About a year and a half ago (maybe more) i discovered a lump on my left testicle, then later on another one on my right. Whenni was finally able to make it to the doctors he diagnosed it as a varicocele. The odd thing about my condition is that it would see to come and go, and i also had lower abdominal pain, which the doctor suggested my be a hernia. i was referred to a urologist and he said yes i have a varicole and that he saw no sign of a hernia. i also told him about further symptoms (i.e. testicular atrophy, sluggishness and low sex drive) but he said my testicles were a normal size and the other symptoms were too general, that i should check with my primary care physician. the point he kept dwelling on was the ab pain, and he suggested it might be interstitial cystitis. i declined any "surgery" or whatever you would call it to see if i had it, because it did not seem to match up. So what do you think? Can the pain come from the spermadic cord, which i heard someone say goes up in the ab region, and i have that pain because of the varicocele? and also the atrophy is caused by the varicocele (i dont know why they wont believe me, my testicles are definitely smaller!) ? so what should i do? and is atrophy reversible if you just let a varicocele run its course?? thanks everybody!!!!