HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

The Road to "New Normal"

Support Forums
>
Prostate Cancer
✚ New Topic locked
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 910
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 1/12/2015 1:42 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Pratoman,

Glad to hear you are making progress. You might want to try prune juice with some Metamucil mixed in.. The generic metamucil is just as good and half the cost. You might want to be careful with the MagCitrate. Removing the prostate in some cases makes the wall of the rectum a bit thinner in that spot. You don't want to exert much pressure, a little straining is probably OK, but go very easy. You also don't want anything that causes a violent BM like MagCitrate in my opinion.

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, just an engineer who reads a lot and has an interest in medicine. 'Cant wait to join the 0 club and add prostate cancer survivor to my resume.

Best Regards,
scientificlifestyle

I also got 5 holes. My local surgeon said some docs like and some like 6.
Posted 1/12/2015 1:54 AM (GMT 0)
I'm going to get some prune juice to try and keep things flowing, mix a little Konsyl in, which is psylium fiber, probably like Metamucil.

Honestly I think the difference was the huge amount if water I drank today, about 100 ounces. Makes the Colace work better
Posted 1/12/2015 3:24 AM (GMT 0)
I've learned that keeping hydrated is a huge bit of keeping the bowels working, especially if one is using a fiber type supplement. This is even without the upcoming surgery.

Thanks for all the good info, I'm adding to my pre-surgery shopping list constantly. Current item to look for: see if the local rent to own store has a treadmill available.
Posted 1/12/2015 4:14 AM (GMT 0)
Man, this is GREAT info, but it's making me nervous too. I will have ralp this Thursday. The info in this thread is going to help my recovery a LOT.
Posted 1/12/2015 4:50 AM (GMT 0)
Motor, the first three days may not be fun, but then it does start to improve. Also, I know people who've had RALP and had an easier time than me. So don't let it scare you
Posted 1/12/2015 2:11 PM (GMT 0)
Day 6 post surgery. Not much new to report. BM's continue. Feeling ok, appetite is back. Got on the scale this morning, I'm 6 pounds lower than the day before the surgery. I am guessing progress will slow down over the next couple of days, then speed up after the catheter comes out, hopefully on Thursday.

The one thing concerning me know (besides waiting for final Path Report) is blood in urine. I wake up to a bag full of bright red urine. Happened again today. Doc said I should expect blood in urine for 2-3 weeks after cath comes out. But I don't know to what extent. After doing my 15 minute morning walk today, and emptying the bag again, and resting in bed for half an hour, it seems to be filling the bag with yellow. So not sure whats going on. If anyone can share their experience with this, I'd be interested. Thanks
Posted 1/12/2015 2:46 PM (GMT 0)
walking is good, but with the catheter still in, the walking movement will also cause some bleeding. Also even a bit of blood will make the bag look very red. If you are not in pain, blood in the urine is normal.
Posted 1/12/2015 4:08 PM (GMT 0)
It sounds like you are doing fine. It only takes a few drops of blood to turn the bag bright red and it is fairly normal to see that. I suspect that your uncomfortable first couple of days and, possibly your bit of extra bleeding, are attributable to that extra slice at the apex that the doctor had to take to get a clear margin.

Oh, and that pain in your neck/shoulder is probably referred pain from the area under your diaphragm. The gas irritates that area (where your esophagus passes through you diaphragm) and you feel it in your shoulders and neck.
Posted 1/12/2015 4:23 PM (GMT 0)
Prat:

You are doing fine.

Mel
Posted 1/12/2015 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
Pratoman: Glad your feeling better I have been following your posts. I am about 10 weeks out now and everything is back to normal. After that catheter comes out you will see your life come back. The only thing I have is ED. Everything else is normal. By next week you will be looking at this as a bad memory. And from reading your post some one down the road with gain a wealth of insight from them. Keep up the good work man your almost there
Posted 1/12/2015 5:41 PM (GMT 0)
Yeah I think I'm doing ok. Walking one and a half to two miles a day, back to regular BMs (tried the prune juice this morning. It was a quick acting killer, may have to back off it). Just took a shower and feel pretty good.
Now to just get through the next three days till cath removal. AND GET ME A CONFIRMATION ON TJOSE NEGATIVE MARGINS, AND ON THE G6 PLEAAASE
Posted 1/12/2015 5:47 PM (GMT 0)
Hey Prato, as others that have come before you have stated you're doing fine - now on to the finish line of this phase!

