New to Self Cath

Hi Neil,

I learned to self cath about 6 months ago. I only need to do it when I find myself unable to pee due to an enlarged prostate and drinking to much liquid in a short time.

I read everything I could find on the internet and watched the movies. I use coloplast speedicaths. They are hydrophilic (self lubricated). I have used the straight and the tieman (coude) tip. I use a 12FR or a 14FR, both sizes work perfectly.

The first few times I did it, I was seeing blood on the catheter and in the urine for the next 12 hours or so. Twice I was passing scary blood clots. My urologist’s nurse told me both were normal and nothing to worry about. But with some practice I have eliminated blood completely from the routine.

I wipe the tip of my penis with alcohol wipes and then hold the catheter only by the funnel end. I don't touch the catheter itself at all. I usually sit on the side of the bed and stretch my penis outward at a 45 degree angle. Pull out firmly, it takes some of the bends out. I then push the catheter very slowly in. With the coude tip, I make sure the line on the funnel is facing me. That faces the bent tip toward my body.

Then, the important part. When the cath gets to the spincer muscle, I feel a pinch or slight discomfort. I learned to just push very gently to keep a very slight pressure on the catheter without trying to push it past. In less than a minute the muscle will fatigue and relax, allowing the catheter to very easily advance into the bladder. Breathing deep at that point also helps relax the muscle. Don't force it, just use a gentle pressure and the spincer will open and let the cath through. That method ended my seeing any blood at all.

With practice, the whole thing becomes very easy and not at all painful. The coloplast speedicaths are the way to go. I tried cheaper caths and they are not nearly as slippery and were to floppy, I had to feed them in by holding the catheter itself rather than just the funnel. And they were uncomfortable to pull out.

I hope this helps. I took one of those very painful trips to the ER with an over full bladder just one time. And had a brutal nurse Ratchet shove what felt like a gravel impregnated garden hose up me. Self cathing is so much better. If I even feel like I am having problems, I don't wait, I just do it.

?John

It is weird to read my post from 3 years ago when I first started CIC. A lot has happened since then but I must say that CIC has been a great help to me. Once I got up the learning curve with help from the kind folks here, CIC is now easier than flossing my teeth, as jimjames promised. Also CIC has rehabed my bladder somewhat so I have a good natural void. Also my hydronephrosis has cleared up too and a recent cystoscopy showed a nice clean bladder.

I CIC 4 times a day so have now passed the 5000 mark! My NVs are around 200 to 250cc followed by 250 cc catheter void when I do it.

In the 3 years I have had only 4 UTIs though the first one doesn't count since I was learning. The others were because I rushed and did not clean properly. I have only used Speedicath 14fr coude tip hydrophilics as they work so well.

BTW: The PAE failed but at least it did not harm me (except for my bank account!).

Thanks to everyone and welcome to the newbies!

Howard

A lot of good information already provided. i self cathed for a year 4-6 times a day and could not void on my own until my Turp. i tried many different brands/models and at home found the touchless Convatec Gentlecath to be the best (used both 14 and 16fr) and found them easiest to insert in terms of being just flexible enough and not as rigid as Coloplast Speedicath. Broke the packet and had a little sleeve so never had to touch and never had an infection. I travel internationally quite frequently and had to cath over a hundred times on bumpy planes and found when not at home the Compact Speedicath from Coloplast were great. They fit in pocket and telescope out with a 12fr transitioning to 18. i found they took a little longer to empty bladder but were convenient and discreet. Used them all

over the world and easy to pack and carry on plane. i also routinely packed a couple of boxes of the Gentlecaths and never had problem with airport security anywhere in the world as the little packets of saline were less than 2 oz. Technique is to relax to get through sphincter then be patient to get through blockage - never force. Good Luck.