hi Niko
thanks for the kind words.
I wouldn’t worry too much about the catheter as any problems you have can bounce off the CNS or here and I’m pretty sure we’ll solve them as I did when I had a couple of questions with temporary blockages with mine. Basically The feed out of the bladder is like a filter and can get clot debris blocking it but if you think about it with respect to gravity just changing the orientation of your body can move the clots and open up the reservoir. Outside of that it was all pretty simple. After a few days you feel like MacGyver of the catheter world :-)
I was about 60 miles from the hospital and the CNS was on email and phone any time I needed her but it wasn’t needed. As this forum was fantastic when I had one moment of panic a few days after surgery because of a blockage.
I went back to the place of treatment at guys cause I wanted the CNS to remove the catheter rather than someone in my local hospital that may not be a urologist specialist nurse. I’m sure in reality probably wouldn’t make any difference but it definitely felt more warm and fluffy to get it done by part of the incumbent team.
It seems a lot of information to digest at this stage, but I can assure you it’s very easy. The biggest drama I had was on the way home. I needed a pee badly and the train toilet was out of order. I was on the point of bursting and the guard helped me out with access. I was very close to having a pee on the platform at a train stop rather than releasing it in my pants. I’d also taken a travel John portable urinal but that would’ve scared the crap out of the Passengers on the train. I did have some fun emptying my catheter bag which was full of pink urine at my local station toilets. I’ve tried to get into a cubicle but they were all full so I cocked my leg up unzipped my trousers and emptied the catheter bag into a urinal. Two guys either side of me looked terrified and ran out.
One of the best things to buy is full length zip track side athletic trousers because they make changing and any admin with the bag super easy on the go without having to take anything off. It’s also excellent if you wanna freak out your friends.
I picked up some Canterbury rugby style full length sports trousers on Amazon for about £35 and they were absolutely legendary. It was a top tip I picked up on here.
Best of luck with next steps
Simon
Edited by member 27 Jun 2025 at 19:57
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