And, you're also "doing good" for others that will come - so I'll to encourage you to continue your posts. I would also suggest that during this down time you might want to consider doing a summary of journey, like a journal if you will - include your path of understanding the beast, and then learning about the options; making your decision and then yes all of the details of what you have/are going through.

Pay Forward Dude!!!!!!!
Posted 1/12/2015 5:56 PM (GMT 0)
YOOP, yes, I was thinking of doing that I'm trying to figure out how to format it. But I will.
I'm glad you and others feel,this will be helpful to others. It, along with therapy for myself, was my intent, but I was thinking its a little too full of my lunatic rants, so I do want to find a way to summarize it in a kre concise way
Posted 1/12/2015 6:17 PM (GMT 0)
It was only a few days ago, yet many posts ago when I wrote:

In a few weeks, maybe a couple months, you will be saying the same thing as your friend said [that his minimally invasive RP was easy, no pain, etc].  The stuff you are dealing with lasts a few days; when the catheter is out, your discomfort will go down dramatically.

A little bit of your hindsight will help put every little fart and poop into perspective...

Posted 1/12/2015 7:37 PM (GMT 0)
LOL, agree NKinney. the further in hindsight those poops and farts go, the happier I'll be.

I felt good enough today, to call 6-7 clients, to check in with them and let them know they shouldn't hesitate to call my cell if they need me. 3 DAYS AGO, that was unthinkable.
step by step, inch by inch
Posted 1/13/2015 3:49 AM (GMT 0)
Pratoman,

Good news you are doing better. The prune juice and Psilium fiber did the trick for me.

Oh, regarding pink/red urine. Just like used motor oil, it only takes a tiny bit of blood to make a big mess. The blood in your catheter bag is likely a product of walking or a BM , both of which can cause some irritation at the bladder neck and minor bleeding at the bladder neck. Nothing to worry about! If anything, this is a good sign because you are being active! (and not to mention a good blood supply where the most important healing is happening)

Chin up and carry on. 2015 is going to be a good year for you! You are past the tough part.

With my Prayers and Very Best Regards, scientificlifestyle (Pat)
Posted 1/13/2015 7:40 AM (GMT 0)
Hey Prat Good to hear that you are recovering and almost at the end of the surgery journey when the cath comes out. As I have been reading the threads and noting the ages of the men (including Gary) I am stunned at how many are young and facing a lot of years with the PCa as part of their life. I have seen a movement of women educating the nation on the importance of early detection of breast cancer, but PCa seems to get too little attention for early blood tests to establish baseline psa so those incremental rises can be addressed. I would love to make it my goal and all the young guys on this forum be the catalyst for that movement(now that your other movements seem to have returned) :)
Beth n Gary
Posted 1/13/2015 10:04 AM (GMT 0)
I was thinkng the same thing, there is not enough outreach for PC awareness. I have a number of friends in their 40's who are shocked when I tell them of guys diagnosed before they turn 50
Posted 1/13/2015 10:56 AM (GMT 0)
Prat,

As far as stool softeners go, there are a number OTC pills that work great. What I ended up doing was to go o the pharmacy and talked to the pharmacist behind the counter. After I told him how things were going, when the last pain pill was taken, what the doctor suggested and stuff like that, he recommended an OTC softener (sorry, can't remember the name - will post if I find the bottle again.) and within 3 days of taking that, the gas pain was gone and I lost a ton of weight from a huge BM.

As far as you weight lost goes, I lost 14 pounds from my check-in weight to when I was discharged 30 hours later. (I wanted to check how far off my home scale was so I asked them to weigh my during discharge.) My doctor said it is common to loose that sort of weight, but I still wonder where it all came from. tongue

You blood in the bad is a normal thing. You have had it the same day as I did. I cut back on the distance of my walks and it cleared up in about two days. I guess too much walking was poking or stretching something that shouldn't have been.

