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DeCath day and 1st night without the catheter
Ya know, I had just figured out how to do the whole catheter thing without being completely awkward. Then, they yank it away from me. Come on dudes.
You know the catheter whoops routines - walking away from the cath bucket and getting yanked back by your leash. Can't tell you how many times I tipped over the bucket while trying to reach something. Or, how about setting the cath bucket on the ground with a little drop and feeling the vibrations quiver up the tube up through your penis into your body.
There’s the dropping the cell phone on your lap and yep, vibrations of the very wrong kind. Ouch. Or, the special joy of your leg bag getting way too full during a nap and the intense pressure you feel of having to pee but there’s no where for it to go.
Then there’s weird things..I had accidentally done a kegel while readjusting in the chair. Such a weird feeling because I could feel the entire length of the tube in my body. Yowza.
Got the leg bag emptying routine down to so easy….pull up the cuff of my sweat pants, put my foot on the toilet seat and flip the switch and it was almost like regular peeing. Heck, I even fully figured out the complicated overnight cath bag double-valve system, which was way more complicated than it should ever have been.
But, yesterday was decath day. My wife doesn’t normally do the driving during morning rush-hour traffic and our GPS was in re-route to avoid hazards crazy mode….so she was getting super stressed. Simultaneously, I realized after the three hour drive, my leg bag was now super full and feeling some intense pressure. I was like, I need to empty it, but the stop and go traffic with sudden lurches made that a dicey proposition. We got there just in time, quick pit stop and then off to see the nurse.
I knew it would be quick and not dramatic. Candidly, pulling off the cath hose leg mount sticker was the most painful part. I’m not that hairy, but I’m whole lot less hairy over that patch area now.
I do admit, when the nurse deflated the cath inner bulb and then pulled the stretch of tube out, it wasn’t big drama. But, boy, did it feel different….and it felt like it was three feet of tubing getting pulled out. Such a weird feeling as you your entire urethra is lit up at the same time.
Next phase: pullups/pad time. Early report; Dribble, dribble, dribble. Yep, saturating a pad every two hours throughout the first day. I did do an actual intentional stand-up pee, later in the day, so consider that a victory.
I knew from all of you that I’d be waking up through the night. So, I slept in the bed for the first time instead of the recliner to be closer to the bathroom. Well, wasn’t really ready for that…my abs are still sore and sleeping on the back is the only option. Getting out of be is log roll time and does put a lot of pressure on my midsection. So, rough night.
I woke up about every 60-90 minutes throughout the night feeling incredibly strong pressure in my bladder….do an awkward log roll and rush to the restroom. The good news is that most times during the night, I was peeing a fairly good stream for a short while standing up. But, yeah, dribble, dribble after that. However, my last pad of the night was mostly dry an hour later.
Note: The Tena overnight pads are impressive...definitely brought me a lot of peace of mind. I wore them in a pull-up brief.
We’ll see what today brings.
One weird thing; my belly is huge and distended. I got on the scale expecting to have that standard 10-15 pounds of fluid weight gain. I’ve actually dropped at least five pounds in the past week. Makes no sense.
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Congrats on making it over the latest hurdle, and your pad report may bode well for a quicker recovery of continence.
Your leg bag travails make me glad I just stuck with the full-sized overnight bag the whole time (on the recommendation of one of the nurses) - no buckets or smaller bags to contend with. I had multiple places around the house situated where I could hang it when needed.
I spent maybe three nights in the recliner. First night was actually really comfy, and it sort of cradled me and kept me from flopping around, which is my wont normally. However, the second and third nights were less so, and the catheter leaked horribly (rather, I leaked after the tubing got pulled a little), so I moved to the guest bed the rest of the time and it was ok.
The trip home after having it removed wasn’t as bad as I expected, but I peed a lot…I mean *a lot*, and it was a 70-minute interstate drive, with another 30 minutes for a grocery store stop to get more pads and briefs…I must have gone through five pads just during that time.
Looking forward to your upcoming reports!
