I just had my catheter taken out yesterday (12/12) and was wondering how long I will need to wear diapers or other protection. The cateter was in a total of 12 days. I had robotic LRP.

At 49 I had RRP surgery - lost nerves on both sides. I very quickly regained continence. No big problems at all - wish I could say the same about erections - Viagra and Levitra don't do a damn thing except give me a headache.

Good luck!

I just had my catheter taken out yesterday (12/12) and was wondering how long I will need to wear diapers or other protection. The cateter was in a total of 12 days. I had robotic LRP.
Burmashave,
Welcome to the club! A little patience please. It takes a while for your nerves, muscles & other tissues to heal. You just had surgery & a catheter also makes your system forget how to control for a while. Are you doing Kegel exercises? I had an RP on 7-10-2002 at age 46. Good control took about 6 months. My catheter stayed in for 21 days. I still wear a pad at work but probably don't need to. On days off I wear boxers with no protection. I rarely leak after urinating now. If your surgery had no complications, you should gain fairly good,if not complete control. Age is a factor also. You CAN do it!!
--Positive4U

At 49 I had RRP surgery - lost nerves on both sides. I very quickly regained continence. No big problems at all - wish I could say the same about erections - Viagra and Levitra don't do a damn thing except give me a headache.

Good luck!
Ron Z,
Have you considered implants or pumps? Inconvenient but why miss out on a good part of life?
Positive 4U

I guess I don't realise how serious this surgery was and seem to be setting my expectations too high. Right now I am wearing Depends that have tape on the sides but they have a lot of bare plastic on the sides that make me sweat there. Also they don't fit under my normal clothes. Does any one have any recomendations on what works the best and still fit under normal clothes? Will I eventualy be able to get by with just a pad?

I guess I don't realise how serious this surgery was and seem to be setting my expectations too high. Right now I am wearing Depends that have tape on the sides but they have a lot of bare plastic on the sides that make me sweat there. Also they don't fit under my normal clothes. Does any one have any recomendations on what works the best and still fit under normal clothes? Will I eventualy be able to get by with just a pad?

I will echo Positive4u and recommend Kegel exercises to strengthen muscles. For anyone needing info, here is an excellent link:

http://www.acs.ohio-state.edu/units/osuhosp/patedu/Materials/PDFDocs/dis-cond/general/kegel-for-men.pdf

I'm 47 and had RRP Jan 26/04 with catheter removed after 18 days. I rarely have leakage now (2 weeks after removal), mainly only if I'm tired and straining: sneezing etc. Most days I get by with one pad with full pull-on at night. (A pad would likely be sufficient at night but I'm more secure with the the pant since I can be sure it'll stay in place.) I found a store brand with minimal plastic which greatly reduced the sweating problem. On the whole I have been very pleased with the recovery of bladder function. Good luck!