The only thing bugging me now is a little leakage when I am working hard outside (I work part time at a large Southern California resort) or during sexual excitement. It has been only 2 months after taking out the catheter, so I am not real worried yet.

You are doing great!!

Don
Posted 1/13/2015 2:51 PM (GMT 0)

Hey Prat,

Great to see you are progressing well. Just a word concerning the blood in the urine. I had blood in my urine weeks after surgery. This is just part of the healing process. Wait until you go take a leak five weeks out and a blood clot hits the toilet. Now that will get your attention. Relax my friend this is just part of the healing. Don't let anything surprise you any more. Just go with it and soon you will be looking back at this as a bad nightmare. Blessings to you and keep us informed. I didn't discover HW until I was a couple months post op. I sure wish I had these guys helping  me through my pre and post op. These folks do a great service, I am sure you will too.

TC

Posted 1/13/2015 4:17 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Don, Trucker.

Today is exactly one week post op. Feeling better each day, gas pain in my shoulder is barely still there. BMs again today. I had to strain a little more, but found it was also easier to do so, without causing much pain.
Got up this morning and walked form20 minutes, then logged onto my office, had my slave (my dear wife who has not complained once) bring me breakfast in bed, and called three clients, did a couple of trades.
So I seem to be settling into a routine.

In two days, I get the cath removed. I am praying that things go smoothly , and that I get continent reasonably quickly

I am also getting very nervous about what the path report will say. I expect to get it when I get the cath removed, but the doc won't be in so ill get it from a PA or Nurse Practitioner. Still, I jump every time the phone rings.
Scaring the crap out if me. Even though surgeon told me that he saved all the nerves, which I think is in the apex, and that he cut till he got negative marhins in the apex, I have a bad "feeling" that final path will show positive margin. I pray not. I feel like it will be like getting diagnosed all over again, if that happens.
Posted 1/13/2015 5:37 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Pratoman:

I have been following your journey so closely since you came on the board.  It sounds as if you are doing great and are offering so much helpful information to newbies.

My husband was operated on in August.  The apex is not alot of territory to work in and is the highest frequency site of positive margins as I am sure you already know.  Hopefully you get a negative margin, but there is a middle ground between positive and negative margins so to speak and that is what is called a close margin.  That shows up on your pathology report as a negative margin and is managed as a negative margin clinically, but it will be noted on the pathology report that the cancer was very close to the inked margin.  Given that they had to go back in to clear the area because the frozen path was positive at the original margin and there is a limit to how wide they can cut, it is possible that you may see negative margins with a note that the cancer was very close to the ink.         

My husband's surgeon's NP took out his cath - his surgeon doesn't do that follow up himself whether he is in town or not!  The surgeon called us with the path summary report however 6 days after surgery (his patients are cathed for 14 days so that is a long time to wait for pathology results) so everyone gets a call from him before they get their written report at cath removal.  When he called he reported negative margins - when we actually got the report is when I saw the note that the margin is negative but was very close to the inked margin at the apex area.  Read your full pathology report carefully as there is all kinds of information in there and occasionally some of it is important down the line but isn't part of the name, rank and serial number results that people look at as to Gleason Score, margins, SVI,  pT stage - the fine print so to speak.

Good luck with your pathology report and moving to the next stage in recovery - urinary control.  

Posted 1/13/2015 5:58 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks lovif,
Not exactly what I wanted to hear but good info nevertheless, that will be useful.
Posted 1/13/2015 6:01 PM (GMT 0)
Prat hope your final path report is good. It's nerve-wracking waiting for medical results.
Posted 1/13/2015 10:13 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Busdy.
I've decided that the next two nights will be Xanax nights. Something I haven't done since 3 nights before my surgery.

I'm jus too nervous about the path report. My biggest core (80%) of the three positive cores, was in the apex, which is where he got the positive margin in the intra operative frozen section. He said he too more tissue and got it negative before finishing up, but as was stated, there is not a lot of room to work in the apex, and the frozen section is no guarantee. What's worse is the apex is the easiest place for Cancer to escape the capsule.
So I've convinced myself that there is a high possibility that I will get a bad path report. A shame, considering I am starting to feel so much better physically.

Yup, Xanax.
✚ New Topic locked
12345678910