Re: [QUAD-L] pee through your belly button or close

[Dana Miller]

I take mine in the a.m. and its only 5mg.  I have no idea if it even works 
anymore.  Once in a while I think about stopping it sometimes just to see 
what will happen.  I've been doing one pill for probably 10-12 years.  Good 
luck!                                             take care,

Dana and ?
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David K. Kelmer" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Dana Miller" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "quad" <quad-list@eskimo.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 12:50 PM
Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] pee through your belly button or close


Hi Dana,
I've been thinking of dropping from two times to once a day on my 
Ditropan.  What time of your day do you take it?  How much do you use?

With Love,
CtrlAltDel aka Dave
C4/5 Complete - 28 Years Post
Texas, USA

Dana Miller <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Wow $1000 per month?? gees. I reuse 30 for at least 6 months, but this
last bunch has been about a year I think. A box is about $60. I don't mind
paying that especially since I do not have any Service dog expenses right
now. Need to pay for something to go towards my rent so it does not go
higher! I still use ditropan for bladder spasms but only one a day.
take care,
Dana and ?
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Liz"
To: "Dana Miller" ; "quad"
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 4:25 PM
Subject: [QUAD-L] pee through your belly button or close


6 inches! I do not pee until the 10 inch mark! I highly recommend the
catheters that, in a bag. With practice you'll be able to independently
catheterize on your own and just toss the bag into the garbage.
I get my catheters through mail order. Again you can ask for samples that
are free. I use A-med in Huntington Beach California. There's also a big
company in Georgia. The catheters are quite expensive. Mine are covered
by
Medicare. At the cost of $1000 a month.
If you have Medicaid I believe that they are covered as well. Probably
easily. You'll need to have the doctors prescription.
I must say that this is the best thing that I have ever done. I was
suffering from autonomic dysreflexia to the point of almost having a
stroke.
I still take bladder medications to stop spasms, as they also stop the
sweating caused by the spasms.
Everyone is different. Practice, practice, practice.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dana Miller"
To: "quad"
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 4:51 PM
Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Help....

Grin! Need to get rid of those 6 inchers! They are useless. The curved
tip is a coude' tip. Get rid of the red ones too--unless you want to
keep
them 'in case', which I did a lot of! he! he!
Not sure what you mean by going 'uphill' unless you mean 'up' into the
catheter. That is particularly true if you are laying flat on your back
and
need to cathed, it does take a few seconds longer to get it up and
out--make
sure the end of the cath is "below" the stoma! Some nurses don't get
that
'gravity' thing! Plus when taking the cath out-keep the cather "down".
Otherwise what is in the catheter will drain back into the bladder.
I cannot cath myself when laying flat, or laying on either side. To do
it
in bed I must raise my knees and the head. Raising the knees first will
keep you from sliding down in the bed quite so much. When laying back
down,
lower the head first, then knees. You will still slide, but not near as
much. Gads, the looks and why's I get from nurses when I ask them to do
that! They would just as soon pull me up in bed several times a day.
Thats
not the point, "I" get uncomfortable squished down in the crease where
the
head comes up. I like my head touching the headboard whether I am on
total
flat bedrest or not! Well, more venting. gotta go! Glad to be of help!
Dana and ?
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
----- Original Message -----
From: "~LittleQuad~"

