post vasectomy recovery

I am 42 and had a vasectomy 6 days ago. No major issues except 2 days of pain and some left sided bruising.

I ignored my doctor's advice and started to have sex with my GF three days later.

BIG MISTAKE.

I stopped before orgasm but managed to tear my sutures. Still, a vicodin and rest and in a day I was back to normal.

Friday is 7 days after the event and that's when I am going to try out the new plumbing. With a condom of course. 4-8 weeks until the semen samples test sperm-free.

I always find it interesting how when you go on the internet, you see mostly negative opinions of things. Are we to assume most of these guys are still writhing in pain somewhere since they only came on to post a complaint?

I read this board prior to my vasectomy and it got me very nervous. Since I had never had any sort of surgery I didnt know what to expect. I decided if my experience was not bad, I was going to come back here and talk about it. And it wasnt bad at all.

Shaving my scrotum was the worse part in retrospect. It took me almost 2 hours and my skin was very irritated.

The surgery itself was no worse than a dentist visit. The application of the anestetic was the closest thing to pain. I dont really know what the device looked like, but it felt like someone slapping my testicles with a rubber band. It was a lot more unexpected and surprising than painful (the doctor said the needle is way worse than this thing). After the first "slap" it kicked in and I didnt feel a thing the rest of the time. I had the no scalpel surgery, I really didnt feel a thing. The cut was so tiny I could barely see it the next day.

I went home drugged up and the rest of the day I had that 'kicked in the crotch' feeling. I just say on the couch and played Nintendo and my wife waited on me. The next day, I still had some swelling and that dull pain, but on a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give it a 4 at the most, and a 2 when not moving. I kept gause on it, but only saw a few drops of blood the first day, and none at all the second.

The third day I went about my business like normal, I was walking funny and still had irritated skin from the shaving but otherwise I was fine. Fourth day, I 'tried out the plumbing' and all is well!

I still have itching and irritation from the shaving, but its getting better each day, I'd rather have that than internal pain.

I am very happy with my decision to get a vasectomy. I highly recommend Dr Mostowfi, www.VasectomyClinics.com if you are in Illinois. He made the whole experience very comfortable and relaxed. I had to ask myself why any doctor would want to do this day in and day out, and then i did the math on how much he makes o.O

I have to take issue with the description of what is being removed by vasectomy. First, it is a second of the spermatacord. Second, there is no sperm present in the semen once it is completed. The appearance of your semen doesn't change after the operation.

Different doctors approach the surgery differently... some cut through the scrotum from the side, some from one slit in the front center, and some two slits.

The local anesthetic shouldn't burn, but there may be an initial stick. It depends how it is applied. By hypo, by gauss, by swab, or spray? Each will have a different sensation.

In my case, there wasn't quite enough injected, and the numbing started to wear off half way through the second process. The doctor injected some more and it went away, but I was surprised how quickly it surfaced.

I also didn't understand the instructions for post-op care, and had an infection OF MY OWN CAUSE. You must keep the site clean, and dry, and avoid setting in a bath that would soak the stitches and infect the cut. If kept clear and dry, no problems should result.

You'll also want constant support, with either a supporter, or jockey shorts..NOT BOXERS! The discoloration would be greater with less support, and any internal bruising will be more intense, if it weights down the scrotum.

You'll be instructed to take it easy, off your feet for two days, not because you can't walk, but to keep from blood pooling down in the scrotum. The average return to work day is between day three or four, assuming no complications.

In my case, the decision to sterilize was a big boost to my sex life. After more than ten years of using condoms for birth control, the additional intensity of unprotected sex made intercourse a new mind-blowing experience. So, I strongly recommend the procedure, even though I had some site infection. The improvement was dramatic after I got some Cipro to knock out the infection. The scaring is very slight, and can't be seen unless you know where to look, and stretch out the scrotum to find it.

So, despite the horror stories above, I think it is very worthwhile and should be considered, ONLY if you have decided that you are done fathering children. The process is much less invasive than with a woman.

But it also doesn't prevent her from getting pregnant... only prevents you from becoming a father biologically.

