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I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM ANYONE USING/USED BETHANECHOL

Posted , 2 users are following.

tom512836
tom512836

Bethanechol is a drug that activates the bladdedr muscles to contract so that the bladder empties.  Some of us, for many reasons, have problems with the bladder muscles not working 100% so that we are left with residual retention.

I have just had a successful green light laser surgery for BPH.  Even so, I have had episodes of "peeing like a race horse" and other times having to bear down and  push for partial emptying.

In an attempt to rule things out I had a lumbar spinal MRI performed to rule out nurological causes.  No spinal problems.  Therefore both my doctor and I agree that it must be failure of bladder contractions for which he has prescribed Bethanechol.

That's why I'm asking to hear from anyone who has used it and how did it work out for you? 

0 likes, 12 replies

12 Replies

  • gbhall
    gbhall tom512836

    Posted

    Are you really happy to have yet another chemical put forward as a possible solution to what is really a mechanical problem? Does the thought of possible side-effects (maybe in other parts of your body) not concern you?

    What if you were offered a temporary and painless fitment of a simple tap, which you could open any time you found you could not pee naturally and would completely empty your bladder ? A mechanical solution that does actually exist. It is called self-catheterisation, where you pass an extremely slippery and thin catheter to empty your bladder, then throw it away.

    There is a great deal of information on this site about CIC, that many people use all the time - why not check it out ?

  • anthony2858
    anthony2858 tom512836

    Posted

    Tom,

    My doctor also prescribed me Bethanacol 50 mg,  utilizing the "process of elimination" in an attempt to get my bladder to a point to where it can squeeze better and help in voiding out. I was taking 3 a day and was realizing nothing is different,  so as gbhall mentioned, I decided to take myself off the med, basically all I was doing was putting something into my body I know nothing about.  Enough with the drugs,   All I take now is Tamsulosin, 1 daily.    And also as gbhall mentioned,  I have started the self cath program,  that way I know my bladder is emptying 100% at least 2 time a day,, I am in hopes that my bladder will find its way home eventually recognizing what an empty bladder looks and feels like.   Self cathing is easy, quick and comes with a huge feeling of relief!

    Be careful to just take anything prescribed to you.   Good luck to ya!!

    • tom512836
      tom512836 anthony2858

      Posted

      I agree with both you guys.  Even if I wind up with total success I still want to be equipped to do self cath.  Then, and only then, will I feel secure.  I had a TURP 20+ years ago and a green light laser now.  Nothing lasts forever.  Who's to say when I might need self cath.

      ​Strange, whenever I briing up the subject of self cath with my UR he skillfully dodges the issue.  I wonder why?

      Can you guys recommend some good catheters and perhaps their web pages?  I'm looking for something that won't feel painfull or uncomfortable going in.

      Also, if a person's UR seems to foot drag where else could I go to learn?

      Tom

  • gbhall
    gbhall tom512836

    Posted

    Coloplast speedicath win all the prizes on here. I added a link to a demonstration video on how to use one, from Coloplast site, but that has sent my post into moderation.
    • tom512836
      tom512836 gbhall

      Posted

      I will put Coloplast speedicath in Google to find it.
  • tom512836
    tom512836

    Posted

    To gbhall

    Was just on the phone with Coloplast.  Thanks for the recommendation.

    ​Tom

  • anthony2858
    anthony2858 tom512836

    Posted

    I tried one other brand and not sure of the name but it was a little rough coming out, no lube.

    I like Speedee #12. They are the smallest and are very good also the new ones for travel work very nice for me also.  Actually I think they are even better!

    Anthony.

    • tom512836
      tom512836 anthony2858

      Posted

      Every doctor and nurse I have talked to so far are hell bent on talking me out of learning self cath.  I tell them I don't plan on becoming a self cather 100%.  I just want to know how to do it IF I EVER NEED IT!

      I really think they are threatened by patients being pro active!

      Tom

    • gbhall
      gbhall tom512836

      Posted

      This is something many men have commented upon. It is considered inevitable that Urologists see a threat to their income stream when essentially they have training and equipment for only one specific procedure.

      Patients who use the self-cath route to avoid an immediate decision and even more threatingly, research and often choose an alternative procedure altogether...... it makes sense.

      It's a pity that the current major procedure, TURP, is increasingly seen as barbaric, and should be superceded as quickly as possible.

    • tom512836
      tom512836 gbhall

      Posted

      Did you run into resistance when you decided to learn/practice self cath?

      Tom

    • gbhall
      gbhall tom512836

      Posted

      Not quite certain of your question ?  I am in the UK and the suggestion to 'try self-cath' came from a urinary nurse, not a doctor. The UK does not have to stop people running away from a money-hungry surgeon.

      The nurse gave me that suggestion immediately after removing a foley catheter I had been left with after acute retention. She opened the catheter package, handed it to me and said to just drop it in very gemtly without touching the actual catheter. There comes a point at the base of the prostate where you feel a slight resistance, but just slowly and gently ease it past that point, then again as you enter the bladder, at which point you can learn to relax the muscle at the same time as the urine surges out. That was it. Nothing more to learn, total 50 seconds or so. She sent me home with a trial pack, fixed up routine delivery for me, and at a later consultation six motnhs or sal later, the consultant said we don't use those any more, Coloplast speedicath are better....go with the nurse and try one now. So I changed prescription on the spot.

    • tom512836
      tom512836 gbhall

      Posted

      There is the difference!  I was unaware that you were UK.  I'm from the US.

      I imagine the difference is not so much with us as patients but rather lies with the medical establishments of our two countries.

      They tend to look at things from different perspectives.

      On a personal note:  Funny, you don't write with a British accent, (A joke)

      Tom

       

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