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Pants - Incontinence

User
Posted 11 Apr 2016 at 22:20
A little update for you.

After trying my pads in various of my underwear I have decided on the best. It is boxer briefs (kind of square trunks sort of thing) made by Unico a.k.a Asdrumark. The two pairs I have go back a long way and are size small. A couple of years ago I reluctantly accepted that I was a size medium, so these are now quite a snug fit. I find this gives me more confidence, which I particularly need when I venture outdoors. I go up a pad size, put the pad in tight undies, pop on some loose trousers and nothing can touch me. There will be no dribbles down the left under the edge of the pad, no leaking over the top of the pad, and I need not worry when I feel a little surge come out.

Interestingly one of the pairs is an Everyman men's health charity white version of these pants that they made back in the day. Good old Amazon had those ones still available at 2 fifths of the price of the other garish designs, so I am expecting a delivery! Only a couple of garish pairs in there!

I saw my GP today to get new prescriptions etc. It was an excellent doctor, who I haven't met before. He was just behaving like both he and I were human (unlike the one I saw around diagnosis time, who looked exclusively at his computer). Today's one was so nice it made me emotional. No problems, like those I have heard others have had, with continuing the ciallis 5mg daily, the laxative powder, the sick leave. He reassured me he could speak on the phone if I leave a message. (Unfortunately he doesn't work with the absent district nurses.)

It feels so good to have met this GP! It is so reassuring.

Was it down to the lucky pad/pant combo?! (Just having them on. He didn't see them)

Henry

User
Posted 12 Apr 2016 at 09:56
Marks and Spencer Hipsters, "Cotton Stretch, Cool & Fresh"... perfect.
User
Posted 21 Apr 2016 at 20:51

I use Pringles Boxers

really good

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User
Posted 12 Apr 2016 at 09:56
Marks and Spencer Hipsters, "Cotton Stretch, Cool & Fresh"... perfect.
User
Posted 12 Apr 2016 at 10:51

Hi Henry,

I buy ' Speedo' type swimming trunks ( size small ) from Sport Direct...... only around five quid a pair..

Probably wouldn't be everyone's idea of underwear, but they do the job for me http://community.prostatecanceruk.org/editors/tiny_mce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-smile.gif 

I find when out walking dogs etc the trunks keep my pad firmly in place ( the tighter the better ) and leakage seems to be far less.

Luther.


User
Posted 13 Apr 2016 at 19:12

 Like you Henry, +1 for  tight boxers. 

First few weeks for me, post op,  there was significant scrotal swelling and discomfort. Coupled with the limited recovery of continence requiring a big pad, and the first few days after catheter removal required 'baggy but supportive'- OTT support squashed things uncomfortably. Once  things  stabilised and continence improved to allow a Level 1 pad, I found  that wearing a jockstrap type brief gave good support, but not without a downside: The op seems to have left me with persistently more painful epididymal cysts on the L testis, and so maybe I require more supportive underwear than some- The side of the jockstrap sometimes ( not always) digs in to the groin on the Left, where the vas deferens to the testis is.

Wearing a pad reduces the ventilation of the saddle /genital region compared with pre op. A consequence of this is that the balls, being hotter inside a pad, drop lower, and the muscular sling in the scrotum relaxes and thus  has to be assisted with supportive pants to prevent worsening ache. So, looking for something that was breathable and supportive, I found that the  X Bionic 'Energizer' ,boxers I have used for years when engaged in sweaty outdoors activity, did the trick. Not cheap at about £25, and you'll need them on the smaller side, but good support and comfort. They are tight boxers, so even though 'wicking' and very breathable, they can feel a bit warm in hot weather, and light duty pads seem to shift out of position a bit in them if active. Jockstrap briefs seem better for keeping things in place.

A problem I found with choice of jockstrap was that the purposefully supportive 'sportswear' ones were rather warm and bulky, whereas the more fashionable ones appeared to be minimally supportive. I realised i couldn't take myself too seriously when I ordered some which had the logo  PUMP! emblazoned across the waistband. My excuse for buying them is that they do the job, can fit a level 1 or 2 pad, and as they're ice blue in colour they're not too lurid! 

Some of the other designs I viewed...well, I leave it to your imagination..

Prostate cancer- sometimes you have to laugh..

User
Posted 20 Apr 2016 at 15:58

Thanks, All.
Luther, I have wondered about budgie smugglers. I might give them a go.
I plan to get back to the gym some time - probably skulking in already wearing my gym stuff (no longer incluging the old cycling short type things I was using before) and coming home in it to change at home.
I am determined not to be ashamed by my illness, but fiddling with pads in a gym changing room is perhaps not what anyone wants!
Anyhow - perhaps I can do the Speedo experiment for a gym trip. Shall only be doing the mildest of stuff, and largely things that can be done seated.

User
Posted 20 Apr 2016 at 21:10

Funny isn't it. If a man used the cubicle rather than the urinal, or went too frequently at the pub, John was always convinced they were drug-users. Now we know better and just look at each other knowingly ... 'prostate problems'

 

Henry, does your gym have an accessible or family changing room? You should be able to get a card from your GP practice or nurse specialist confirming that you have additional needs, which also allows you to apply for a radar key for accessible toilets. Or PCUK may still provide them? 

Edited by member 20 Apr 2016 at 21:13  | Reason: Not specified

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User
Posted 21 Apr 2016 at 20:51

I use Pringles Boxers

really good

User
Posted 21 Apr 2016 at 21:22

Swimming trunks worked well for the gym today. In fact square trunk 'endurance' made by Speedo. I believe that range is for quite serious swimmers, and they fit as if to make a determined effort to flatten any bulges. They hold a pad tight and true!

 
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