Please note that you're bound to hear a lot of complaints and horror stories from people on a board like this, because those who enjoy it, or had no problems, have no reason to come to a board like this one and complaint, or comment. They just go on with their lives.

So, you're seeing a skewed sample...

Talk with your doctor or family planning clinic about the procedure and specifically what and how it will be done. Forewarned is forearmed. Tell them your concerns, and ask them to address them.

Good luck!

So like a few others stated thankfully I avoided this board until after my surgery, which was 5/30/08. First of all, I'm an "experienced" patient....over 35 major surgeries mostly related to one motorcycle accident but others due to other issues, sleep apnea (tonsillectomy, septum straightened, uvula removed). Any way, I'm 36 and have 1 14yr old son and not looking to make anymore. I put the surgery off for a few years in case I met a woman who wanted children, luckily I found a woman with 1 kid and zero desire for more.

Back to the subject line, if you know what sleep apnea is then you might know that in order to get the surgery you must go through at least 1 if not 2 or 3 sleep studies, which I did. Any way I'm a side sleeper...my testicles can get squeezed in the middle of the night and right after this surgery I put some thought into this and used a pillow in between my legs and took Excedrin pm which limits your movement at night more so than Tylenol PM. Very little pain; I had sex the day after and even taught my step daughter how to ride a bike without training wheels.

So for all of the guys who were in pain more than 2 days look at how you sleep and what you wear. I'm not a butt-hugger shorts guy but I bought a few for the days following. I wear "trunks" most of the time.

Its Sunday night 56 hours after the surgery...I'm ready for work tomorrow but I won't resume working out for another 2-3 days, I'd rather use whatever hip action I can muster for sex.

The ones that are still having persistant pain-did you guys have a urinologist do it or a family medicine doctor. If you had a family medicine doc do it, you chose the wrong person. The swelling is caused by your doctor not carterizing the area of cutting.

I was a bit sore after. I had very little, if any, pain the next day. Two days later and I'm bored and ready to be active again.

I had the procedure done last Friday the 27th, and it is now Monday evening the 30th.

I have essentially zero swelling. I do have some bruising, mostly contained to the right side only, coming up a little bit on the penis. The pain is pretty mild, and really only happens during "transitions" between sitting/standing/lying, etc. The procedure was in the morning, and that evening the pain was pretty rough, but nothing that 800mg of Ibuprofen couldn't knock out. Each day since has been a little better.

The procedure itself was probably more painful than the recovery. The needle sticks were uncomfortable, but the worst part was the pulling and tugging on each teste to "find the cords". I think it's also to stretch out the skin to make sure he's cutting in the right place. Anyway, that felt like someone had kicked me in the 'nads a few times. It wore off within an hour or so.

The procedure took about 20 minutes once I was shaved. I'm basically related to Sasquatch, so the shaving took nearly as long as the procedure. XD

Musts for recovery:
--Jock strap
--Ice/Frozen peas
--REST (not an option...just do it)
--If you're a side sleeper, you'll need an extra pillow for between your knees

If you're not happy with the jock strap, then I suggest some tighty-whities or at least boxer-briefs. I highly recommend against pure boxers. Your boys need support right now. Don't leave 'em hangin'.

On a side note...since it's summer, the shaved scrotum sticks to EVERYTHING, and that's probably the biggest issue. Using a little baby powder (AWAY from the incisions!!) helps a bit. Otherwise, your sac sticks to your leg and when you move your leg it pulls your sac, causing discomfort.

About 6 weeks after my proceedure I have not had a satisfying orgasm since. I thought I was alone because all the information I could find about post procedural problems related to TEMPORARY pain, infection and/or emotional issues. My problems are different. I used to have satisfying orgasms now everything to a point seems normal. Arousal, buildup etc. but at the time of climax I can barely feel it and it is as if a switch shuts down and I am done. without any pleasurable feeling and or feeling of release. 

