Hi Gary - you should be very proud of yourself!! You have now gained control over your bladder instead of your bladder controlling you! The first time I did CIC I cried (true!) and then I fainted in the doctor’s office. I said I could never do it again and would just have my prostate removed. But when I go home I searched the internet and found this forum and jimjames who took me by the hand and guided me through the experience. I would visualise him standing next to me talking me through each step. I was determined to master this just as I had mastered other things throughout my life that were very scary at first.
So the good news is that it does get easier - so easy in fact that it is actually easier now than flossing my teeth!! But you mus be careful and mindful to not rush things and master your technique. It really is no big deal - you are just sticking a straw a few inches inside to drain your bladder. My secret was to go slowly and never push if it hurt. Some bleeding is normal at the start as the tissue lining the urethra is very vascular like the gum linings in your mouth. You may recall when you first started flossing your gums would bleed but then they stopped bleeding. It is the same with CIC - once the urethral tissue gets used to the catheter the bleeding will stop. Don’t hesitate to PM me if you wish. I will help you. You are learning a skill that will help you the rest of your life and may even save your life as it did mine. Good for you! Howard
The first two times I tried to self cath using a stiff plastic coude tip catheter, I ended up with blood coming out of my penis. It was scary. I had to clamp down on it to get it to stop. My uro recommended trying straight tip latex catheters. Since then, things have been good. At times my urethra seems tighter than at other times, but I have had no insertion issues. I have a new sense of freedom, as I no longer worry when the next urge to urinate is going to suddenly occur and where the closest bathroom is. I sleep through the night. I have never experienced any soreness, although I have found different lubricants can cause some slight irritation.
Being tense, may be part of your problem. Try to relax. If you feel yourself tensing up, stop and try to relax, and then keep going in. Do not force it, as that is when you can cut yourself. I have also found with stiffer catheters that pushing up on the perineum when you get to the prostate can help the catheter make the turn.
Question regarding Cialis. I thought it was still under patent and wasn’t available as a generic - at least not in the US.
Gary, Cure Ultra is not a good one to start with. It’s convenient, yes, but the prelube is a thick gel that can irritate your urethra. When I used Ultra, I wiped the gel off and apply a water based lube before use.
The best one to start with is Cure hydrophilic HM12 or HM12C. It comes with a water packet.
Hi Howard, what is the best leg position for CIC ? Do you squat ? Legs apart, how wide ?
Puff generic cialis (Tadalafil) is easy to get from Canaidian pharmacy ( must have valid prescription tho). Don’t know if i’m allowed to mention it here but Northwest pharmacy (Canadian) is $116 for 90 day supply. I believe it has so far kept me from daily CIC. Tried Uroxatrol but as much as much as i’m scared to death of CIC i would rather do it daily than suffer the side effects of Uroxatrol. Thanks for your support!
Hi, Howard,
Your description “…the catheter then seems to pull itself upwards into the bladder…” matches my own experience exactly except that I describe it as “… catheter seems to be sucked into the bladder…” Same difference. We’re obviously on the same track here!
Warm regards, alan86734.
Looks like it must be off patent in Canada. I took Tamsulosin and Finasteride before I started self cathing. The Tamsulosin caused retrograde ejaculation. My uro eventually took me off both drugs after I started CIC. Now, I don’t take any prostate drugs.
There is nothing to be scared of doing CIC. You need to get comfortable with it.
I’ve been using Surgilube for 2 years now and it is great in all respects. I just squeeze a little down the quarter-open sleeve and give it a minute to coat the hydrophilic catheter and it works like power steering.
Thanks Alan. I found this effect by experimenting with the final angle while pointing downwards into the toilet. It really is a nice effect. Then when the bladder is finished emptying I just release the upward pressure and the catheter ejects itself from the bladder - like power steering!
