Tips and advice for any bladder or bowel side effects of treatment
Male lower urinary tract symptoms: Lifestyle, bladder training and pelvic floor exercises are the focus. Fluid management. Caffeine tends to act as an irritant to the bladder so substitute with decaffeinated drinks. If you drink large quantities of caffeinated drinks cut down over a fortnight to reduce withdrawal effects.
Bladder retraining - don't let your bladder control you. Get out of the habit ' just in case' you must learn to control your bladder. Teaching your bladder to hold a greater volume of urine and number of times you need to pass urine. Try to distract yourself for five to fifteen minutes; by doing this your bladder will learn to hold on more and the symptoms will reduce. Rushing to the toilet will not help.
Pelvic floor exercises. Muscles form a hammock underneath the your pelvic to provide support and control the bladder and bowel. The openings to your bladder and bowel pass through the pelvic floor muscle. When muscles are not working effectively you may suffer from urinary incontinence. NHS App Squeezy Man 'the knack' designed to help remember to do pelvic floor muscle exercises. Happy squeezing!
How this treatment impacted my life the most
At 54, the minor leakages has impacted my life the most, ensuring that I have adequate supply of lining pads and disposal bags, or where to dispose increased anxiety but eight years on they have become a normal part of my daily routine. like shaving. Daily tasks from standing at the sink washing up to lifting heavy plant pots in the garden can cause simple urinary leakage. Luckily I'm dry throughout the night and sleep soundly. I have a supportive partner who accepts me and the post op side effects. I have now investigated alternative treatments for incontinence (male sling and Artificial urinary sphincter) with my hospital urology support team and completed preliminary tests and withdrew from the process as my current symptoms remain manageable.
Why did I give this answer?
I'd wanted the cancer removed in toto in one go, so radical prostatectomy with unilateral nerve sparring and the living with post op symptoms was the clear solution.
