bladder spasms suddenly much improved

OK, let me say up front that it is quite possible this is something that was going to happen anyway ( any time now if you don't mind!) . I am 6 weeks out from catheter removal. My improvement in any bladder spasm or incontinence related area was about zero as of a few days ago, some days even seem worse than day one post catheter. This was a big topic of discussion at my 1st post op visit 4 days ago, reported elsewhere. They said it was too early to try medications and their side effects.

This is Friday. Sometime on Wed( noon or afternoon?) I tried some of the Chamomile tea I had my wife pick up for me. I must have read some where that this was an anti-spasmodic that could possibly help with bladder spasms. I had one cup. That night at church supper and prayer meeting, I noticed things seemed much improved. I had started dreading this meeting, because of my need to constantly run to the bathroom while there, or else just go in my pads, which is still very difficult for me psychologically. I did go twice while I was there night before last, but it was more "just in case', with no urgency.

Bottom line, starting very soon after drinking the tea, my symptoms improved and are at the moment >90% better, almost no issue. I have had only a few very minor spasms the last two days, and zero severe/painful spasms that made it very difficult not to either run to the bathroom or wet myself. Most especially when getting out of a car or up from a chair. They have simply been a non-issue for 2 days now, even after drinking coffee in the morning. I have been having 2 or 3 cups per day.

So this is just a "for what it is worth(FWIW)", which may be "not much". Some possible explanations:
1: It was just time for me to improve, at about the same hour as In chose to drink the tea.
2: Total Placebo
3: It does indeed help with bladder spasms
4: some combination of all of the above

I don't know that it has helped my incontinence any, except to the degree that the bladder spasms were contributing to that. IOW, the urgency is about gone, but I still have a long way to go on the stress incontinence. However, there is not a cheaper and easier thing to try, with no apparent negative effects so far. I prefer black or green tea's taste compared to this herbal tea, but it is not real bad.

Since apparently this has worked so well, I am now going to try crataeva and horsetail if I can find them.
biologichealth.net/research-docs/acjaug%200283.pdf

Good luck with the healing all you new RP brothers!

Bill

Steve n Dallas said...
Nice story.

I've been mixing Tart Cherry Juice Extract with my morning orange juice. It really seems to do a great job with everyday aches and pains.

I'll see how it goes in the coming days and keep Y'all up to date. Of course, if it goes well I guess I still won't know if it is the tea or I just decided to get a lot better a few hours after I started the tea.

Have any of you guys been experiencing some wetness, with a small urination during the day but 2 SOAKING PADS per night and when i get up to change them - i piss like a race horse.

Clean Gene,
I have the day time issues you mentioned - sudden strong urges with small quantities, but not at night. Actually, I've been able to sleep til about 4 am and no pressing need to haul ass to the bathroom. That is the only time of day that my bladder fills up to pre surgery volumes. I was told by the urologist that the urgency is due to bladder inflamation. My theory is that when Im asleep, not only am I more relaxed, but Im laying down without downward pressure on the portion of my bladder where the prostate was removed. Dont know if thats the case, but it makes sense. Still very frustrating during the day.

Otis, Yeah during the day it feels like i am full and ready to urinate and then very little. At night, I fill up the pad to the max, i could sleep through it but i don't then when i get up - i urinate and the stream is like a race horse. Unbelievable.

Purgatory said...
Glad to hear the spasms have ended or decreased for you. I am the master of bladder spasms. I have had continuous bladder spasms, daily ,from November of 2008 to present. Estimate I have had 5,000-7,000 of them.

During my post surgery time, had endless stricture problems. Later, after my surgery failed, had salvage radiation that very wrong. A year later, still unable to urinate naturally, so I had major surgery to by-pass my bladder. Even that didn't help. Even with a non-working, non-connected bladder, I still have multiple high pain spasms daily.

There is no medicine or cure for me, a high risk dangerous surgery was considered, but even two leading urologists (heads of departments at MUSC and Duke) refused to do the surgery.

So they are something I will have to live with the rest of my life.

Thankful that your's were short lived. Even a handful of them are very painful to endure. Kind of feels like a fire cracker exploding inside your bladder, with no way to release the pressure. You were fortunate to be on a catheter, I believe you said, only 6 days. Way shorter than normal. I was on my original catheter for 63 days, and spent a total of 1 1/2 years on those nasty things.

Good luck on the rest of your recovery, hope it goes well for you.

David

Man oh man, that is a rough story, Dave, I'm sorry you have had to go through all of that. I may not be out of the woods yet, even though- for whatever reason- I have had a much improved couple of days spasm wise.

I was not a 6 day catheter, that was another recent poster. I was 12 days on the tube. I did have a 106.7 gm prostate along with a bad PC that they cut quite wide for. And because of that, they insist I am not al all behind the curve when it comes to continence and spasms, that I am pretty normal for 6 weeks post cath. I hope they are right, it does not feel normal that's for sure!

Post Edited (BillyBob@388) : 4/11/2014 9:18:22 PM (GMT-6)

Purgatory said...
Sorry, I confused the two stories. That was quite a huge prostate, believe mine was 42. Still glad you are on the mend.

David

No problem! I think that was Steverino with the 6 day catheter AND CONTINENT FROM DAY ONE! I think his 30 gm pros. helped with that.
Bill