I forgot to mention when inserting the first third vertically downwards using jimjames dive bomb method that I keep my index finger over the cup to stabilize the tip of the catheter during insertion and the first third. Then when i swing it down horizontal for the middle third I bring my thumb and index finger around the side of the green funnel. Take care. Howard
I have some catheters that I have not used in several years, but they have a date on them. I am looking at a Lofric Origo that says Should be used before 2016-09. So, do these expire? I was keeping them for emergency purposes only, but is that not a good idea? Has anyone used a catheter past the “expiration” date?
I used expired catheters all the time. Just make sure to add lube if they seem to be dry.
My medical supplier gave me a box on non lubricated plastic catheters that were about to expire. Nothing wrong with them. I can see where the hydrophilic or pre lubricated ones might dry out, and I suppose the plastic or latex could deteriorate at some point, but if they work, I don’t know why you can’t use them.
The best thing about the hydrophilic pre-lubed is of course that they eliminate one messy time consuming step. They’re especially good on the road. I just carry a few catheters and some alcohol pads and you’re good to go. Whats left of the catheter is not considered medical waste so can just be disposed of in the trash.
Pluff, you mentioned plastic is stiff, latex is soft. How about silicone ? My guess is then Speedicath is made of plastic, and Cure is made of latex. Agree?
No, the Cure catheters are also made of plastic. I believe that the flexibility of plastic catheters is related to FR size and manufacturing differences. Coloplast makes two non lubricated catheters that differ only in flexibility. I don’t know if they each are manufactured with a different plastic formula or if the difference is lumen size, which would make the walls thinner and the catheter more flexible.
As for silicon, I understand that it tends to be more flexible than plastic. It also is more expensive.
Peter
Got it. Thanks.
Any thoughts on this dilemma?
- I tried a Hydrosil catheter … had about one UTI/year and a testicle infection each year. I found if I got bumped, the next day I would have a UTI, then it would be hard to insert a catheter past the prostate. Then I would get a testicle infection which hurts a lot…probably because the catheter opens the Epididymus and spreads infection to the testicles.
- Switched to a Speedicath Flex … three UTIs in 9 months. A Cystoscopy showed a purple injury in my bladder thought to be caused by the catheter’s hard pointy tip.
What next?
I haven’t had a UTI since starting CIC over 3 years ago. How are you doing to keep it clean ?
Are you talking about Speedicath Coude Flex ? It is coiled up and stored in a pocket size envelope. I tried it out and found it very easy and comfortable.
The regular Speedicath in green package however is stiff and the 12fr coude gave me many urethral injuries, possibly few false passages also.
Same with me Hank. I’ve been using the coude tip 12 fr hydrophilic coloplast now for over two years. No UTIs although I’m not noticing a whole lot of change for positive either. I’m convinced that my prostatitis was caused by urinary retention. I was probably holding a lot in my bladder; I had lost feeling in the nerves of the bladder and it was actually hard to tell that I wasn’t emptying. I didn’t realize when I had to frequent urinations that I wasn’t even coming close to getting it all out. Just enough to get a little relief but the urge to pee would come back quickly then. Only when I began getting incontenant at night did I realize how bad it had gotten.
At first I was not using the coude tip because it felt sharp upon insertion and I didn’t really need it anyways because I wasn’t having a lot of trouble getting into the bladder opening. After trying the coude tip again now I think its easier. I thought that maybe I was poking the prostate more because my psa was going up; and that the coude tip might help. My psa is still elevated but the coude seems to be working better for me now. I know they’re a lot more expensive than the straight ones - at least with Coloplast - and my medigap plan is picking up my 20%. I hope I remain UTI free. I have an appointment with my Urologist in a couple of days. I have never gotten an estimate of the size of my prostate or if its the median lobe that is blocking me. I’m wondering if I should try to go straight to a radiologist because I expect my Uro is going to do the same thing he did two years ago. My GP keeps offering me antibiotics to bring my psa down or a biopsy. On another thread we’ve discussed this. I’m going to talk to him about a free psa estimate. My GP told me that the free psa isn’t done much anymore.