Getting ready for my prostate surgery
- Thread starter Archives1
- Start date
Archives1
Staff member
I would get some track pants (easy access for peeing, no unbuttoning required), lots of heavy mens incontinence pads (amazon brand or Depend), and make sure you have tighter boxers or boxer briefs (I like Saxx) for the pad to fit into. I'm sure others on here will have good suggestions. You may want to search the topics here too.
Best of luck!
Best of luck!
Archives1
Staff member
Depending on how large your prostate is, and how good the surgeon is, you may have incontinence or not.
The Kegel exercises are crucial to strenghten the pelvic floor muscles.
There are 2 sphincters that control the urine passage from the bladder.
The internal one, will be most likely removed with the prostate, which is the one that automatically closes the bladder and is involuntary. The external one works with voluntary muscles and this is the one that you mainly may have to use. Women only have an external one and that explain why they need to use the bathroom more frequently. Read about Kegel exercises or tell your doctor if you have time, to send you to a pelvic floor physical therapist. Very important to learn about these exercises before the surgery.
The Kegel exercises are crucial to strenghten the pelvic floor muscles.
There are 2 sphincters that control the urine passage from the bladder.
The internal one, will be most likely removed with the prostate, which is the one that automatically closes the bladder and is involuntary. The external one works with voluntary muscles and this is the one that you mainly may have to use. Women only have an external one and that explain why they need to use the bathroom more frequently. Read about Kegel exercises or tell your doctor if you have time, to send you to a pelvic floor physical therapist. Very important to learn about these exercises before the surgery.
Archives1
Staff member
I'll recommend bringing pad(s) with you when the catheter is removed. The leaking was immediate. The doctor's office had no pads. I used paper towels in my underwear until getting home. They could have told me before the appt. Maybe your DR is better prepared but just in case, be ready.
Archives1
Staff member
I would get at least one package of Depends pullups, so you’ll have one of those to get you home after the catheter is removed. It’s fairly likely that you'll need these for weeks or months. At some point you can transition to pads that are worn inside briefs. There are pads for large surges and lighter duty pads. You'll know which is needed. Some guys regain continence quickly, and others more slowly. I hope your recovery goes well. If you have additional questions later on, this is a good place to come.
Archives1
Staff member
I wouldn't be buying anything until you'll see how bad or not at all incontinence is. I know guys who had robotic surgery done and after catheter removal had very little leaking which went away after few days. I didn't expect much leakage at all and boy oh boy oh boy... Niagara Falls .. however my surgery was done the old fashion way so here I am leaking like crazy but it was not a problem getting stuff I needed when it became apparent that incontinence will be with me for a while.
Archives1
Staff member
Everyone is different but you’ll probably experience quite bad incontinence on removal of the catheter for several weeks. You have probably been told all of this but it’s easy to get quite depressed. Make sure you’re doing the Kegel exercises 3 times a day and the incontinence should gradually start to improve but it’s still going to take several months. I started off with a full pull up nappy with a pad inside it. After a few weeks I switched to tight boxers with a pad inside. I’m now 8 weeks post op and I’m dry at night and when sitting around not doing much. I’m also relatively dry cycling but walking or golfing i do get a bit of leakage and generally wear a thick pad which I might have to change half way round if I can’t get to a toilet to empty my bladder.
Keep up the Kegels buy plenty thick and medium pads.
Keep up the Kegels buy plenty thick and medium pads.
Archives1
Staff member
Just curious as to others experience. I am 6 weeks from Catheter removal. 7 weeks from surgery. I still soak through 6-8 pads a day and 2 diapers per night. My Dr says this is normal. I do have a very strong stream when I get up to pee at night, but during the day time I have very weak streams or just dribbles and then I leak in the pads. I do all my Kegels from PT religiously, walk 4 miles per day and cut out all caffeine and alcohol. My Dr said that since I do at times have a solid stream, I am okay and simply need more time to heal. He thinks I need about 10-12 more weeks to stop the incontinence. I was never told it could take this long and wondering about others experiences.
Archives1
Staff member
@VAC55 as insurance you should get mattress pad for incontinence for the off chance you have an accident at night. Get some incontinence pads for your the chair you sit in while watching tv. Some wipes for quick cleanups between changes of depends. Be patient with your recovery. Allow people to help you and be grateful for them. It can be slow recovery and I don’t think the majority bounce right back. But it gets better week by week. Good luck in your journey. We will all be here to help you along the way.
Archives1
Staff member
Everyone's advice is great, and if you're one of the lucky guys, you'll dry up quickly and your initial supply of pads will likely be fine. But if you're like me, and many other guys here, you'll leak longer than the doctor predicted in the surgical consultation. I'm 15 months out from surgery and can finally say, I see that light at the end of the tunnel. Along the way (if you do go longer than the lucky guys) I found two additional supplies very helpful. First is a penis clamp (found online). In the early recovery days, I was leaking while drying myself off after a shower and that caused issues. Being in a bathing suit was problematic too. The clamp gave me the security I needed in those times. Second, I got my doctor to prescribe condom catheters. I'm on Medicare which covers the cost, and they are so much better than Depends if I know I'll be out for long periods of time, such as travelling or hiking or 18 holes of golf. The bags are concealable; they even have one that fits under shorts. Yes, they need emptying but I could go two hours easily before they filled up. And I wasn't walking around in wetness. Good luck.
