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Hello again everyone…well I go back to see doctor on Thursday and we start the process for the RC. i have a list a mile long..questions..concerns..and examples of stories and diversions…just need some re-assurance that I have everything on my list….anything that you can add or advise me of …I would appreciate it. I will be have the IC…just so you know!!!! Started this journey back in September and now it is coming to an end…I guess I shouldn’t say that like that….I should say there is finally some light at the end of this dark tunnel I have been wondering through!!!! I am getting tired of absorbing all the information…worrying..and I guess it’s kind of like a grieving process…my friends and family and my husband are telling me to let go a bit…by this they mean ..to step back and stop reading and talking about this cancer and give yourself a rest from the computer!!!! This website and the BCAN website have been my saving grace..so to speak!!!! I have met a lot of really beautiful people, and repect their stories and experiences with awe inspiring amazement!!! Thank you so much everyone..So if there is any little tid bit of advice or recommendation..I am all ears and eyes…I need to know that I have all my i’s dotted and t’s crossed!!!! And then maybe after Thursday..I might take a little break!!! Can honestly say..losing the bravery day by day..
Hi Shelly
I think you’d have to be crazy not to be nervous about your upcoming surgery – it’s a very big deal. I had the ileal conduit surgery with hysterectomy etc. in October 2011 at the Rockyview Hospital in Calgary. I had been dealing with bladder cancer recurrences since April 2007 when I decided on the surgery. Reading your letter to the forum made me remember how incredibly anxious and full of dread I was before the surgery. I think your comparison to a grieving process is very apt. Please let me reassure you that, while it is a big operation and will take some time to recover, you will be fine! I am so happy with my decision. Life with a pouch is really very “normal” after the initial adjustment period. I know that is kind of impossible to imagine beforehand, but it’s really true! The enterostomy nurses at the hospital (and hopefully in Red Deer for afterwards) will be a huge help to you. You also might want to ask for a visitor from the Ostomy Society, either while you’re in hospital or when you get home. Good luck and keep posting.Shelly:The day before your RC you will do a colon cleanse (and not eat) much as you would do for a colonoscopy, so don’t plan to have an evening out, unless the evening out is in an outhouse! When you awaken from surgery you will have tubes and catheters in places you did not know they could put them, but relax, they do not hurt while in nor when they are eased out. Your discomfort will be well managed by meds and will not be bad at all. Walk as soon as you can and as much as you can in spite of feeling woozy. Do not eat until they tell you (usually a few days later once the bowels indicate they are awake) and when you start go slow and in small amounts. Rest, pamper yourself, walk, drink, rest, walk, pamper yourself, walk…well you get the picture. Learn what you can while in hospital from the nurses; it will serve you well at home though you will likely get home visits as well, as needed. You may not notice improvement day by day but you certainly will week by week. Take care of your bowels – prune juice, stool softeners, laxatives, whatever it takes. Have a talk with the uro or nurse about this, but do not let it get out of hand once home. And keep us posted. We may be able to hug electronically as needed and offer encouragement. All the best.
GregYour friends, family and husband are right. You need to back off a bit. You know you need the RC. After the RC you will be on the mend and have other questions to ask. But now it’s time to let the cancer go bye bye. I guess you could put a tracking chip in your bladder so you’ll know where it goes but that’s up to you. Speaking of tracking chips, there is a new scam going on around here whereby people go around grocery stores, shops, etc. and give away nice looking keey holders. Usually they give them to those who appear well to do. But inside the key holder is a tracking chip. They find out where you live, where you go, etc. Now that is worrisome. Your bladder, time to part, it served you well for many years. Anyway, I wish you well and hope you resist any key holders anyone offers you.
Kiowa
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