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Chris J's Journey

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User

Posted 15 Jun 2015 at 06:42

Thanks to all. Here we go now. Speak soon x
Chris

User

Posted 15 Jun 2015 at 07:43

Best of luck, Chris - positive thoughts!

Paul

Stay Calm And Carry On.

User

Posted 15 Jun 2015 at 09:35

Won't cross my fingers, you won't need me to.
You do what you have to do Chris and when it's over you start to rebuild your new life, in whatever form that takes.

El and the little one will be there as well as your friends and family.
AND your online family too of course.

All the best for today and the rest of you life!!!
Sandra

We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails

User

Posted 15 Jun 2015 at 09:49

Good luck Chris, glad you made the right decision . The fear of the unknown is always worse than the reality. Best wishes for today .

BFN

Julie X

NEVER LAUGH AT A LIVE DRAGON

User

Posted 15 Jun 2015 at 21:48

Hi Chris,

When you get to read this you will be awake and your new life will have begun, and it really is not bad, honestly!

And at least one major worry will be gone.

atb

dave

All we can do - is do all that we can.

So, do all you can to help yourself, then make the best of your time. :-)

I am the statistic.

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 16:24

16/06/15

Hi guys yes I've had my radical prostectomy and lymph node removal and some bladder work. Apparently all went as planned with nerve bundle sparing.

No pain in "that" area and catheter ok , but chronic pain in lower abdomen due to the 5 holes thru my muscle and gas in my belly. In for a second night as lumber still draining a lot.

I know u say never look back but I'm slightly annoyed / worried. My surgeon said they could neither see nor feel the Gleason 8 aggressive cancer when they got my prostate out despite this being the main panic , and surprise surprise I haven't seen him since. Just his registrar. She candidly pointed out " you've got cancer and it's better out so u can see ure grandkids" , blatantly not knowing much about me or this journey. When asked why Oncology was withdrawn she didn't know. I just PRAY I needed this doing 😢.

Anyway too late now. I'll keep in touch x

Chris

Edited by member 16 Jun 2015 at 21:32 | Reason: Not specified

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 16:39

Hi,just because they could not feel it does not mean the cancer was not there. Your PSA was indicating it was and analysis of prostate will surely prove it. Speedy recovery,El .(no relation!!)

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 16:46

Hi Chris,

Pleased everything went well. Now the prostate is out it will be examined and the full extent of the cancer will be revealled and your surgeon should feed this back to you at a later date . All they told me post op was that it looked a bit sqidgy whatever that might have meant.My pain around the wound site was quite bad for a couple of days but soon settled down and became a discomfort for a couple of weeks. Don't be afraid to ask for analgesia.

Hoping you are soon home and getting on with your recovery.

Paul

Edited by member 16 Jun 2015 at 16:47 | Reason: Not specified

THE CHILD HAS GROWN, THE DREAM HAS GONE

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 17:28

Chris,

Glad the surgery went well and just concentrate on your recovery now, they will do more test's on your prostate and let you know the outcome.

Trish

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 20:17

Hi Chris,

Pleased it went well. It's done now and out of the way.

I'm sure they've done the right thing. I'm on HT and had RT, didn't get chance of RP, which is probably what I would have chosen. The RT and HT hasn't been easy for me.

Here's hoping your recovery goes really well.

Steve

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 20:24

Great to hear from you Chris, job done!

I hope you're as comfortable as you can be, all the best to you and El.

Maureen x

"You're braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think." A A Milne

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 20:37

Well done Chris. Pleased to see you are fit enough to be on the computer!!
All the best to both of you
Sandra

We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 21:08

Hi Chris,

Totally understandable that you would fret at this stage, worry that it may have been a false alarm, and the surgery was unnecessary, and without having all the information. Beginning to understand you and your thought processes now, but, but, but wait until the pathology results are through and then, and only then, will you know what you were carrying.

As for regrets, well it can not be put back, so maybe you can get used to the idea and concept of your new prolonged life? Lots of things may be different, but believe me regular great sex after RRP is possible. Maybe you were only at it every day before the op? I have had to deal with a far less regular sexual active life than I was having pre-op. But I am making do, grinning and bearing it, putting up with my frugal sex life with barely a moan or a whinge,and just having to accept that I can only do it four times a day. Life is tough, but at least it is a life without cancer.

atb

dave

did I say "great"? It's not great it's ydoolb marvellous. ;-)

All we can do - is do all that we can.

