Back from the hospital too

First, congrats Jazzman. Sound like you did well.
I was under the knife until 1:15 PM yesterday. Got home today at 2:30 PM today. It was a LRP, no robot, at Sloan Kettering. The surgery lasted 5 hours. He was able to save both nerve bundles. I feel lucky that I didn't have many of the problems I have read about here. No shoulder pain from the gas, no swollen or red testicles or any complications so far. The catheda is painful though and I am still very bloated with gas. I'm taking vicoden. I'm doing a lot of walking. It helps a little. My wife was great during this whole episode. I couldn't have gotten through it without her. The staff at Sloan were terrific. It was like a hotel. You even ordered your food from room service.The car ride home was tough. I felt every bump.
Many of the tips I read on this site have been very helpful. Shaving my thighs, bringing oversize underwear and sweat pants, getting an oval bucket for the bag. Plus no surprises having read so many posts. Thanks to all of you for sharing.
When I got home I packed up an order for my business. My wife dropped it off to UPS. May be a world record for returning to work 25 hours after surgery.

rick, congratulations on getting to the other side, the recovery side, hope it continues well for you

Welcome to the other side Rick.

Thank heavens for Vicodan.

Just give your body time to recover.

Congratulation Rick, glad you had a good experience with the surgery. WE are now waiting for your application to the zero club.

Thanks all! I am taking it easy. Walking is the only physical activity. Great to get this part over with. Catheda removal scheduled for day 8.

Rick - I'm about a week ahead of you. Listen to your body and move slowly. You'll find greater strength each day.

Rick,

The only thing the doctor could have told you was how the overall surgery went, and if he actually saw anything worrisome. The pathology report takes a few days to a week to come back, and the doctor should discuss it with you in a follow-up, likely when they take out the catheter. Remember to ASK FOR A COPY. You will want this for you files, and to help you - rereading it as you learn the new terminology should give you more information each time. If you have not gotten a printed copy of your biopsy report, get that as well. I did some comparison of the reports trying to make sense of them.

I was told that while in the shower for the first several weeks to NOT allow direct water pressure from the showerhead on the sutures - just use a sponge or cloth to squeeze water to run over them. No scrubbing at all. Pat dry only. I was given some large waterproof panel bandages with adhesive edges to put over the JP drain port and nearby DaVinci incisions while showering. They are use and trash. I also put a little Polysporin on the fresh bandages when needed, but for everything but the JP drain, I just put enough bandage on them to prevent clothing from touching them. The doctor did not want the JP drain port to get wet at all, and did not want me changing that bandage unless really needed.

The Polysporin was preferred by the doctor over the Triple-antibiotics. He didn't explain, but I have had the same advice from a dermatologist who removed some skin lesions. 

rick27 said...
Day 3 and no bowel movement. I'm so bloated I was trying not to eat too much. I don't get hungry pangs like before. I suddenly had low blood sugar and almost passed out. Now I'm scheduling my eating just like I schedule my meds. This is a learning process.

I experienced the very same thing last week during my first few post surgery days. I was very hungry after two days of liquids. Had a bowel movement later in the second day and was allowed solid food, which tasted great. Went about three days feeling more and more bloated. Stool softeners twice daily and finally broke down and took some milk of magnesia, which did the trick. I am on day 9 now and still do not have complete regularity, but it's much better.

Hang in there Rick, it gets better.

I am going to have surgery in the near fyture. What is the plastic bucket for and the leg around the tape. Also where can I find all the info on surgery that you have found? thanks in advance

Anx,

Check the first posts at the top of the forum. There is one with collected tips and ideas about getting ready.

The bucket started as an idea for holding the catheter bag at night. I had read on another forum that a lady had put a bent coat hanger between the mattress and box springs of the bed to hang the catheter bag on. That was not practical for me, so I used a 14 liter work bucket (very barrel shaped, so that it does not turn over easily).

You put the bucket by the bed, and hang the big/night bag over the lip of the bucket. The bag will most likely have two plastic hooks at the top. This accomplishes several things - the bag is low enough that you drain; the valve is upright, so it does not clog as easily; if the drain of the bag comes open (it will happen) the urine stays in the bucket, not on your floor/carpet.

Since I never used the leg bag (stayed on the big bag to avoid changing, and risk of urinary tract infection), I also used the bucket while sitting at my computer desk.

The catheter tube should be fixed to the inside of your leg to keep it from pulling. The hospital gave me some tape-based pads to clip it to, but with some pretty ugly bladder spasms, the tape was being constantly dissolved by the urine. I dug around in the medicine cabinet, and tried "sensitive" tape. That fell apart too. Finally came up with what is labeled "Coach Tape" by J&J, and "Tender Tape" by Walgreens. This is a stretch tape, like an elastic bandage, that interlocks, so you don't need the metal clips. I put one turn under the catheter tube "Y", and one above. It holds the tube in place, can get wet and be rinsed out (once, maybe twice), and doesn't tear the skin off your leg.

 

You may want to put a suction hook in the shower down by your knee. that helped me alot and kept the floor dry for the ten days I had the bag.

Rick,  Sounds like you are doing well.  If you are taking the pain killers you better be taking stool softeners also or that BM will be rock hard and hurt more than anything left over from surgery.  You can get them over the counter and I doubled up on them.  Good luck and keep us posted.

Ed

Hey Rick---glad you are in the recovery phase!!!

I'm 6 1/2 weeks out from da Vinci, and got a 0.01 PSA yesterday, and all other post-surgery is doing well. Here are my tips:

--Walk, walk and walk--does help with the whole digestive tract getting back, and you feel normal again just getting out in the fresh air
--But walking was hard because the catheter was really uncomfortable at the tip no matter what. I did use Vaseline frequently. Also, someone on here suggested dropping the tube connection straight down as far as possible, even to lower leg with some slack. My tube originally went directly over to my thigh, pulling and creating friction against the tip. So I re-taped it lower, just past my knee, and gave it some slack to sorta swing. I would have even dropped further but my tube wasn't long enough. Really helped.
--I took stool softeners for about a week or more--others have said, very painful if you are constipated, and I got off pain killers quickly.
--Don't get over active. A friend of mine thought all was good after about two weeks, he felt great, and played golf---big mistake.
--once stitches are healed up, about two weeks, my brother-in-law DR suggested Vitamin E oil which I still put on every morning.
--I had very little incontinence issues. A little dribbling. I bought Depends and wore at night, but only a few times, and pads for occasional usage with dress slax etc. and went to briefs rather than boxers--good for support and all too.

Hope this helps!!!