I agree, it definitely seems like the medicos don't know anywhere near as much about what they are doing as they try to make us think they do... Then they get upset when we call them on it!

My situation has now changed a bit, though hopefully not long term... I'd been expecting that I wouldn't be having any prostate issues after almost 2 years on estradiol, plus getting last September, but lately I've been having intermittent problems w/ getting my intermittent catheter to go all the way into my bladder.

It seems like it would get hung up ~3/4" or so before going in, but if I kept a bit of pressure pushing in on it, after a few seconds it felt like it found the right place and shifted a bit then popped in the rest of the way... I wasn't terribly concerned, but a few nights ago I suddenly found I had a major difficulty, it took me multiple tries, a lot of position changes, and then felt more like luck that I got the cath to go in at all...

I called the 'on-call' doc, and he advised me to head into the ER - which I did. They put in a Coude type Foley, and I'm now using a bag until I get to see the Urology folks on the 13th, and see what they think...

Ironically, earlier that day I'd gotten a message from my PCP that the 'research dept' had told him that I was at a higher than usual risk of prostate cancer because of family history - so did I want to do PSA testing? He thought I was not at a lot of risk because of being on E, but wanted my thoughts... I was inclined to anyway, but I also posted the question here (see the PSA thread) and was emphatically advised that I should.... (Essentially that anyone w/ a prostate should be tested, regardless of other status...)

I just hope they can figure out and fix the problem, as I really don't want to be stuck w/ an indwelling cath and bag long term...

WheelyFixed

I use VaPro plus catheters. They are completely sealed with a small bag. Easy and discrete. I also have Botox injection into my bladder 4 times a year to reduce spasiams. The biggest help are using always 6 drop bladder pads and I fold them in half. I also wear stretchy women’s panties that hold them in place.

Gfbi7890 (imported) wrote: Tue Mar 05, 2024 9:41 pm I use VaPro plus catheters. They are completely sealed with a small bag. Easy and discrete. I also have Botox injection into my bladder 4 times a year to reduce spasiams. The biggest help are using always 6 drop bladder pads and I fold them in half. I also wear stretchy women’s panties that hold them in place.

I'm bad about not cathing as often as the docs tell me I should, and as I recollect the VaPro's only have a 750ml bag, which I'd consistently overflow... I had been using the Cure Medical (made by Convatec) CS-14 kits which have a 1500ml bag which works better for me, and has all the other supplies that you might need in the kit. I don't know what will change given the latest issues.

One advantage of the bag is that leakage isn't an issue, so I'm not using pads now. However I've been using the Prevail "Male Guard" pads which are pretty high capacity. I'm also still using the "tighty-whitey" guy's briefs I've been using most of my life, even though now they are sort of baggy The only problem w/ the male guard pads (and the comparable Amazon Basics pad) is that it has a fold in the middle which results in a gap between me and the pad - probably made worse by the baggy men's underwear... I'd been working on designing some 'drop front' underwear to make access for cathing easier and make the fit better, but that is now on hold until I find out what is happening w/ the bladder issues.

WheelyFixed