-
rc post surgery questions
I am 3 weeks post RC & neobladder & have been having severe back ache which may be due to my ureteric stent. The pain at times is worse than the immediate post op pain in my incision. Has anyone had a similar experience? I am having my catheter removed in 2 days & hopefully will have some relief!
I am also having problems with frequent & loose bowel movements. Any advice regarding diet?
Thank you. -
18 Replies
-
Hi newbladder…so glad you are feeling better…..I also lost 25 lbs i really couldn’t afford to lose and it actually took me about a year to regain 20 of it but i admit i had a lot of fun with hot fudge sundae’s and Starbucks 6 pump mocha’s..thats gotta be 2000 calories………Pat
-
HK,
I lost 51 pounds but needed to loose 30, one thing that helped me was my favorite ice cream. When I had no desire to eat food I did enjoy a bowl of ice cream which gave me energy and helped a little to keep all of my weight from falling off. The leakage will continue to get better, I am 18 weeks post surgery and I will leak at night if I sleep more than 5 hours without going or if I sneeze unexpectly during the day. Keep your head up you are down hill from here!
Dale
-
Today is 4 weeks since my surgery & I am doing quite well. Getting used to programmed peeing.I am feeling stronger with each day & looking forward to some normality in my life. Still leaking, more so when I get tired & at night. I am eating more & seem to have regained my appetite although have not gained any weight. I have lost almost 25LBS since surgery & did not have much to lose! any advice on diet would be appreciated,
Thanks for all your support.
HK -
Thanks for asking. I took a week off to go to Vegas, Just me got tired of watching the snow melt. Had a great time. I set a timer for 4 hours then back to bed no pads or leaks in a month now. I almost always wake up without the alarm. Geting up once a night is a cake walk compared to before RC. ;)Don
Hanging in there!
Don,
I am 17 weeks post-surgery and I still have the same problems as you with the bowel and leakage! If I have not gone to pee in a few hours and sneeze or pass gas I will leak a little but the pad I wear catches it. My bigger problem is at night when I am tired I will sleep for 6 hours and have wet myself pretty bad, so if I know this could happen I put on the old Depends and sleep like a baby.
I hope you are doing well as I have heard from you in a couple of weeks.
Dale
Houston, TXThats great newbladder that you have a good team at home. The team at Memorial is awesome. Make sure you get up and move around in the plane on the trip home…wiggle your toes and such..keep that circulation going in the legs…..Pat
AS far as the back pain goes. I had left lower back pain 1 week after surgery. They said the kidney fungtion was down on the left side. They got that fixed up. And no pain since. I also have have had issues with the poop shut not working as I woild like. But it is slowly geting there. I am 13 weeks post op. But the urine leakige was under control very qiuicly. Just the slight leak when I need to pass gas. If I havent went to bathroom to empty new blader recently. Don
Hanging in there!
Newbladder,
You will be fine and if you are like me you are no longer bashful in any situation and modesty is gone forever after having so many people see you naked at least from the waist down. What works best for me is the large daytime pads and if needed Depends at night or the large pad, at first I felt ashamed but then I told myself I had to learn to pee again just like a baby and so I have been working on it. When at home I do not wear a pad but at work I do because if I get stuck in a long meeting and do not go to the bathroom I can squirt on myself. The worst problem I have had is with the bowel, it is getting better with the help of Metamucil tablets and I hope some day to be normal on that end as well, but the first 8 to 10 weeks was tough. Just take it slow and don’t be ashamed to wear pads or Depends because like a baby you will get out of both!
Dale
17 weeks post-surgery
Dr. Seth Lerner – Baylor Coolege of Medicine
Houston, TX
Hi Pat,
I have a local urologist who will take care of any problems & will communicate with my surgeon at Sloan Kettering. When I did my original research on RC I was unable to find anyone in Atlanta who did more than a few cases a year. For many reasons I can’t stay in NY any longer. I have been here almost a month!good luck Newbladder with the trip home. May i ask .. do you have a urology team to follow up in the Atlanta area when you get home? Pat
Dale50,
Thanks for your encouraging words. I have some concerns about my flight back to Atlanta on Wed. We have purchased a whole range of incontinence products & will be “experimenting” with them today & tomorrow to see which is best.
The leaking will get better every day as you learnhow to control the new bladder, I am 14 weeks since starting to use my new bladder and still wear a pad in the day. If I have not gone to the bathroom in a couple of hours and sneeze then I will still leak, also if I am real tired at night I will sleep for 5 or 6 hours and can wet the pad but as long as I get up every 4 hours or so I am just fine. One of the best days of my life was the three week mark when they removed my catheter, actually my home nurse did it in my shower and the extra 2 foot of string attached to my stint was the worst part. Your life will get better now and you will learn to control the leakage, I fly all over the world now and never worry about accidents.
Dale
Thank you to all you wonderful, caring people who have replied to my questions. It is reassuring to know others have been through this.
I had my catheter & stents removed today & feel liberated! I am still having back pain which my doctor thinks is from muscle. Although I am leaking constantly, I have been able to “empty” my new bladder each time I have tried. I am going home to Atlanta on Wed. after being in NYC for over 3 weeks & am counting the hours!
[quote author=newbladder link=topic=1969.msg14746#msg14746 date=1206240431]
I am 3 weeks post RC & neobladder & have been having severe back ache which may be due to my ureteric stent.[/quote]
Remember that quote about a man who is his own lawyer having a fool for a client?
Not to offend, but a man who is his doctor is even worse. I know–I put myself back in the hospital (a week after getting home from my RC) and almost died on our livingroom floor because I was bleeding out so rapidly and ignored the early symptoms. I “misdiagnosed” myself.
Please call your doctor and get clarity on your pain. You should not be having severe pain without your doctor knowing about it right away.
As far as the loose stools, I asked my doctor that very question on my six-month followup. He said that it may take as long as two years for some people for get back to normal–fortunately in my case things are considerably better now (21 months later), but you’re going to have to be patient. Some days will be fine, and others less so, but in time you’ll be back to (almost) normal.
Zach
“Standing on my Head”––my chemo journal
T3a Grade 4 N+M0
RC at USC/Norris June 23, 2006 by Dr. John Stein
I had this type of pain when my catheter was not draining properly, once it was cleared of kinks and my system drained the pain would go away in time with the help of pain pills. Unless you check regularly the tube can kink and you will not know it but if this continues check with you doctor.
Dale
17 weeks post surgery
Sign In to reply.
