I have just come out of hospital after a bit of major surgery so I thought I better tell you all about it.  I've just had the "Clam ileocystoplasty procedure done on my bladder but it will take up to six months to see the full effect of the operation.

To start at the beginning I have been having trouble with my bladder for a couple of years now.  Nothing serious but the level of capacity was continually dropping and eventually this would reflux back towards my kidneys and cause me problems in the future.  I had spent a lot of time with the doctors and nurses at Stanmore working on the different types of procedures available to me and it eventually became clear the "clam" would be the best option for me personally.  On one of my visits to Stanmore and by pure chance I bumped into a guy outside the gym who'd had the "clam" and he raved about it saying it had been the best thing he'd had done.

With his words still at the back of my mind I agreed to go ahead and waited for my time to come up which was Wednesday Feb 6^th.  I was admitted on the 4^th which I thought was a bit early but they had a good reason, they needed to clear me out and that meant my bowels.  Now here I should explain what the "Clam ileocystoplasty" procedure actually is in basic terms (if you want the details then Google it), well the clam procedure as it best known is where the bladder is sliced open in a clam shape and a section of your bowl is cut away, unravelled, washed (I would hope) and then stitched into your bladder to create a bigger football of a bladder thus alleviating the problems I was having with my ever shrinking one. 

So there I am on Monday 4^th after just arriving at hospital, sitting on my shower chair above the loo with a very long book waiting for the very strong laxatives that the nurse has just given me to take effect.  Same procedure the next day until I was all clear, lovely!!  Oh and I forgot to mention I would be nil by mouth from the 4^th until at least 10^th and that meant no liquids as well.  The only good thing was I that could lose up to a stone in weight so there are always positives to be had! The 6^th finally came and off down to surgery I went, a few sniffs of the old gas and away I went.  I don't really remember much of that night but when I woke up the next day I didn't feel too wonderful.  If there are bonuses to be had out of any situation then it's that I have no sensation below the chest so no real pain.  I did feel very groggy and nauseous but not too much pain which was good.  By the next day I was up in my shower chair having a wash and even fancied going to the café as I felt great, but that lasted until I got to the end of the ward and then I just wanted to go back to bed again.  No pain and sensation can be a good thing but my body was shouting at me that I had to take it easy.  The next few days I decided to spend pretty much in bed as I felt it was the best place for me and I didn't hear anyone arguing.  I also had several tubes coming out of me from all different places so it was easier to stay put.  I had a supra pubic catheter, I had a drain for the excess fluid from outside my bladder, a tube up my nose, a drip to hydrate me while I wasn't eating or drinking and a normal catheter up my willy so they had me pretty well pinned down.  Each day one of the tubes would be removed and thankfully it was the one in my nose first which was horrible as every time you swallowed you could feel it grating in your throat. Finally all that was left was the supra pubic which I had to flush out each day as the patch of bladder would continue to create mucus for several weeks.

By the following Monday I felt ready to leave but everyone was telling me to stay put as I had to remember it was a big operation I had had.  Wednesday I made a break for it and was allowed home.  My mum agreed to come and stay with me as I was told that I needed to be in bed for the best part of two or three weeks only getting up for a few hours a day.  I set up a computer next to my bed so I could work and made a stack of DVD's that I could watch.  Friday was stitches out day so I called the district nurse to come over who I hadn't seen in at least a couple of years.  The wound was very much like a caesarean scar but about 3 times longer (I am told) reaching from one side of the stomach to the other, at least 8 inches long and just above the hair line.  The nurse took the stitch out which is just one long piece of thread as it's stitched underneath to make a neater scar.    Now I just have to take it easy and flush out the supra for a few weeks and hopefully all will be well.

I am told that it will be a while before I see the real benefits of the surgery but it won't be long before I have to start capping the catheter so I can start building the capacity up again which I am looking forward to.  Hopefully one day very soon I will be able to live life without a catheter and a leg bag which will be great if I get there.