Cosmicrayola

my friends call me Cosmic.

That's better than what some people call me


Home~ Older~ Profile~ Links~ R & R~ Write Me~ B'Day Page


Good Reads


My Book


Sondra's
Book


Marys
Book

***

Neat Places

Women's
Funny
Videos


from the start.

2001-06-16 10:52 p.m.

Cosmic's Great Suburethrel Sling Procedure Adventrue.

I've decided to make this page into a diary of my sling procedure because a few of you have said you may have it done as well. I am a firm believer that getting the info from someone that has been through it is much better than a doctor sometimes. Men cannot know all the feelings we have sometimes. And if, like me, your GYN is a man, he won't know half of what you are going through. So here, in a nutshell, I will document my daily healing.

October 1st, 2003 - 1st Step

The initial doctor visit to decide if I should have this was on October 1st.I will pick up my entries from there.

October 2nd, 2003

I went yesterday for "THE TEST". The test was painless, but very unnerving.

He had to insert a catheter and fill the bladder with water. No biggie. Then he told me to cough. Again, no pain but I definitely squirted!

Sideline here: There are two types of incontinence that women (and men) deal with. One is Stress and one is Urge. With Stress incontinence, which is what I had, if you cough, you squirt. If you sneeze, you squirt. If you break out laughing hysterically, you better be on a toilet. Then you also have Urge incontinence, which is to say that when you need to go to the bathroom, you can't hold it. I do not have that problem. I can hold it for hours if I don't cough or sneeze. This sling procedure is for Stress incontinence. Since most women have a combination of both, the procedure will take care of one problem and a prescription for Detrol will take care of the other.
He told me the process they will perform in surgery. I had already read up on it, so I didn't have many questions. The problem that causes the stress incontinence in women is usually associated with childbirth and age. If you are in the room with 10 women over the age of 40, I betcha at least 7 suffer with it. They may not admit it, but they do.

It is a shame really. They did a study of Asian women to find out why they have a low incidence of Stress inconstancy and found out that they don't . It's just that many Asian women take it as normal aging and don't report it. They just live with it.

The bottom line is that with childbirth and aging, the urethra starts sagging downward over time. The natural position is almost a 45-degree angle upwards. As you cough or sneeze, the muscle tightens and keeps it from leaking. But when it angles downward, the muscle loses its strength and doesn't "cap" it off tightly enough. By putting it back with the use of the sling and then tightening the sling, it allows that muscle to again do its job. Simple procedure and done in 20 minutes to half an hour. It is sutured to the pelvic wall/muscles and you are left with two tiny little stitches. One on either side of the labia.

I got my appointment for my lab tests and follow up visit and was on my way. So as of October 14th folks, I shall have a gladder bladder. October 14th, 2003

I arrived at the hospital at 8:00 a.m. This procedure is done as out patient, so you arrive right before surgery. They hooked up my IV before I went into the OR because I have a favorite lady that does that sort of thing with a minimal amount of pain so she did it for me. By 9:00 I was ready to go. They must have taken me in at 9:30. It was only 20 minutes for the whole procedure and I was in recovery for an hour and back in my room at 5 minutes to 11.

I went into a coughing fit for a solid half hour after I came out. I thought it was the cigarettes, but they informed me that it was because they put in a breathing tube while I was out. I am sure if you are not a smoker, either a) they wouldn't need the tube, or b) If you needed the tube, it wouldn't bother you. I have emphysema and I am sure that's what caused it. That's the first time it ever happened. I was going nuts. I went up to my room, as I said, at 11. They gave me percoset for the pain. Bad percoset, bad, bad, bad. I wanted to eat everything in sight. But worse than that was the way it affected me. Now this isn't to say it would affect everyone the same. I know many people that have no trouble with it at all. I am just not one of those people. I had the feeling that I was awake, but I was playing Mah Jong in my head. Then I would jump awake, realize it was the meds and feel like an idiot. After the second round of Percoset, I told the nurse about it and she switched me to Demerol. Much milder, but it took care of the pain.

After surgery, you have a catheter left in. I asked the doctor in the OR how long it had to stay and he told me the usual was overnight. Then if you can pee in the morning, you can go home. I asked him if he could leave an order that the nurse could remove it at 6 that night so I could leave early in the morning and he said ok. The nurses are saints at that hospital. She came it exactly at 6, asked my two sisters to leave the room and took it out. Still no pain. Also, another thing they did that I wasn't aware they would be doing is put my legs in cuffs. This is done pretty routinely now. If you have surgery requiring you to stay in bed for hours after, they put the things on your lower legs. They inflate and deflate at intervals to keep blood flow going. This avoids any possibility of blood clots forming from lack of motion. It is normal. They feel weird, but not unpleasant. They also feed you antibiotics as a rule, and ringers lactate (saline) to keep you hydrated. This is all done through the IV; so don't even bother paying attention.

