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Ileostomy surgery last week, now I can't empty my bladder.

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Posted 10/1/2014 12:30 AM (GMT 0)
I had surgery a week ago, last Monday for my severe UC. I have an end ileostomy with my rectum removed. Everything with the ileo has gone great and I’m handling it well. I have very little pain. The surgery did end up lasting around 10 hours.

The only problem I’m having is that I can’t empty my bladder. I was sent home from the hospital with a foley catheter and saw the urologist today. Apparently this is more common than I’d realized. He explained that it sometimes it takes a while for everything down there to wake back up.

Anybody else have this issue?
Posted 10/1/2014 2:54 AM (GMT 0)
Are you having trouble emptying your bladder in the sense that it is more of a struggle and takes more effort than usual? Or you just can't seem to pee at all?

My catheter was removed after my first surgery around day 3 or 4 post op, and I ended up having a bladder infection. It definitely took more of an effort to pee for a few weeks after, and often felt like my urethra wasn't such a straight shot anymore, but I could never not pee when I had to.

If you saw the urologist today though and they weren't too concerned I wouldn't be worried about it.
Posted 10/1/2014 2:07 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the reply Ryan.

Yeah, I can't pee at all. My bladder fills and then very little comes out. Actually both my urologist and my surgeon both aren't too concerned about it because after pelvic surgery the bladder can be slow to wake up. After all the years of UC I guess I'm just impatient to get back to living my life.
Posted 10/1/2014 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
I had this happen too after my second step but my issue was I had an abscess develop in my pelvic area and it was so large it was pushing on my bladder making me feel like I had to go but not letting anything come out. I had a fever though and felt sick so that's what made me go in and get checked out.

What your experiencing sounds like your bladder is just having a tough time waking back up. Some people are really sensitive to anesthesia and it takes a bit to get all out of the system.
Posted 10/1/2014 6:42 PM (GMT 0)
Glad to hear that the surgery went well and the GI aspects and pain levels are good!! As far as the bladder, you did just have a HUGE surgery, major shock to the body, and it will take time for everything to settle down and start working right again. Good that you saw the urologist, and like others said, if they aren't too concerned, try not to worry too much. Just keep taking good care of you and keep your docs up to date with what's going on and/or if things change.

I'm sure you are ready to get on with your life, and not being in much pain makes it harder to just sit back and take it easy to let things heal, but you've got to do that. Try to be patient, give yourself a chance to recover and don't rush it. Easier said than done!!

Happy Healing!
Posted 10/2/2014 3:55 AM (GMT 0)
I had a lot of discomfort with urination when my rectum was removed. It took many weeks for the pains and pressure to go away, but it was still passing urine. If your doctors aren't concerned, try to give it more time.
Posted 10/2/2014 12:06 PM (GMT 0)
It's not unusual. My bladder was always slow to come back online after surgery, though I avoided re-catheterization. There's a woman on the j-pouch boards who needed to catheterize for a couple of months after surgery, and then everything just went back to normal on its own. I doubt it will take that long for you, but the point is that it really can go back to normal even if it's "off" for a while :)
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