What advice have you received from your doctors?

[Patrick]

Brian,

Your post above leads me to think that you may have had a sphincterotomy. I had one in August, 1999. I think that surgery may not be all that common, so, to encounter someone else who had it, and to be able to share experiences, would be useful.

[B Brian]

Patrick, I have had 4 urinary sphincterotomies in the last year and a half. The first three were to open up my external sphincter as it had been automatically clamping shut really tight. It still spasms out a lot and can temporarily stop my urine flow at times but is otherwise mostly always open now.

The fourth surgery was to remove two strictures that had developed from my constant straining to pee, and from the successive surgeries. It was also to try and open up my internal sphincter as well, but was mostly unsuccessful in that part. I still stain to pee half of the time, and will likely need a fifth sphincterotomy later this year after I've had more time to recoup from the last one.

I even came extremely close to getting a bowel external sphincterotomy too. I had developed a painful bleeding anal fissure from all that same straining. Thankfully at the last minute the pain started to let up as my other sphincterotomies had started to let me strain less and heal more. I may still need it later on though as I still have it- though not as bad now. Just waiting to see if this fifth one will work enough first.

[Patrick]

You're way ahead of me. I've only had one sphincterotomy; that was enough. However, my symptoms seem to be returning, so I may need another. Although it is not terribly painful, a sphincterotomy is really uncomfortable, and the nursing care during recovery is embarrassing. My hospital roommate when I had my surgery was dying of alcoholic cirrhosis. That is one painful way to go. Compared with that, urinary and fecal incontinence are a walk in the park.

[matthewmeto]

"Lose weight and quit smoking."

Ugh...I hate condescending doctors.

[MSUSpartan]

Maybe his/her tone or demeanor was condescending, but given the quote only, I would just say that's sound medical advice.

[matthewmeto]

Maybe his/her tone or demeanor was condescending, but given the quote only, I would just say that's sound medical advice.

That is good advice, you are right. It just seemed like they weren't take the incontinence issue seriously at all despite asking them to.

[WetDad]

IMO, you don't want your Dr. to treat ic seriously. That will involve lots of drugs with terrible side effects.

[matthewmeto]

IMO, you don't want your Dr. to treat ic seriously. That will involve lots of drugs with terrible side effects.

Well what other choice do you have? How can you get some kind of resolution, diagnosis, or solution without a doctors help?

[Ted]

Hello Matthewmeto, You're right. Outside of homeopathic possibilities there's precious little that can be done without a doctor. From what I can tell there's a pretty good chance that you can resolve your issues with medical help. There may be some reasons why you wouldn't want to pursue that path, but that is a VERY personal decision. Some here have resolved the issue by accepting incontinence. Many here have no choice. From your posts it sounds like your early on in your journey thru the problem of incontinence. That being said, you have to make the decisions that best suit you. If the thought that diapers are unacceptable, then you really need to see a medical professional. Yeah, that's tough. I'm currently reluctant to go thru the full urological battery. I'll be satisfied with my problem knowing there is no dangerous situation going on. At my age prostate issues can be potentially lethal. So I'm having that checked out. If everything is OK I'll just deal with my incontinence. I'm just getting to the point in my life that the issue isn't worth the fight.

I'm assuming you're considerably younger. At your age the thought of a lifetime in diapers or catheters is probably disturbing. Don't hesitate seeing a doctor. You can always choose to not accept his treatment. The doctor is there for YOU. Ted

[matthewmeto]

Hello Matthewmeto, You're right. Outside of homeopathic possibilities there's precious little that can be done without a doctor. From what I can tell there's a pretty good chance that you can resolve your issues with medical help. There may be some reasons why you wouldn't want to pursue that path, but that is a VERY personal decision. Some here have resolved the issue by accepting incontinence. Many here have no choice. From your posts it sounds like your early on in your journey thru the problem of incontinence. That being said, you have to make the decisions that best suit you. If the thought that diapers are unacceptable, then you really need to see a medical professional. Yeah, that's tough. I'm currently reluctant to go thru the full urological battery. I'll be satisfied with my problem knowing there is no dangerous situation going on. At my age prostate issues can be potentially lethal. So I'm having that checked out. If everything is OK I'll just deal with my incontinence. I'm just getting to the point in my life that the issue isn't worth the fight.

I'm assuming you're considerably younger. At your age the thought of a lifetime in diapers or catheters is probably disturbing. Don't hesitate seeing a doctor. You can always choose to not accept his treatment. The doctor is there for YOU. Ted

Thanks, Ted. I recently saw a doctor on Thursday, and he kind of just blew me off. (My post was a small vent towards that, lol) Told me to call back in two weeks if its still a problem, despite saying its been a problem for a long time. I did get urinalysis done, so hopefully that gives some insight. I am 28 years old, and you are right, the though of a lifetime in diapers, pullups, or catheters is pretty disturbing.