About every 15 minutes I had to pee. It is normal. Your bladder is swollen from the surgery and feels full when you swallow spit, I swear. I had to have the nurse go with me the first few hours because she had to measure the output. They have to make sure you can pee before you go home, or they send you home with a catheter. None for me thanks. I'll pass.

Another side effect of the surgery that I never even gave any thought to was bleeding. Yup, just like a schoolgirl and that time of the month. Not quite as much though. Between being sore and the blood, it brought back memories of childbirth. That's exactly how it felt after. Only not nearly as sore. The blood is normal for 5 to 10 days they said.

October 15, 2003 - Post surgery - Day One

By morning, I wanted out of there. The doctor came by at 8 and discharged me. He told me to just take Motrin for the pain. He advised me not to do ANY lifting for a week, no sex, no tampons (don't use them anymore anyway) and limited stair climbing. He said I can go back to work in 4 to 8 weeks. I told him 2, he said when I go next Wednesday for my post-op checkup we can re-negotiate.

As soon as I got home I sat at the computer. Sitting up doesn't hurt and it is quicker to stand and head for the toilet than to get up from a reclining position. Carol brought Terry's port-a-potty up from the basement for me. Our bathroom is on the second floor and though we have an elevator, it is so slow I would pee myself before I got up there. Terry empties it for me. What a sweetie. He is also waiting on me hand and foot.

The swelling will be around for about 5 - 10 days. So the need to pee is going to lessen slowly over time. The bleeding has almost stopped already.

October 16th, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 2

Yup, the Demerol and Percoset wore off! Not agonizing pain, but enough to know something was done. I slept all night without waking so I had a really full bladder this morning. A bit uncomfortable, but not earth shattering. Carol went and bought me some Motrin last night and I took two of them. They are only 200mg but I thought they would be enough. Not quite. Along with what felt like menstrual cramps, every now and then, I would be peeing and feel a pressure in my lower back. It was just enough to concern me. No more blood, which is a good thing. I am making myself walk around the kitchen and living room every couple of hours to keep the circulation going and get my strength back. I called the doctor and he ordered me 800mg Motrin and just to be safe, he put me on a three day regimen of ciprofloxacin just in case there is a little infection trying to rear it's ugly head. He said he is sure there isn't, but prevention can't hurt. I sat up all day and finally went up and lay down around 7:00p.m. I feel asleep about 11 and woke up at 1:30, 4:30 and 6:30. This was a good thing because my bladder didn't get the chance to over fill. I took a mega-ibuprofen before bed and had no pain at all.

October 17th, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 3

What a difference a day makes! I got up and felt great! Aside from peeing every hour, I feel fantastic! I even made Terry's coffee this morning. Though I did warn him that as good as I feel right now, it might all change by noon. I am fighting against doing what I want to do. I feel like I could go shopping right now. I know that even though I feel good right now, not to push it. There is virtually no blood at all! I have coughed and sneezed a couple of times and no squirt!! Yay!! So far, so good. I'll update later this afternoon, this ongoing saga.

October 17, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 4

I only got up once to use the bathroom last night. I got up at 7:30 and feel pretty good. I forgot to mention one little problem I seem to be having. I don't know if they give you something in the hospital to cause this on purpose or not. The old poop syndrome. It is almost a good thing. Granted, It has been constant but that is a far cry from having to strain. But this morning, I feel a little washed out. I called the pharmacy and asked if I could take Imodium with the other meds I'm taking. Not a problem. So hopefully, that will start to ease off too. I am now doing the stairs. I guess my swollen bladder has gone down considerably. I am almost back to normal, peeing only every few hours. Take the stairs slowly and it isn't a problem. There is virtually no pain at all now. This is turning into one of the best decisions I have ever made. Will update again tomorrow.

October 23, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 9

Ok, so I didn't post the next day. So sue me. I haven't posted because there has been nothing to post. I went for my doctor�s appointment yesterday. He removed my stitches and gave me a clean bill of heath basically. He said I could go back to work on the 10th of November. I said October 27th. We spit the difference. I go back on the 3rd. He did admit that I am a very fast healer. So much so, in fact that I had become one with the stitches in one week. He removed them and I never felt a thing. He just kept muttering, "I'm sorry" as he pulled them out. He thought he was hurting me. Nah, I be one tough grammaw. Hey, like I told him, after my mastectomy and reconstruction, that was nothing. Anyway, I can resume all my regular scheduled programming as long as I do it s-l-o-w-l-e-y. I only got up once last night to go potty, so, yup I'm back to normal for the most part. That means I can finish re-doing my sewing room. No, I am not lifting anything. Just the shelves and those are small and plastic, so no worry.