To: "Dana Miller" ; "quad"
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 10:51 AM
Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Help....
> girl right now i have so many catheters its crazy! i have all the ones
> from b4 surgery, 6 inches long, and the ones doc office sent to let me
> decide what kind i like...they are all 14 french tho..
> i have 2 kinds long clear ones, one has a curved tip, i think its best
so
> far...other long clear one has straight tip..the red ones are nice and
> soft but too pliable...
> will it take a while for it to get used to going kinda uphill? it
> takes
> some coaxing to get the last bit up out of the cath....yuk, can you
> believe we are talking about this?? lol
> anyway thanks so much, you've been my saving grace......have great
> day!
> amye
>
> Dana Miller wrote:
> If you can tell when you need to pee, thats great! I can too, so I 
> just
> cath when needed--depends on how much water I guzzle at one time.
> Timing
> it
> may or may not help now. What ever works for 'you' is the answer!
>
> I do have a stoma, the nurses etc. will call it an Indiana nipple. I
asked
> one time why a 'nipple' and they could not really answer that. Mine is
> about 2-3 inches to the right of my belly button. My scar runs from
> my --well--groin area, up and around my belly button and stops about 4
> inches above my belly button. I hardly know its there (only because it
has
> been there so long) but it comes in handy when someone is dressing
> me--they
> line the middle seam of the slacks/jeans up with the scar! My SP was 
> on
> the
> other side very low down sort of where my leg and belly meet. I have 
> no
> idea if there is a scar.
>
> As for scars, get used to them! Over the years they will come. My back
and
> right back thigh looks like a road map. But that is because of flap
> surgeries. I used to be very picky about how my hands, elbows and
> places
> that people see every day, looked. I would see guys with very nobby
elbows
> that were calloused over and the middle knuckle much taller and
calloused
> than the rest of their hand. I have been lucky and have aides that put
> lotion on every day. My fingers have stayed straight, but my right 
> hand
> fingers are curling 'up' a bit. Not so that it looks wierd or even
> close
> to
> it, but it is harder for me to 'make' them curl.
>
> Your not vain, its normal for people, especially women, to want their
skin
> to look nice! Once the SP is out, the place it was will close quickly.
> Once the incision is healed to minimize the look of it, keep it
> lotioned
> or
> moist with something. I have been seeing a advertizement about a cream
> that
> is supposed to keep scaring to a minimum.
>
> I get my catheters from my pharmacy now. I pay for them, but they last
> a
> long time. I buy a box of 30 and they deliver them with my meds. They
are:
> Brand: Mentor
> description: Self-cath coude' olive tip with
> guide stripe (useless! the stripe)
> size: 16 french
> reference number: 816
>
> They are clear/white color with an orange end. The first ones I used
were
> closer in color to the red caths, but were a bit browner, shorter and 
> a
> bit
> stiffer than the red ones. Go to the pharmasist and see what kinds 
> they
> have or can get. The clearer colored ones are better as you can tell 
> if
> the
> end is harboring gook or growing things! :) Can also watch the mucous
come
> out! In the beging it is usual for so much mucous be produced that it
will
> clog the SP or even the cath. Run water thru the cath and try again if
> this
> happens. If your SP clogs, irrigate. Do this on top of your daily
> irrigations. Sometimes nurses may not want to irrigate an extra
time--get
> the doc to write irrigate daily "and" prn!! Be sure to tell them the
> way
> 'you' want it done! Usually what they are vtaught is different, such 
> as
> 'not pulling out' they will let it drain out. That does not get the
mucous
> out. Once they have done it a couple of times and see the amount of
mucous
> come out, they will give in. If you get a hard head,. call the agency
and
> ask for a different nurse! They will provide the irrigation kits too!
Tip:
> whatever they do not use--KEEP! It will come in handy sometime! I have
> a
> bottom drawer of a dresser I use just for such things. Urine sample
> bottles, iodine swabs, tweezers, lubricant packs, pads of any shape or
> form,
> tape--can 'never' have enough tape. Extra drainage bed bags, legs
bags-for
> a while-60 cc syringes, just anything!
>
> This is getting long. Ask if you have any questions!
> take care,
>
> Dana and ?
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "~LittleQuad~"
>
> To: "Dana Miller" ; "Quad-list post"
>
