I had Holep surgery June 8. Prior to that I had an indwelling catheter for 8 months and was in retention. Life was better after switching from urethral catheter to SPC, but still very difficult with a catheter in my bladder.
Holep is NOT “minimally invasive”. While it’s nice that there’s no cutting, your prostatic tissue is nuked and your body reacts. My surgery was 4 hours. First few days after surgery were very difficult, peeing lots of blood. Cath could not come out the day after surgery as planned, but was removed 3 days after surgery.
I would say Holep has been everything I hoped for. I can pee on my own and get a strong stream. No real issues with frequency/urgency/nocturia, although there have been occasional rough days and nights. Also no issues with leakage other than it’s hard to stop the dripping after I pee. I stick a paper towel in my underwear and it’s all good.
My surgery was four hours and I’m still exhausted. Recovery is slow and non-linear. But overall I am glad to have it in the rear-view mirror, very pleased with the results, and would recommend Holep to anyone with major BPH or retention.