October 25, 2003 Post Surgery Day - 11

I need to make a note here. One problem that wasn't worth mentioning until now. Since I had to pee every 15 or 20 minutes for the first few days, and the fact that I was on antibiotics, and the fact that I had, shall we say, very loose bowels for the first week, I am rather irritated in my nether-region. If you remember (those of you who have ever had a yeast infection) itching and scratching (and the stitches didn't help) it is not pleasant. I don't have a yeast infection but the constant wiping and washing has mad me very tender. Had I know this was going to happen, I would have started using an antiseptic/analgesic cream from day one. I didn't, so I didn't. I am finally giving in today and going to the pharmacy. It was totally stupid on my part to wait this long. I don't want to run the risk of a secondary infection so I will ask the pharmacist what the best solution will be. I will update later today when I get back from my running errands. But as far as everything else goes, I wouldn't even know I had the surgery except for a couple of little telltale signs. One is not squirting YAY!! and the other is that I still feel a little pressure just above my pelvic bone if I cough while standing. It isn't painful really, it is just pressure. I am still swollen according to the doctor. It takes about 8 weeks for the body to be back to normal because though this seemed like a walk in the park, one must remember (yes, doc) that it is still major surgery.

November 2, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 20

Ok, Change of plans. Though I could probably go back to work tomorrow, I am staying out one more week. Better to be safe than sorry. My pain is pretty much gone, but I am still wiped out by mid afternoon. Still healing or lack of activity? Who knows? In either event, it wont hurt to play it safe.

November 9, 2003 - Post Surgery - Day 27

I am going beck to work tomorrow. I consider myself back to normal. Of course the surgery was a huge success so now normal for me is the same as other people.

This will probably be my last post on this subject. I now have a website. Yay me! It is not set up yet because it is going to take me awhile to figure out how to upload and run it. But eventually it will be a site for those with stories to tell about all sorts of things. Sort of an online newspaper. I will be posting stories from my readers on everything from surgical procedures, to dieting, to any other topic I feel worth mentioning. Hope when it's ready, you'll all stop by. For now, stay healthy!

UPDATE! January 26, 2004

It has now been 2 1/2 months since the surgery and on a scale of 1 being "Oh My God! I just went through my 15th Poise today!" to 10 being "Gee, I could do Cartwheels, Jumping Jacks and still nothing." I am a 9. I would be a 10, but I had a nasty bout with Bronchitis and I think I pulled on the not-quite-healed sutures. I have been fine except a couple of times while coughing really hard. But all in all, I gauge it a complete success!

A word of advice. If you are a smoker, quit 6 months before the surgery to give yourself a fair chance. If not, try not to get a cold or cough for 6 months after. Also, if you would like to ask any questions, feel free to e-mail me. I feel bad that people have left me comments with no way to contact them. Update: March 19th 2004 - 6 month post-op

Just to let you all know, I don't even buy the poise pads anymore. I had a full package of 22 left and I put one on when I have to go somewhere special where I know I "may" have a problem. I put one in and take it out when I get home. I haven't wet one yet but old habits die hard. Better to be be safe than sorry. One package has lasted me 6 months. A lot better than 6 days, wouldn't you say?

Later,
Cosmic

|

yesterday's gone/tomorrow's coming

From no news to much news - zing! - 7:31 P.M. , Friday, Mar. 07, 2008
Keeping the smile - 5:01 P.M. , Wednesday, Mar. 05, 2008
Welcome to my world. - 4:11 P.M. , Monday, Mar. 03, 2008
So Very Sad - 5:33 P.M. , Friday, Feb. 29, 2008
Sunday Stuff - 12:21 A.M. , Monday, Feb. 25, 2008


Join my Notify List and get email when I update my site:
email:
Powered by NotifyList.com

**********AND**********

� kmurray 2007
D'land Buds

Hubby's Place

Artgnome
Batten
Blue Opal
casa-rosie
Cassie
Chocolate Chaos
Dangerspouse
Elgan
H2odragon
her-story
Ibepiglet
Joiedv
Katress
Kungfu Kitten
LA-the-Sage
Laineyducks
Lorster
Life-my-way
Mizlizzy
Mnlady1962
Moee
Mommydu
Pennyjar
Poolagirl
Roadiepig
Rosietoes
Sallydallydo
Sandysands
Shear-madnez
Ship-Jumper
Skibigsky
The Cranky One
The Wondering Jew
Uncle Bob
wifemotherme
Wild Rosie
Wyndspirit
Our Host

Blogger Buds

Ann & Bob
Art
Bettyalready
Ann & Bob
Chailife
Lena
Pseudowife
Sam (from NZ)
Snicker-snak
Weaselwrites

Wordpress Buds

Blue Sleepy
Capitolady
Cookiejar Princess
Fortyplus
Gardenqueen
Gemini Gems
Karmacat
Kitchen Logic
Lisele
The Flying Rat
Yankeechick

Elsewhere Buds

Always Ange
Bozoette Mary
D-Manz
Golfwidow
Jim's Journal
L-Empress
Lucky Nick
Riddiger
Shiznit
Suburban Island
That Gay Chick
TranceJen