And at least was relieved to find out I am not imagining things

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Just had mine on THU... not that bad, but not good either.. took it easy until today (SUN) decided to go to the local car show... about 15min of walking later... bad idea... now I am sitting here in some discomfort typing this... wonder how bad work will be tomorrow?

It's Sunday and I had mine done on Friday morning. Shots to numb the area weren't bad at all. Slight discomfort during procedure, and I mean slight. Stayed in the recliner all day Friday and Saturday with a jock strap on and constant ice. Took a total of 3 pain pills in the first two days. Pain has not been bad. Reading this blog has been very helpful because I feel like I could get up and do whatever I want, but I know I shouldn't.

I do have bruising on both sides near the top of the testies.

All good so far

I'm two weeks post op & am doing pretty good. I'm sorry to hear about those with bad experiences due to not enough anesthesia during the surgery. I was put under using a twilight sedative via an IV. Once it started, I was out like a light & next thing I knew the procedure was over. The downside to this is that I couldn't drive home afterwards because of grogginess, so the wife had to chauffeur.

I didn't really have any pain per say but for the entire first week. I had the "kicked in the balls" feeling which was more of a dull ache as opposed to a pain. It's been two weeks now & I have some mild irritation every now & then at the operation site but other than that things are ok. I definitely recommend taking it easy for the first 3 days and keeping either a Jock strap on or wearing supportive underwear for at least 2 weeks. Without them it feels like your balls are very heavy. I've tried out the new plumbing and so far so good - no loss of intensity of the orgasm at least which concerned me prior to surgery.

38 year old

I am in my 5th day post op. I'm telling you right now there is some pain involved here. I took a Valium to get me to the doctor's office. The procedure itself was not bad. Some pain and discomfort was involved. Most of all its about having the right mind set. I listened to the doctor and packed my testicles with ice. frozen packs of peas worked the best. My mistake was doing to much the 3rd day. Mi balls if you will became black and blue (normal) and I had to start with packing them with ice once again. We will see how it goes.

I am glad that most of you didn't have problems, but I do want to warm people. There is a risk of the procedure being painful. It was the most painful thing I have ever done. I was vomiting through the whole thing because of the pain. The doc gave me a valium to take ahead of time. A shot of lidocaine and then cut. I had no pain to here, just a little discomfort with the shot. He fished out the vas and I was just uncomfortable. This is where it went South. He put a clamp on the vas prior to cutting. I immediately felt like I someone put my nuts in a vice and tightened as hard as possible. I felt like passing out and warned the doc I was going to get sick. He said don't, I have you clamped. I told him that wasn't an option and my wife grabbed some sheets for me to puke in. He finally finished that side and then gave me two shots in the left. Same process for me on that side, no pain on cutting and when he clamped I puked again. (I puked several times between the first and second.) I made it through and I am on day 8 of recovery and I am just a little tender. Went back to work on Monday after a Friday surgery (desk job) and just walked a little funny. Glad it's over with, but man did it hurt.

My husband had this on friday and I am quite surprised how bruised he is, its not the walk in the park I expected. So I am hoping he recovers OK. I will insist he stays home another day if he looks in pain. He hasn't much bleeding but really badly bruised.

Then again I have had 2 children and the recovery from various cuts and tears and stitching hasn't been easy, not to mention the bladder leaks. And so in the grand scheme of things I think he has been noble in taking responsibility for our contraception and matching some of the effort I made in making our brood.

Procedure done at 4:30 pm last night. Other than the pain from getting the local, there has been no discomfort. I've been using ice and staying in bed. I plan to stay down for the first 48 hours based on everyone's comments and the Dr.'s recommendation.

I had the procedure three weeks ago.

The procedure was about what I expected. The discomfort was worse on the right side.

I expected to take about a week to feel better, but I got an infection on one side.

The vas swelled and became stiff and painful. I thought the swelling was normal and didn't realize I had an infection.

The second week I noticed blood in my semen. I made an appointment with my doctor. He prescribed an antibiotic. Within 24 hours I felt great. No more pain or swelling. I seem to be getting better.

If you are not feeling well after a week see your doctor. You know when something is not right. I went through almost two week of unnecessary discomfort.