I have shared this story before but it was the start of everything, so here it is again. Sixteen years ago a friend at an airport told me I had a prostate problem I knew nothing about. No pain. No warning. Just thirty awkward seconds while we waited for a flight, and then we moved on. That short conversation is the reason I started paying attention, and the reason this community exists. I think about that a lot. I was the last to know about my own body. Most men are. We explain the early signs away. It is usually someone else who notices first and finds the nerve to say something. What bothers me most is I had an older boss at the time who actually complained of his prostate making him get up at night and keeping him tired during the day. It was only later after my friend pointed it out to me that I realized I had been getting up multiple times a night, even then - but I assumed it was normal ageing. I now know better. So here is what I want to ask you. Who noticed first for you - was it you, or was it someone who loves you? And if you are the one doing the noticing right now, what is stopping you from saying the thing? No wrong answers here. I would like to hear your stories. Alternatively, just speak out to someone you love and have that 30 second awkward conversation. That is all I really want. https://www.skool.com/prostate-paladin-4886/about

This question haunts me. In today's world, there is no reason not to know. I understand the older generation not wanting to talk about it. We came from a time when you did not talk about your business, your family, or anything really. Men were supposed to be an island, and women were the bedrock of the family. Men sixty and older did not talk about their prostates because anything below the belt might lead to an uncomfortable conversation. People might think you were less of a man to admit you had an issue "down there." It seems ridiculous now, but it was a fact of growing up in the 70s, 80s and 90s. Nobody really talked. If you were lucky enough to find someone to share your life with, then you could open up. Today everyone shares everything. Publicly, proudly. Nothing seems sacred. So why do men still not talk about the prostate? Why are there still stories about men diagnosed with a cancer they did not know they had and did not see coming? Here is the truth. I did not know I had a prostate issue either. Sixteen years ago a friend pointed it out to me at an airport. Without him, I might never have known to look. Early detection is the key to prostate cancer. Caught early, men survive and go on for decades. Do not be one of those men. Do not let yours be the family where the cancer spread because nobody knew. Get checked. Remove the doubt. So here is my question for you. Vote in the poll below, then put your reasons in the comments. That is where the real conversation starts. Why do you think the man in your life will not talk about his prostate?

Welcome Volker Schmidt @volker-schmidt-4553 Prostate Paladin helps men and their families to learn and talk about the prostate. Please check out the pinned posts and the quick guides in the Classroom - soon to be courses. Feel free to jump into the conversations and ask questions, or share what you are passionate about. Welcome to the community.

A team in Florida is working on a prostate cancer test that runs off a drop of urine and reads in under a minute. It is early days, with only 40 men in the first study, not in clinics yet, and it does not replace the PSA blood test we have now. I share it because so many of us put off getting checked partly because it all feels like a production. Booking it, the blood draw, the wait. Things like this chip away at that excuse. This will be so exciting once it becomes available So be honest with me: what is the thing that makes you drag your feet on getting checked? The hassle? The worry about the result? Something else? No judgement here - I dragged mine for years.

This community is about the prostate and how to raise awareness and knowledge about prostate issues. Half of the population has a prostate and the other half is related to them. But still nobody talks about it. Nobody is passing along the latest information that they heard about, that might just help their families, friends or neighbours. Why is that? I was fortunate that a friend at the airport, mentioned to me when they noticed a few drops on my pants. "he was very casual about it "Don't worry, it's related to your prostate, it happens to all of us as we get older" That was it, no drama, no shame, just a casual conversation. That was over 16 years ogo and it led me to start researching the prostate and learn what I could. Over time I realized nobody was talking about it and now, even though the prostate is everywhere online, nobody is talking about it. There are plenty of ads for supplements and for clinics that will offer you the latest surgery, but nobody just promoting conversation. True, there are support groups online that have emerged recently, so the signs are promising that the prostate will become mainstream. Right now I would put the prostate conversation where feminine products were in the 1970s, half of the population needed them, but nobody wanted to talk about it. That is where the prostate is now, yet again half of the population has one and nobody wants to talk about it. Currently I seem to start a prostate conversation almost everywhere that I go, so much so that my friends try to tamp down my enthusiasm when we meet, they have heard it all before. But I believe we need to talk about the prostate, to more often we do, the better off every man will be. So, I am genuinely interested how did you get the conversation started in your house? I know it is not a topic of casual conversation, and most men do not want to bring it up, but we do need to get past all that and bring the prostate out into the light. If you have a way that seems to work, please share it with us and we can all bennefit.