Archives1
Staff member
I used Depends underware with Depends Fresh Protection Guard inside the Depends underware. Worked well for me. Was replacing the guard 4-5 time a day and the underware 1-2 times a day for the first couple weeks. Now, a month after catheter removal down to 1 Depends underware and 1-2 guards per day. It was a very depressing/discouraging couple of weeks after catheter removal but I have noticed a slow, but definite continued improvement over the past couple weeks.
Archives1
Staff member
When they removed the catheter 10 days after the surgery I started leaking when I got up from the bed and it kept leaking as I walked down the hall…thank vid I had thick pads but I went into the first unlocked bathroom(it was the third one) to change the pad! I had brought extras… phew!
Scared the heck out of me for 2 days but after 2 days it started to get better. Now after 5 months I still wear pads and leak infrequently . I will keep wearing the pads until I am sure leaking has stopped!
I have been doing Kegel exercises since they removed the catheter!
Wish I had known in advance what the first few days might be like and it freaked me out but Iwo am way more relaxed about it all!
Scared the heck out of me for 2 days but after 2 days it started to get better. Now after 5 months I still wear pads and leak infrequently . I will keep wearing the pads until I am sure leaking has stopped!
I have been doing Kegel exercises since they removed the catheter!
Wish I had known in advance what the first few days might be like and it freaked me out but Iwo am way more relaxed about it all!
Archives1
Staff member
@VAC55
Get in touch with Northshore Care. clickable text
They are great and will send you a lot of samples to try out for free. That way you can find what works for you.
You might be good with one thing at home but want something better when you venture out.
Get in touch with Northshore Care. clickable text
They are great and will send you a lot of samples to try out for free. That way you can find what works for you.
You might be good with one thing at home but want something better when you venture out.
Archives1
Staff member
A few men ae continent after the catheter is removed but this is quite rare and should never be the expectation. For men who regain continence three to six months is quite common but improvements can be seen for up to one year or in some cases even two years. 80% will regain continence pretty well but for 20% incontinence will be an ongoing issue. The medical profession says this is usually "very manageable with pads" but for 5/6% surgery may be considered eg sling or artificial sphincter. I would make preparation with pull ups and pads eg Tena Level 3. As improvement hopefully takes place you can drop to lighter pads. It took me three months to be dry at night and I am in the 20% rather than the 80% during the day. If I am fairly sedentary light pads will suffice but if I am active all day I need much more extensive protection. I sometimes use the Coloplast Active external catheter and leg bag and have got used to it when required. A lot of men on this forum discuss the various pad options but for those very long active days I refer the external catheter. The skin is completely dry and accidents are much less likely as pads are not always easy to position correctly. In a recent article in a nursing magazine 69% of men preferred the external catheter to pads. Hopefully you will be in the group that recovers well. It is worth bearing in mind that the statistics quoted by medical centres in relation to continence refer to social continence, meaning one pad per day so the 80% figure may not mean total dryness.
Archives1
Staff member
That never seems to work right
www.pcf.org
https://www.pcf.org/c/long-wet-road-back-normal text[/url
The Long, Wet Road Back to Normal
Incontinence after radical prostatectomy sucks. But for nearly all men, it goes away. For the very small percentage in whom it doesn’t, there is help.
Archives1
Staff member
If you have a Costco account go there and purchase the Depends men’s adult diapers and go to Walmart and purchase men’s pads. Wear these for awhile until you strengthen you pelvic floor muscles from doing Kegels. It may be awhile before you can transition to underwear with a pad. Make certain you wear the diaper to the catheter removal and bring a pad or two with you. You will need them as you will leak a lot. It’s normal. See if your doctor can send you to a pelvic floor physical therapist as soon as you heal and can do normal activity. That make a huge difference knowing what exercises to do along with Kegels.
Archives1
Staff member
Good luck in your long recovery, unless you are one of the incredible minority that are magically lucky. Your age - is a major recovery factor as well as prior physical symptoms and condition - you didn’t state it. I have questioned statistical descriptions from members of this forum and where they obtain them, particularly about how many guys actually become totally continent as before their RP. Regardless of the self-selection process of members of this forum, who struggle with their new lives, few have stated they are totally continent. Many seek interventions to help with their incontinence. I’ve also questioned where docs get the stats given to patients before and after their RP, as docs and patients move, die, or move on to other urologists. So how reliable are the stats they provide or we find on the web. Anyway, you’ve got lots of information and fellow guides who can speak from actual experiences. Give yourself time.
You must log in or register to post here.
