My TURP journey – one year on

I’m 53 year old male, live in London, UK, this is my TURP journey which started in 2021 with a mixture of NHS treatment and then transferring to private (BUPA) care.

My symptoms: Very weak urine flow, getting up to urinate several times a night, having to pull over for frequent wee stops on long car journeys. Diagnosed as enlarged prostate, put on Tamsulosin initially but had little effect. After various scans including a Urodynamics test at the Cromwell Hospital, treatment suggested was a Bi-polar TURP.

Day 1. The operation (March 2022)

The pain after operation wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Operation was done at 6pm, very little sleep that night due to catheter and pneumatic compression boot on one leg to prevent DVT. Having the catheter in wasn’t too bad, but grit your teeth when it’s removed! The first time I tried to urinate after the catheter was very difficult. Despite having a full bladder the urine dribbles out and is painful. I remember being pretty despondent but my consultant said this is normal and I need to give it time. And he was right. After 2-3 days the flow improves considerably, and came out with surprising force - but still painful.

1-2 weeks post operation

I did feel groggy for a few weeks after and had two weeks off work, had a suspected infection which made me feel very shivery - had to return to hospital for antibiotics injection and box of antibiotics. I’d also get very sharp shooting pains in my penis, mostly with nocturnal erections which would be so painful they’d jolt me awake. These eventually went away after a month. Also noticed that emptying bowel is dramatically affected due to anaesthetic, took a good 5 days for me to have a first poo post operation!

A month post operation

After a month, the flow of urine decreased in force considerably, almost back to how it was pre-operation. There were days when I’d be urinating every half an hour. I would also get mild infections and have to get antibiotics from my GP. I noticed pain in the urethra at the tip of my penis - this meant urinating was still painful. I felt pretty low at this point.

Two months post operation

After two months the flow had improved, nowhere near the force a few weeks after the op, but still better. It was still a little painful to wee as well. Not getting up at all in the night. No problems with sex either, and not completely dry as very small amount of ejaculate is emitted, although lube is required to moisten things up!

4-5 months post operation

After four-five months. No pain at all and flow had stabilised, nowhere near as powerful as after operation but better than before op. To be honest I’m a little disappointed the flow isn’t stronger. Other improvements are not having to get up to wee during night, able to go on long car journey without pulling over every 30 mins for a wee.

A year on

While the flow isn’t as strong as I thought it would be, it varies between feeling quite good to sometimes a bit of a dribble – but on the whole its much better. I’m not getting up through night (unless I’ve had a few pints), I can go on long car journeys without pulling over all the time. It has affected my libido a little, I think it’s ‘numbed’ it a little, when having sex there is a little ejaculate but not a lot, and lube is needed to get going! Was it worth it? Absolutely. My experience is that it has taken a year for everything to settle down and for the benefits to be seen, it’s a bit of an up and down journey but worked for me.

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