So, do all you can to help yourself, then make the best of your time. :-)

I am the statistic.

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 21:30

Thanks so much guys. Got my smartphone in hospital bed. Hopefully sleep this second night.
Thanks Dave
Chris

User

Posted 16 Jun 2015 at 21:59

Chris

I have never talked to my surgeon since my op - only chatted to his underlings. Don't fret now - you will get the full report when you have your follow up.

I remember the most uncomfortable feeling when I woke up from the op with the gas inside you. Plenty of peppermint tea will quickly resolve it.

Having the catheter is a pain, but that will be gone probably at the end of next week. Concentrate on building up your strength, listen to and do what you are told. Only time will tell how you will heel. Post op, Ive no regrets knowing I've got so much more to look forward to. With the same disease 50 years ago, I probably would not have made 70 - now I'm hoping to reach 80 with so many more things to do with my life. You can do the same!

Paul

Stay Calm And Carry On.

User

Posted 17 Jun 2015 at 13:31

Chris

Hi there, I am home from internet exile and so happy to see that you are posting using your smartphone (hope it is an android and not one of those I Sheep things!!)

I agree with Dave, maybe a couple of us are starting to understand your thought process a bit better, only natural that you would start to worry that you had gone through all of this unnecessarily. I very much doubt that. Your PSA tests, biopsies and scans are most unlikely to have all got that much wrong.

I am no expert but I would think that there are many cases when the removed prostate looks ordinary it is what is happening inside that the human eye cannot see that truly matters. The more ordinary it looks maybe the more hope that everything has been well and truly contained giving you the best chance of a full recovery. Hopefully back to the continent and sex loving Man you were right up to the operation.

The best news is that you are alive, have risen up to (no pun intended) and met a massive challenge and for that I truly applaud you.

We are all here for you if you need to ask anything along your journey ahead.

Very best wishes to you and all your family

xxx

User

Posted 17 Jun 2015 at 23:31

Hi everyone it's Elaine here - Chris is still in hospital (a small drainage problem which will hopefully remain small) so I thought I'd hijack his post a little. Chris's journey... well what can I say... it's certainly kept me on my toes! So much energy and emotion invested these last few months, and most particularly these last few weeks. Whatever gets thrown up next, by having the RP I think Chris has been brave and done the right thing for himself, for us and for our family. I have plenty of optimism for the future - certainly enough to spare to rub off on the man himself :)

I'm so glad we were directed to this site. The comments and opinions have been diverse, honest and invaluable. As Chris has already intimated his mental health can have a significant effect on his thought processes (the words dog and bone come to mind) and the continued support and differing perspectives offered here have been more helpful than you know. So while I'm sorry for the situation that finds us all here, I'm grateful that you are x

Edited by member 17 Jun 2015 at 23:41 | Reason: Not specified

User

Posted 17 Jun 2015 at 23:53

Elaine,

Pleased all went well. Give him my Best Wishes.

Steve

User

Posted 18 Jun 2015 at 00:08

Hey El

great to see you post hello and welcome from me. I am so happy that Chris is doing well.

Chris has done so well to have got through all of this to date, without a doubt a lot of that is down to you and the wonderful support you give him.

Sometimes the things shared on here can be incredibly personal but that is all part of the comraderie. we are a very open and honest bunch not much phases any of us.

It is quite common to be in hospital for anything up to 5 days sometimes more, now it is just a question of letting the healing begin and the post operative recovery and care kick in.

Going forwards your support role will be really important and it can get quite frustrating so if you ever need to chat please hijack Chris's post again or use it to send a private message or even start your own profile. We are all here to support you too as best as we can .

Thinking of you all

best wishes

User

Posted 18 Jun 2015 at 08:09

Hi Elaine,

Thanks for the update. I can only say how valuable as a support my good lady was during my journey. She has been patient when needed but firm when she found me feeling unnecessarily maudling and a great sounding board.

Look after yourself too. Seven months on now from my diagnosis and we are now just appreciating how stressful it's all been.

Paul

THE CHILD HAS GROWN, THE DREAM HAS GONE

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