“Persistence and resilience only come from having been given the chance to work though difficult problems.” – Gever Tulley

I recently received a suprapubic catheter. The surgery was completed with no problems or complications. The main reason I had surgery was I no longer held complete control over my bladder function and the catheter will help me regain that control.

It was an outpatient procedure that lasted an hour and a half. My urologist and his team made me feel so comfortable during the preoperative instructions and evaluation that I urged my mother to stay home. My husband was there and that was enough support.

Despite my comfort level with my doctors and the surgery, I still had the normal pre-surgical jitters.

So to ease my doubts, I persistently played in my head the reasons why I was getting the procedure done. I remembered the sleepless nights. We were waking up every three hours to use the restroom. I vividly recalled the times I returned home from a night out wearing wet soggy Depends. I called to mind dozens of ruined outings due to a weak bladder and the endless anxiety about the “restroom situation” every place I went.

I used all of these memories as my motivation to continue with the surgery.

Now the big question is…

So, was it worth it?

The answer is…

An overwhelming YES! I would do it again tomorrow.

It’s been less than a week but so far so good. And as we all know, there is a learning curve with everything. So as I learn, I will let you know. But for now it seems to have worked out.

It was a success.