Checking in after 3 year Radical Prostatectomy

Yippee...Yippee! Happy 3 year anniversary to me, coming up this January. WHOA ...wait a minute here..what am I so happy about, besides the fact the I no longer have the prostate,but as my oncologist told me, I could still get the cancer....WHAT!

Most importantly, I am alive and dealing with it all. Diapers and ED...STILL! Even though it was a nerve -sparing procedure, my WeeWee doc told me it may come back, and may NEVER come back.

Sure, I went through the many times during the night and day of all the Kegal exercises for about a year afterwards,then I got some control, but now I have to run to the bathroom and it hurts. I think maybe scar tissue from leaving the urinary catheter in for 7 weeks,,that's right I said ONE MONTH and THREE WEEKS, might have something to do with it. When I work out in the yard, come in to go to the bathroom, I sometimes notice a pink color(not bright red) at the end of the stream (I'm sitting down)so a little blood. Again my doc wants to put a camera up there to see, but with the scar tissue, I'm afraid it's going to hurt more and possibly damage more tissue.

So I did the Viagra and Cialis regime for a year afterwards, bought a vac pump, but still nada. The ED doc wants to give me an implant. I don't think so. Trimix injections..I don't think so. I'm just hoping on a wing and prayer that soon, I will hopefully get something back for all this.

Question > Has anyone here reading this gone through what I've gone through and after 3-4+ years post-op get anything as far as a natural hardness without machines or injections?

I have previously posted about this topic. My Surgery was back on January 9, 2009.

Unhappy: I think you would be amazed with injections. I know the though of stabbing Jr is way out there. I promise you after you do it the first time as see the results you wont look back.

In Oct I will hit my 3 year mark. Once I started the injections Jr started to wake up a bit and I now can get almost there without anything. Have been successful with the pills. I still do the injections because the pills are not consistent but the injections are dead on!

You owe it to yourself to give it a shot.

Cajun Jeff

I digress. I am a wussy when it comes to thinking about injecting myself. Maybe that self injector will take some of the worry out of it. I just seem to hear all the horror stories about injecting in the right quadrant or else, you shoot it straight in the vain.

Corvette,
You never mentioned about still wearing diapers after three years....do you still? If not, at what point were you incontinent free? If you are, then I don't feel so alone. I also worry there might be underlying factors on why I'm still leaking. Am I destined to continue wearing diapers well into my golden years? I don't want anymore surgeries.

I think I lost confidence in my uro doc telling me three years ago, that this was a robotic nerve-sparing procedure, and I should have no problems with future sexual function and never told me I would be wearing depends diapers after my three year post-op date. I am now 57 years old, and as much as I want to be positive and happy about not having prostate cancer, it SUCKS BIG TIME for what I'm going through now and who knows what the future holds as far as me ever stopping the diapers or ever achieving a normal erection on my own. I know becuz of the surgery, I have limitations pertaining to what is expected after this procedure, but...

Unhappy, thank you for posting today. I have been down and blue a bit lately....I have to remember thing could be worse, I am doing pretty good actually I think.

I always say you make the choice to be bitter or to be better! I choose better! I do, and would always at least try to do whatever my Dr. and or anyone else suggests no matter what to get better and to better my recovery!

If you are not willing to go get the scope, or try the injections, ....then accept your progress where you are without them.

Bitter or Better?

Unhappy...

Got to envy those guys that are continence in 90 days or less.  Uro says that over 90% will be continence by the 1 year mark, well a few of us fall into that other small % group,  I am coming up on the one year @ Aug 13, still 2 pads a day, had total urine blockage in June, camera scope and dialation, not a fun process.  Still have ED will ask uro about injections, however sex is not as enjoyable when you dribble & leak with a limp , you know what I mean.  I had difficult urination with low flow, sitting down like you, cause was scar tissue at the connection of bladder to uretha.  If your urine is colored pink you should get the scope to check it out, before you have total blockage, which is more pain than you can imagine.  My psa's have been 0's, i'll get my 1 yr this month, I'am getting the pre psa stress.  A lot of us don't fall into the norm, I went into the sugery eyes wide open, good health, believing the uro and stats, this will be a walk in the park, boy was I surprised.  Good luck, as they say it can be repaired if you are willing to go through the procedures...