Tail Bone Pain middle of the night

I am asking this question on behalf of my boyfriend. He is a 24 yr old male, generally healthy.

However since he was 7 years old, he has been awoken in the night by an unbearable pain he describes as located in the tailbone. I'm not sure if this could possibly be in the prostate, as it is more likely to happen if he had an erection while going to sleep, but didn't uh, use it.  Switching positions, ie to a fetal position, temporarily relieves pain, but only for moments, sometimes when he wakes up a few hours later it is still there, but usually by morning it is gone. It usually keeps him up for at least a few hours. Sometimes during the day he gets hit with it briefly, but changing positions makes it go away.

This is a long term issue, not related to any physical trauma that he/I is aware of. It has been going on for nearly 17 years, and is mostly random so we cannot pinpoint a cause.

Any suggestions as to what this possibly could be would be helpful to me. He will not talk about this to a doctor for fear of them feeling up his rear end.

[Shazia Alam, DO]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with your doctor.

Without the ability to obtain a history from you and examine you, I cannot comment on a formal diagnosis or treatment plan for your symptoms. However, I will try to provide you with some information regarding this matter.

His symptoms may be related to vascular congestion from his erection, which never resolves since he doesn't orgasm.  This is likely harmless, however I would still recommend having him speak to his primary care physician regarding this.  

Hope this information helps.