Its been two weeks now since I had my operation, or procedure, as it's now called to remove my troublesome prostate gland so here's an update on my recovery progress. They reckon its quite a major operation so I'm happy that I haven't so far suffered any great pain, and I haven't needed any pain killers for well over a week. I eventually had a visit from the District nurse last Thursday, a week ago today, and she removed my staples. Yes, staples, I had been stapled back together, whatever happened to stitches. Anyway she had a look and said they're ready to come out, I'll do it now. I think I had about a dozen or so in three incisions, some came out easily, but others were a bit more stubborn. In the end it was no more painful than having the hairs on my nose plucked, a quick wince but in five minutes they were all gone.
Now one of the embarrassing bits about this operation is that in the aftermath your fitted with a catheter. It's a very alien thing at first and takes a bit of getting used to. Having a plastic bag strapped to your leg that fills up every couple of hours and needs decanting into the loo is at first a bit gross, but soon enough it just becomes something you've got to do. You can't leave it too long or it gets too heavy and is likely to drop down your leg which you really don't want because it will yank the tube coming out of your bits. Ouch! so you tend to only have that happen once, and after that you make sure you keep an eye on the contents of your bag and empty on a regular basis. At night is also a palava, having to connect up an additional night bag to your leg bag and of course somehow make sure you don't roll over in your sleep dragging the bag stand over for another ouch! moment in the middle of the night. You soon come to realise that plumbing is all about levels if you want stuff to flow the way it should flow.
So back to my district nurse who suggested that I may like to swap my bags for a much simpler go-flo job. She made an appointment for me that afternoon at the health centre to have a new system fitted. As I seemed quite able to get about I was given a much simpler bit of kit. This is simply a small plastic tube with a shut off valve worked by a little lever that slots into the end of my bit of rubber tubing and is strapped to my leg with a velcro band. So now instead of my wee just draining into a bag it stays in my bladder until I get the urge to pee. I then just go to the loo, open the valve and hey presto, it works a bit like normal. This is so much better and seemingly it will keep my bladder from getting lazy so that when they take the catheter out I'll get back to normality much quicker.
There's only one strange thing that happens with this system that seems weird and I don't know if it's normal. Just a second or so before I've completely emptied my bladder I get a sharp stinging sensation at the end of my bits. It's a bit like the sort of sensation you get when you test a battery with your tongue to see if it's dead. It only lasts an instant, and I don't have an explanation as to why it should happen, but it happens every single time I go to the loo. It's no big thing but the anticipation of it makes loo time an apprehensive affair. I don't know if urine is some sort of elecrolite, and the movement of it through the tubing causes some residual current to be set up or what, but it's very odd, and sometimes elicits a sharp intake of breath. Next tuesday I go in to Furness general to have this gubbins removed which I'm not looking forward too, but it will be good to get back to using my original body parts for doing what comes natural.
I'm still a bit uncomfortable around my midriff, where they went in, but that's slowly getting less and less noticeable. My main bit of discomfort is when I sit for a while in a hard chair, which puts pressure on the area where my prostate used to be. I suppose this will be the bit that takes the longest to heal up. But on the whole I'm doing alright, I've been out for a walk round Gill banks, and even went in to Ford Park for a morning on Tuesday so I'm on the mend. If the weather was better I'm sure I would be out and about more. As it is the weather has been pretty awful so I don't feel too bad about being stuck at home, although sometimes filling the days can take a slow turn, but on the whole I seem to fill them. Writing, practicing my guitar, or reading the voyages of Capt. Cook has passed the time productively. This afternoon I think I will get out my watercolours a do a bit of painting whilst the storm blows over outside.
Now one of the embarrassing bits about this operation is that in the aftermath your fitted with a catheter. It's a very alien thing at first and takes a bit of getting used to. Having a plastic bag strapped to your leg that fills up every couple of hours and needs decanting into the loo is at first a bit gross, but soon enough it just becomes something you've got to do. You can't leave it too long or it gets too heavy and is likely to drop down your leg which you really don't want because it will yank the tube coming out of your bits. Ouch! so you tend to only have that happen once, and after that you make sure you keep an eye on the contents of your bag and empty on a regular basis. At night is also a palava, having to connect up an additional night bag to your leg bag and of course somehow make sure you don't roll over in your sleep dragging the bag stand over for another ouch! moment in the middle of the night. You soon come to realise that plumbing is all about levels if you want stuff to flow the way it should flow.
So back to my district nurse who suggested that I may like to swap my bags for a much simpler go-flo job. She made an appointment for me that afternoon at the health centre to have a new system fitted. As I seemed quite able to get about I was given a much simpler bit of kit. This is simply a small plastic tube with a shut off valve worked by a little lever that slots into the end of my bit of rubber tubing and is strapped to my leg with a velcro band. So now instead of my wee just draining into a bag it stays in my bladder until I get the urge to pee. I then just go to the loo, open the valve and hey presto, it works a bit like normal. This is so much better and seemingly it will keep my bladder from getting lazy so that when they take the catheter out I'll get back to normality much quicker.
There's only one strange thing that happens with this system that seems weird and I don't know if it's normal. Just a second or so before I've completely emptied my bladder I get a sharp stinging sensation at the end of my bits. It's a bit like the sort of sensation you get when you test a battery with your tongue to see if it's dead. It only lasts an instant, and I don't have an explanation as to why it should happen, but it happens every single time I go to the loo. It's no big thing but the anticipation of it makes loo time an apprehensive affair. I don't know if urine is some sort of elecrolite, and the movement of it through the tubing causes some residual current to be set up or what, but it's very odd, and sometimes elicits a sharp intake of breath. Next tuesday I go in to Furness general to have this gubbins removed which I'm not looking forward too, but it will be good to get back to using my original body parts for doing what comes natural.
I'm still a bit uncomfortable around my midriff, where they went in, but that's slowly getting less and less noticeable. My main bit of discomfort is when I sit for a while in a hard chair, which puts pressure on the area where my prostate used to be. I suppose this will be the bit that takes the longest to heal up. But on the whole I'm doing alright, I've been out for a walk round Gill banks, and even went in to Ford Park for a morning on Tuesday so I'm on the mend. If the weather was better I'm sure I would be out and about more. As it is the weather has been pretty awful so I don't feel too bad about being stuck at home, although sometimes filling the days can take a slow turn, but on the whole I seem to fill them. Writing, practicing my guitar, or reading the voyages of Capt. Cook has passed the time productively. This afternoon I think I will get out my watercolours a do a bit of painting whilst the storm blows over outside.
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