u/Anxious-Bug-2214

Week 1 post op stage 2 - glans sculpting including full thickness hip graft, scrotoplasty, vaginal ablation and vagnectomy, complete burial of t dick.

Day 1: admitted at 7am, nurse did blood pressure, temp, gave me gown etc to wear, made me do a urine sample (even tho ive had a hysto). Anaesthetist came in to see me, then Mr Lee & one of the fellows. They examined me - not sure if this is normal but it was to check my neo-urethra had healed OK (see post history for more detail). Mr Lee said it had closed up again so they would need to repair it but didn’t think it was too serious. Final chance to ask any last minute questions and then told my surgery was in at 2/3pm, so just a waiting game. Went down at about 1:30, woke up in recovery at 5/5:30. They kept me there for about an hour as my temp was higher than theyd have liked it to be - I made the mistake of telling the anaesthetist and nurses i usually wake up freezing so i had a huge duvet and blanket on lol. Eventually they were happy and wheeled me back to the room. First night is a lot less stressful compared to stage 1 - a nurse came in every 1-2 hours, did blood pressure, temp & checked everything down there - a lot of poking and prodding to make sure the bruising was soft not firm. I was kept topped up with pain relief. You will have a drain in and two catheters, and also have to wear those air pressure boot things overnight.

Day 2: got out of bed - very lowkey. The nurse held my catheter bag and drain, and just watched me get out. I was not expecting to just be allowed up with no physio support or anything. They got me a bowl of hot water (hot water in my room was broken) and i washed myself as best i could at the sink with flannels and body wash. The nurse came in and cleaned the bits i couldnt (bum and back), got me a fresh gown and went back to bed. They basically told me i was free to roam and they wanted me up and moving. I had a couple of naps, was given pain relief every few hours (mix of some sort of codeine, paracetamol and ibuprofen, they wanted to give me tramadol but this gives me migraines so i got oramorph instead). Stool softener was started that morning. I got one of the nurses to show me outside as there is a little court yard, very nice out there but a sun trap so only lasted 5 minutes. Wife came to visit and we went for a walk round the ward before dinner.

Mr Lee phoned me and explained everything had been successful with no real complications- he was able to sort the neo-urethra out but said I need to come back in 3 weeks to have a urethragram before they can give me the all clear to use my penis to urinate.

Day 3: in the morning had my drain removed (swore at the nurse and apologised lol), two of the fellows that work with Mr Lee came by in the morning, both checked everything themselves and went through the issue with the neo-urethra in a bit more detail. They seemed happy and gave me the green light to be discharged. The discharge was very overwhelming as i had several nurses coming in and out and asking me questions that someone else had just asked so i asked if they could leave me alone until my wife turned up which they did ti be fair to them😂 Caroline & Phillipa (new CNS) came in and went through each surgical site (hip graft, glans, scrotum), what to expect and what to change/when, went through my appointments that I’d need and sent me home with 3!!! Goody bags

Bag 1: day and night catheter bags only

Bag 2: jelonet, pads, swabs, scissors

Bag 3: tena pants, jelonet, plasters and more pads/swabs/catheters

You’ll also get a delivery from a company that New Vic work with that will have disposable bags, dry and wet body wipes, more catheter bags and a stand (also got a free pen, if that interests anyone).

Being home felt good - fell asleep pretty much straight away.

First shower was a bit overwhelming but SO much easier compared to stage 1. I did have my wife help just to make it easier but could have easily done everything i needed to myself.

Day 4-6: felt very very sick all day on days 4/5 - in a lot of pain trying to swallow too much food and/or water, felt like medication was getting stuck making me feel nauseous. It felt like it was getting worse instead of better, so went to the GP and they think its a mix of irritation from breathing tube and acid reflux (i did have the hiccups the whole time i was in hospital and travelling home), but theyve referred me to have an ECG just to be 100% certain there’s nothing going on as he said my heart rate is also higher than he’d like it to be which is fun!

Sick of feeling useless and restless so tried to do a few bits round the house (just general folding/putting a few bits away so nothing crazy), very sore afterwards. The stool softeners are working, maybe a bit too much. Feeling very uncomfortable with the sensation at my original plumbing which feels constantly like I need to wee. No real sickness since starting the med from the GP.

Day 7: district nurse came out first thing to remove the foley/phallus catheter - super sore but manageable. She changed my glans dressing and it looks crazy 😭 i know it will flatten but i dont think i was expecting it to look like that. She also removed the dressing off my hip incision and said it looks perfect so i dont need to cover this anymore. Having the foley removed has definitely helped with the sensation at my original plumbing thank god.

Penis was bleeding a bit so called the hospital and they said its normal for it to bleed a little bit for 48 hours, just need to put some gauze on it.

Also noticed they have changed the shape of the hole at the tip of my penis which i really wasnt expecting

Overall this week has been not great in terms of how my body feels but day 7/8 now and feeling a lot better in myself so hopefully up from here.

Any questions please let me know 😁

Pictures: day 5, day 6, glans with no dressings (mid shower), tip of penis, hip incision with no dressing