LMFoster wrote:
Larry,
Good list.
To answer your last question, my suggestion would be "no". Fat chance though as it is perfectly normal to be anxious/nervous.
What helped me was doing research and asking questions. It may help you. Just be careful that the research you do is from reputable places and not people trying to scare you into buying something (extract of bat wing, magic crystals, etc.).
For getting back to work, my guess would be that the ileal conduit would be the quickest since it is the simplest surgery out of all of them. 75lbs is actually quite a lot though so I have no idea how long that would take. Is there any way you could get some sort of "restricted duty" type of thing at work so you could come back sooner but just be on limited lifting for a while? Consider it a limited time disability or something?
Can the folks who have had an ileal conduit chime in here with how long it took before they were comfortable lifting 75lbs?
I wouldn't worry so much about OR booking time. If they have complications and it takes longer, they just extend the time. They won't kick you out to come back and finish later.
Some people on this site mentioned much longer surgery times, even for an ileal conduit. However, the norm is less. Looks like your doc is allowing for some buffer just in case.
You should also ask your doc how much experience he has doing "nerve sparing" surgery when removing the prostate. This is quite important! You want LOTS of experience with that!!
Mike