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2 ReactionsWell-we're on similar trajectories-healing here we come.
I did like the leg bag for the freedom it gave me, but yeah, limitations for sure. I actually kept the overnight bag in a black plastic bucket to carry around just as a contain any leaks and offered a little easier handle while walking.
Recliner: I"m going back to it for tonight. Hoping it makes tonight a little more manageable getting up and down.
Not sure whether to order a ton of heavy pads or wait it out a few more days at the level I'm going. I was going through a "maximum" Tena pad every two hours yesterday....but think it's slowing down a bit today. We'll see...
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4 ReactionsHi,
I would go with the heavy pads until your bladder tells you to go to a lighter pad. Could be weeks or months, each case is different. Hope you have good improvement soon, do you pelvic floor and Kegals.
Dave 3+4
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2 Reactions@clevelandguy Yeah, lighter pads definitely not in play. Daytime has been much more manageable...having to less often and generally getting to the bathroom to pee before a lot of leakage. But, any time I"m up and down, there it goes. Hoping tonight I can get a little more sleep.
I need to read up on Pelvic floor exercises beyond kegels. Any advice on pelvic floor exercises???
Hi,
I would contact your doctor for a referral to a therapist. There are also various internet resources, just make sure the are from a trusted source.
Dave 3+4
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1 ReactionOmg, you and I are having the same occurrence's, lol. I had my catheter taken out on April 21st, and yes, it definitely had a feeling ive never experienced before, and it felt at least a foot of tubing was pulled out. I tried the first night after it was removed to sleep in the bed, but had the same issues you had, and still in the recliner to this day. I too get up at least two times, and have to pee a lot. I still wake up sometimes, it feels like bladder spasms, but goes away when emptying. I also wake up with gas cramps, or it feels like i need to have a BM, but nothing, so i put it up to the new norm until i completely heal. I use pads when i sleep and when i go to work, and i have my good and bad days. I can stand up and hold it in, but after that first step, dribble dribble. Other times i can hold it all the way to the bathroom, so im hoping thats a sign of better days to come. I guess the only other thing that feels different, is when i urinate, it does have a burning sensation deep inside, but not the kind of burning if it was irritated, if that makes sense. I just think it might be the pressure being released from a very full bladder. I do think im peeing a lot more after surgery than I did before surgery, but since we dont have a prostate anymore, we dont havt that working as a valve anymore, so its just freely to release when it wants. We are on our way my friend.
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2 Reactions@clevelandguy Good advice-thanks! Last night was better....only had to rush to every two hours last night....so hoping that onset of intense pressure to pee gets less urgent.
@mpersonne Holy smokes-your cath came out the day I was having surgery....so you're a week ahead of me. And your description of everything-that is EXACTLY what I'm feeling. You must be my long lost twin! Hang in there-hoping we both move through this phase before too awfully long.
The challenging thing is that when I have that strong pressure to pee...I can hold until I get to the toilet, but as soon as the toilet lid is up I start going even if I haven't got my pants all the way pulled down. Come on bladder-give me one more second....before that unstoppable flow gets going.
Hoping the drip, drip, drip isn't a life-long thing....but I guess if I started to get used to the annoyance of the catheter routine, I have no choice but to adapt.
And, yes, it's definitely a deep ache sort of sensation.
Hang in there!
@fritzo The worst was sitting on the toilet trying to have a BM, and i have blood and urine leaking onto the floor from the catheter. I think sitting on the toilet with catheter was the most painful. I did have an issue where they pulled my drain out, and it leaked for days. I finally took a tip on a person on here, and after taking a shower, i would use a blow dryer at low heat, and dry the area, so it would scab up. So far im doing good, and pretty much pain free, except some deep dull pains if i move awkwardly, but other than that, we are going to be good brother. Kepp me posted on your recovery, or ask me anything since im a week ahead..
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1 Reaction@fritzo Hi,
I would hope as the weeks turn into months you will see an improvement.
Dave 3+4
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