till you get Home from the doctor s office one urologist jokes. Important for a while use other birth control because the reproductive tract is not Clear of sperm for several weeks after the operation. A will my Testicles be smaller no. A is Vasectomy the answer to marital or sexual problems a Vasectomy is a medical and mechanical option. It s not a cure for marital sexual or psychological problems. A does sex feel the same maybe better since you Ohthave to worry about birth control. Those who coach Young baseball players should limit pitching to no More than six innings per week advises an orthopaedic surgeon. Too much pitching can damage growing shoulders. Exercise Stop when it hurts by the associated press the no pain no gain philosophy among athletes can set them up for permanent injury say medical and health specialists. A Quot you should never feel True pain at any time while you re exercising Quot advises Peggy Newman assistant professor of physical therapy at the University of Oklahoma health sciences Center in Oklahoma City. Quot if you re feeling pain you re pushing too  athletes who suffer recurrent sports specific injuries such As Tennis Elbow or runners knee should beware she says. Overuse can cause irreversible damage to Muscles and ligaments. Non athletic people who participate in sports intermittently a Quot weekend athletes Quot a Are especially at risk from muscle strains pulls or tears ligament sprains and overuse says or. Norman w. Scott an orthopaedic surgeon at Beth Israel Hospital North in new York City. Knee injuries often afflict part time athletes participating in running and jumping sports because of the Strong rotational Force and rotator cuff problems usually associated with baseball Are common among Tennis players he says. Scott says that muscle strains most often Are a result of being out of shape while ligament injuries come from accidents or excessive Force. Professional athletes Are admired for playing Hurt but adults should t pressure youngsters to emulate them says or. Mark Anderson a physical therapist and sports Medicine specialist at the Oklahoma Center. The consequences can be a lifetime of pain a both physically and psychologically a if children Are injured or fail to meet expectations placed on them. Overuse injuries Are common in baseball Anderson says. Quot coaches need to be aware of the dangers of asking a player to try to do too much too  in coaching Young baseball players limit pitching to no More than six innings each week advises or. Arthur m. Pappas an orthopaedic surgeon in Worcester mass., who serves As medical director of the Boston red sox. Quot if a Young baseball Pitcher plays too often or too Many consecutive innings he or she could permanently damage a growing shoulder Quot he says. One idea Worth taking from professional athletes is Spring training says Scott. That Means easing into your sport including five to 10-minute warm ups at the beginning and end of each practice session or game. Stretching exercises  the possibility of injury adds Newman. Exercisers should work up to desired fitness or skill Levels gradually and not expect perfection immediately. Newman says that playing or exercising with even a slightly injured muscle or ligament impedes Healing. Injuries May not seem As bad As they Are because the body s natural pain killers cover the pain. Quot As soon As pain is Felt in a muscle or joint play or exercise should be stopped Quot she says. Quot then protect rest and elevate the part if possible apply an ice pack even if it s an area such As the lower Back a and take a couple of  Don t apply heat to an acute muscle or ligament injury. Quot its a common fallacy that heat is Good for an acute injury. Heat actually makes the problem worse because it causes swelling which further pushes on nerves and causes More pain. Ice Elevation and aspirin reduce swelling and therefore  warm up your Muscles and ligaments before going out to play regardless of your sport say most sports Medicine and health specialists. Here Are recommended warming up exercises from doctors of the american Academy of orthopaedic surgeons a Arm circles hold arms out to the Side with elbows straight. Make five circles Forward and five circles backward. A shoulder stretches stand or sit holding your throwing Arm at the wrist with your other hand. Put your Arm Over your head and putt gently feeling your upper Arm against your head. You should feel the stretch inside your shoulder a Side bends while standing Bend to the right then stand up straight again. Do this five times and then five More times going to the left. You can keep both hands on your hips or let one Arm come overhead when you Bend. A i running in place count each step As one and continue until you reach 100. The Ortho pudists say to do the exercises carefully Speed in t important. You la know you re warmed up when you begin to sweat a Little