4 Things to Expect from Your Body During the Robotic Prostate Surgery Recovery Period
Prostate surgery is never pleasant, and, even though robotic prostate surgery can lessen the negative effects, your body is still likely to throw up some unexpected unpleasantness. The best thing you can do is understand what might happen and get yourself prepared for it. Mostly, your recovery period should be uneventful, but you may experience the following.
1. You Will Experience Pain
One of the most common myths surrounding robotic prostate surgery is that no pain will be experienced afterwards. Like most harmful myths, this one has its roots in the truth; robotic prostate surgery does usually minimise the amount of pain felt since the incisions made are far smaller than they would be when undergoing the traditional procedure. However, incisions will still have been made, your body will still need time to recover, and you will still experience pain.
2. You Might Not Experience Bowel Movements
One of the oddest feelings after having any kind of prostate surgery is not being able to have a bowel movement. In fact, you may not even be able to pass gas until a few days have gone by. Even though you might, as many do, feel hungry after your surgery, it's a good idea to go light and enjoy a liquid diet wherever possible until at least three or four days after the surgery has been completed.
3. Urinary Discharge
When you leave the hospital, you will still need to wear a urinary catheter. This will usually be necessary for around a week, and it's something that is easy to get used to over such a small timeframe. The catheter will feed into a leg bag that is easily hidden by your trouser leg. However, it is important to remember that some people will experience unexpected urinary discharge that can escape the edge of the catheter. You may want to wear a pull-up adult diaper until the worst has past.
4. Bladder Cramps and Pain
Since you need to wear a catheter, you may find yourself experiencing some of the negative side effects that often come along with having one inserted. Many patients experience quite acute pain and cramping in the bladder, which can be quite distressing if it is not expected. Additionally, it is not at all uncommon to find that your urine develops a pink or red hue after walking around or having a bowel movement. Though this can be alarming, it is natural. You should simply increase your fluid intake and then take it easy for a little.