At week 12, symptoms have stabilized at what might be called predictably bad. Day by day breathing problems, exhaustion, and weakness are at 6 out of 10 at worst, and between 2-3 at best. Thoughts of taking the coward’s way out have slowly subsided while my libido has reached a plateau.
My plan to repeat a semen analysis has proven ill advised since my wife coincidentally ovulates on the exact day I would be due to produce a sample. The analysis has thus been delayed an additional week. Now I am forced to wait on the protein diet an additional 2 weeks plus however long it takes for results to be made available.
I have been living a monastic existence to increase my sperm count for my wife and the analysis. A good diet, no alcohol, no caffeine, and no masturbation has been the routine. I am also unable to “edge,” since I have found this practice to reduce my libido as well as testicle size, indicating a loss of sperm within the body cavity. Consequently, I find myself irritable but determined.
Weeks will tell whether my fertility has been impacted at all by diet and exercise.
Update: a third semen analysis revealed a 20x increase in sperm volume. I increased from thousands (~70,000) to millions (~4 million) of sperm per sample. Though this has not allowed me to regain fertility, which is likely lost for life, I did produce more and made an honorable effort for family.
