After surgery patients next immediate concern is having a catheter for a very short time. After successfully getting through the surgery it really is something not to get to concerned with.

I had my catheter in for 11 days because of a holiday weekend at the end before my appointment to get it out. I went for my Cystogram the same morning I had my catheter out. The cystogram in effect is to check your seal of the reattached urethra to the bladder for leakage. The cystogram was fairly quick, your catheter stays in place, they have you drink and the radiologist and Doctor watch real time to see basically your surgery reattachment has no leakage. There is no pain to it. Then I went upstairs back to the Doctors office to get the catheter out. I needed to wait around 30 minutes for the Cystogram results to get ready and conveyed to the Dr’s office. I was scared thinking the removal of the catheter would be painful and remember worrying right up to getting onto the table and laying down and then suddenly the nurse says okay, and I asked was it out and she said yes, I never felt anything. Not knowing what my continence level would be and again concerned, I was well prepared when I went to get the catheter out. I had brought loose regular jockey briefs( I had always worn loose boxer briefs) to put on that I could place a mens pad inside like women do for their periods. I also brought a mens pull up diaper that I could use. I asked the nurse what I should use right now after the catheter came out going home and she said the diaper was probably the easiest and it was, I just stepped into it. Now not knowing what was going to be happening I switched to the loose jockey briefs and placed a mens pad inside. Then it was no longer loose. The larger jockey size was because once you put the pad inside , it became crunched against your jewels and a regular fitting brief would have crushed me. At night I did put on the diaper. Now all these precautions ended after two days when I definitely knew I was not leaking and I felt safe just returning to my regular boxer briefs.

Now while your catheter is in, just get a regular plastic size mop bucket that you can place your catheter in at night when you go to bed. It sits on the floor next to you in the bed. The catheter is sitting in the bucket on the carpet below your level in bed so it drains. I actually would just carry the bucket around the house with me going up and down the stairs and sit it down by me on the sofa. I actually never used the smaller catheter bag you could switch out. I always used the big bag even when I left the house. I would wear surfer like longer shorts or bermuda type shorts that dropped to your knee. I then had a plastic shopping bag like a trader joes, or something similar that I could place the catheter in that I carried. It just basically while outside anywhere it looked like I was carrying a shopping bag. When I went walking up and down the street it again looked like I was just carrying a bag. The catheter tube would just come out barely under my shorts by the knee and loop right down into the shopping bag. It was barely noticeable. Also take that shopping bag with you when you get discharged from the hospital with the catheter.
I just wanted to share this detailed post with anyone considering surgery as an option from my experience and what I believe are major considerations in choosing a surgeon.