The recovery process took much longer than was suggested. The pain in my neck and shoulders a couple of days after surgery was intense, but dissipated gradually. Fatigue has been an ongoing problem and I have found it is important to keep active, but not over do it. Patience is a virtue as there seems to be, for me anyway, no quick way of getting back to full fitness. Accept the situation and commit to doing your best to find ways forward in dealing with the problems.
So much seemed to have changed in the way my body was working. I led an active healthy life and had no symptoms indicating prostate cancer apart from a slightly raised PSA level, 3.8. The day I went for the operation I was feeling fit and healthy, if rather emotionally fraught. After surgery , and for several weeks, energy levels were low and body felt weak. I started to feel very vulnerable as all the things I enjoyed doing were no longer possible. Time brought about healing and as I started to engage more in the activities I enjoyed and spent time with family and friends, not focusing on the experiences post surgery, things improved. Two years on I still experience anxiety and mood swings, but support from the right people enables me to move on.
It stopped me doing the things I had already planned and inhibited planning for the future. It created a high degree of uncertainty about how my body would respond to the demands of the active lifestyle I was previously living . It created a sense of vulnerability and constant 'what if' thoughts fueling anxiety. It took time, effort and support from the right people to get thinking back on track and the restoration of normality in the way one appreciates what life has to offer.
Yes
Physical recovery from the procedure was relatively quick. Restoring confidence and reducing sense of vulnerability is taking much, much longer. My operation, it seems, was a success. This treatment resolved the immediate threat. It removed the cancer. I believe it enabled me to avoid a much longer, protracted treatment, which could have caused similar and more wide ranging side effects to those I have experienced. I think this treatment was right for me.
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