FarRed,
If all goes well, hopefully you will not need to cath at all.
However, if you do, it will be a piece of cake! I had pretty bad BPH prior to surgery also so getting scoped or the BCG treatments via a cath were not much fun at all.
Now, I can cath with a 16 French catheter with no discomfort whatsoever. Your prostate will be coming out and I can tell you that is great thing if you've been having problems due to BPH. Do be sure to get nerve sparing or else there will not be an erection again in your future. Even with nerve sparing, it can take up to three years to work properly.
Without the prostate, I could probably do my own cystoscopes without a problem now though.
The prostatic sphincter can get really tight in a BPU situation. That's what causes the pain. Without it, no big deal.
Again, if all goes well, you won't need to cath at all. Cathing is a once a week or once every few days event for some. Others, never. Me....I have to cath every single time I go, but I am in the unfortunate few.
I can tell you this....be sure you have the best damn surgeon you can find with the most experience. That increases the chances of being in the majority who don't have problems afterward. I did that but still have to cath, but it is no big deal for me (although I would have loved to have been in the majority who can just urinate normally).
Best of luck on the surgery!
Mike
Check back with us and let us know how it goes.
When recovering, you will not feel like it but you
MUST walk every day. Also, chew gum the day after the surgery and every day until your intestines wake up. This (walking and chewing) does absolute wonders for recovery and makes a HUGE difference in recovery time and how soon you will be able to go home.
It's going to be rough for a while but then it gets easy, and then it's all just a part of life and no big deal. At times, it won't seem like it but, trust me....it will.
DO NOT LIFT ANYTHING MORE THAN A QUARTER POUNDER WITH CHEESE. Lifting darn near anything can lead to numerous hernias. Just don't do it. Take it very easy after surgery and you will be fine.
Mike