Just wondering how many of you self-cath? I was instructed today, and just did it for the first time solo here at home.....it really wasn't as hard as I expected.
I tried to pee first and only got out about 15ml....then I cathed and got 300ml; so I am definitely retaining urine.
I hope this isn't something I have to do forever! Anyone start and then was able to stop??

I've never self cathed, Daisy. When I went to the hospital they cathed me once and never again in the 12 days I was there. When I asked if I was retaining a lot, they said "a little, but they don't like to cath too often, as you become dependent on it.

And dats all I know.

I empty by squeesing my bladder till empty. I have to go potty every 4 hrs though, so I must retain some...and I drink during the night too..

Daisy,

I know some one that had to self cath for years and improved overall and doesn't need to cath now. There is that hope.

ANN

Daisy,
I cathed off and on for years and it becomes second nature when you need to do it. But I also have not had the need to cath now in at least the past 5 years. So...a little encouragement offered that this might not be an activity for life. Wishing you the best in this new venture.

To those of you that cathed...did anything like this every happen to you?

I think I am having bladder spasms!! I felt really full and like I needed to pee. I sat on the toilet and nothing, then I straight cathed and nothing!! Yes, I was in my bladder. It was really weird, It felt like my uretha tighten around the catheter and wouldn't let the urine come out. So, I removed it, waited a few minutes, got a new catheter and 300cc of urine came out

I know everyone says it doesn't hurt, and actually doing it doesn't...but after, I feel sore down there and my bladder is tender. Not sure that will make sense to you.

Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

We just had "that" talk at my PC's office last week. Did you or do you have pains in your back or sides when you retain fluid? I don't want to start unless there's no other explanation for it (even though she says that's what it is). Please & thank you.

Yes, I have low back pain, and pain in the area where my kidneys are.....not to mention the full/tender/discomfort in my low abdomen where my bladder is. Hope that helps.

Yes...what you relate often happens. It did to me and as a home care nurse, I was told by many of my patients that it had happened to them. Sometimes, over time, this diminishes but you may need to talk with your doc about having something that you can take as needed for bladder spasms. This does not need to be a part of your routine. There are things out there to relieve it.


What size cath are you using? I used to get more spasms using a 12 or 14 guage straight cath but when they gave me samples of 8 and 10 to try...no spasms so my script is for 10s. They drain slightly slower but are more comfortable and there is not the urethral discomfort or spasm that there was with the larger sizes.

I am using a 14 now, and the uro/gyn just gave me a handful and told me to just wash them out and reuse 4 or so times before I threw them away....BUT everything I read says that I should not reuse a catheter!
I think I will ask for a size 10 to try; thank you so much!

There has been so much pressure on the insurance companies and Medicare because of the high incidence of infection with reused catheters, that almost all will now approve up to 3 new catheters daily or 120/month.

My experience has been that you can go to your medical supply store and ask for one each of several different sizes, buy them out of pocket (not costly) and see which works best for you then ask the doc to order that size with 4 boxes a month (30/box) with 12 refills. A copy of that script is then sent to your insurance (Medicare or Medicaid or Private insurance) and you are set for the year.

What I found was that as I trained my bladder to be empty by cathing regularly, I felt more urge to void when it was full and over time, I was only getting 20-30cc cathing after voiding and was able to eventually stop.

Marie Namey, MSCN from the Cleveland Clinic ,gave a talk once that I attended on this topic. She said the average bladder holds 200-250 cc (about a cup) before the urge to empty. An overactive bladder may hold half that before the urge to go (often with leaking) and a hypo active or underactive bladder can hold 300-500cc (nearly a pint) without the person feeling the need to go. Often there is not complete emptying and those persons will need to cath.

She also said that most men void about 10cc/second and women about 15cc/second so a good way to judge how much you are voiding is to count the seconds of the stream (1 one thousand, 2 one thousand...) and then multiply the seconds by the # of cc (male or female) to get the approximate amount you are voiding. If less than 150 cc with a real urge to void , you may have an overactive bladder that might require medication to relax it. If fewer than 100 cc, you might be retaining urine in the bladder and may need to cath. (30cc = 1 ounce).

I found this information has been helpful to many people. Hope there those reading who find it informative.