> Sent: Monday, January 10, 2005 9:03 AM
> Subject: Re: [QUAD-L] Help....
>
>
>> wow i did it for the 1st tie at home! i have been dreading this
>> enormously! it just looks so awful, as i hate any scratch! thanks so
much
>> for the note, i must had read it 10Xs! i will try and be on a strict 
>> 3
>> hour regiment, unless needed before...as i can still tell when i need
to
>> go...the nurse at hospital said i'd most likely lose it, thank
>> goodness
i
>> haven't!!
>> so you have a stoma also? where is yours? mine is like 2 inches to
right
>> of belly button, and the SP is 2 inches below...temporarily! i don't
>> think
>> i'll have mine a year...i go back in 2 weeks and he mentioned 
>> removing
>> it...hope so, it hurts my feelings to see how it rubs my skin and
>> stretches it, my eyes water every time i see it...i must be a vain
>> person....haha
>> thanks a lot dana!!
>>
>>
>> Dana Miller wrote:
>> It will be fine! It will produce a lot of mucous at first because 
>> part
of
>> your intestine was used and that produced mucous! It "will" bleed, 
>> the
>> edge
>> of the hole is tender right now. I kept a SP in for nearly a "year"
>> before
>> 'trusting' that weird thing in my belly. Make sure you irrigate it!!
>> At
>> least daily. Do not be gentle about it! Put 60cc's of sterile water
>> inn
>> the syringe and shove it in! Then pull 30cc's out! When you pull out,
do
>> not pull if you get resistance--the end of the catheter may be 
>> against
>> the
>> wall of your new bladder. Irrigate again. I irrigated at least twice
>> or
>> until it pulled back clear. It is amazing how much mucous can build 
>> up
in
>> 24 hours.
>>
>> Between cathing, cover it with 2 x2's or a 4x4. It will keep the
>> irritation
>> of clothes down. When you do cath, make sure you get far enough
>> in--the
>> first few weeks of cathing, if my doc did it, I would be 
>> flabbergasted
as
>> far in she would put it. The type of cath I use, only about 5-6 
>> inches
>> sticks out in order to get it all the way in. I really should measure
>> that.
>> I will let you know what kind of cath I use as those red rubber
hospital
>> kind might as well be a piece of spaghetti! Plus they drain slowly.
>>
>> Do you still have a SP in? Using that at night gives the hole a 
>> chance
to
>> rest and the sides to heal a bit. If the cath will not go in easy, if
>> there
>> is resistance, take a deep breath and let it out--relax! And keep 
>> your
>> water drinking up! It will help expand the new bladder--altho if you
are
>> cathing only every 4 hours, I would cut back on the water, or just 
>> sip
it
>> now and then. If you drink a whole glass it will hit in about an hour
and
>> you will need to cath every 20-30 minutes, if that much, as your
bladder
>> will not be able to hold that much liquid at a time. If your are
leaking,
>> up the caths to 3 hrs.
>>
>> It will take quite a while to get used to it and to the new feelings
you
>> will get. They re-arranged your insides! They will be sore. A picture
>> will help. Sometimes, no matter what you do, the durn thing will 
>> 'not'
go
>> in. Relax for a bit and have someone else try. The angle of the cath
will
>> help. When it goes in the hole have it pointed down a bit towards the
new
>> bladder.
>>
>> The main thing is to be patient! It "will" work--stay on ditropan or
>> whatever you use for bladder relaxation. What kind of cath are you
using?
>> The red rubbers are the softest, but because of that it does not have
>> enough
>> stiffness to get thru the tight times, but will eventually if you
>> lubricate.
>> I forgot about lubricating--its been so long since I have used it, I
>> forget
>> about it.
>>
>> Basically its one of those things that the more you 'fight', the 
>> worse
it
>> is. Then suddenly it will go in, and you have no idea what you did! I
>> will
>> be signing off for the day, but be optimistic, it will work and see 
>> ya
>> tomorrow! take care,
>>
>> Dana and ?
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "~LittleQuad~"
>>
>> To: "Quad-list post"
>> Sent: Sunday, January 09, 2005 5:52 PM
>> Subject: [QUAD-L] Help....
>>
>>
>>> Hey gang! I've had my surgery and my doctor says it was a success.
>>> I'm
>>> not
>>> so convinced! The hole gets clogged up and fluid build-up. It's very
>>> sore
>>> and bleeds when messed with. I can hardly stand to look at it, much
less
>>> cath thru it! My mom tried and she couldn't figure it out. So I'm
going
>>> to
>>> try it in a little while. Doc says do it every 4 hours. Ugh, help! 
>>> Is
it
>>> supposed to do that??? I'm going to get a pic taken of it and send,
>>> hopefully this week.
>>> Thanks guys!!
>>> Amye
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>