A load of balls! (Vasectomy)

Member Name: wiggglypufff

Product:	Vasectomy
Date:	10/01/02 (2066 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: High success rate , Quick op to perform

Disadvantages: Small amount of pain, 4 month wait for the all clear

Having a child each from previous relationships, more children have never been on the agenda for myself and hubby. I couldn't think of anything worse than going back to night time feeds, and nappy changing. I did offer to chop hubby's bits off with a knife... strangely he declined, so we opted for a vasectomy instead!

It may, to some of you, seem a little odd that I have chosen this topic. I mean, it wasn't my tubes being tortured was it? Nope! But for those of you in a relationship where a permanent method of birth control is being considered (and you must think of this as permanent), both partners are equally involved despite only one party going under the knife.

As I said at the beginning, children have never been a consideration in our relationship. I was on the pill until December of 2000 when I decided it was doing me no good, and so stopped taking it. I didn't want to jump to another hormone based method of birth control, nor did the thought of the coil do anything for me. The other option for me was sterilization, but it's a longer and more complicated procedure - and not the preferred option of the medical profession.

So, we settled on condoms for a while, but reliable as they are, you kind of always have that nagging worry in the back of your mind what if?... What if it splits, what if it comes off, what if an anti birth control nutter has been rampaging in the condom factory and has made pin prick holes in my pack of 3? (Okay, so the latter is a little far fetched, but you get the picture).

After some serious discussions between myself and hubby, we decided the best option for us would be a vasectomy. Hubby approached our doctor in June 2001. He was subjected to a good 30 minutes of interrogation. Not interrogation of a bad kind, but to ensure he fully understood the implications of the procedure.

The doctor then requested that we both saw him. That's not to say he wouldn't have
okayed the procedure without my consent, nor is it to say all health authorities work in the same manner, but certainly in our case, my willingness for the op to go ahead meant the doctor, having spoken to us both, was quite happy to refer us straightaway.

We heard confirmation from the hospital within a couple of weeks, and had to sign a form of our intention to proceed. That we did, and at the end of July received an appointment for the 31st August 2001. Along with the appointment date, was a consent form, and a leaflet about the vasectomy itself.

So, fast forward to D-day or should that be V-day? Our appointment was at 2pm, and having ensured hubby met the requirements of pre op state which were 2 baths, a new hair do (sorry, a shave down below), tight pants, and a light lunch, we arrived (for a change) with a few minutes to spare. We were greeted by a male nurse and taken into a consultation room where he explained the procedure briefly to us and ensured we had read the leaflet. He also presented us with a sterile pad, sample jars, and lab forms (more about those later).

We were then left with a tape to listen too, made by the doctor who was to perform the op. The tape explained the procedure, aftercare, national statistics for success (99%) and his own personal statistics (just 5 failures in over 2000 ops performed, so more successful than the national average)

The doctor then came in, and asked one simple question "Why do you want a vasectomy?", the answer "Because we don't want any more children!". That was all he wanted to hear, a definite declaration. He briefly re-capped over the tape, gave us the chance to ask questions, and then left us to wait for the nurse, having requested that hubby strip down to his shirt and pants.

A couple of minutes later, the nurse (a female one this time), came into the consultation room and took us through to the operating room. (I say operating room, be
cause to say theatre would strike images of major surgery which it really isn't.)

Anyway, hubby had to get up on the table, lie down on his back (surprise surprise) and lower his pants to his knees. The nurse chatted away to us both, whilst the doc swabbed hubby's pubic area and prepared him for the op, laying a large piece of green paper over the area, leaving just the scrotum exposed.

Next step, injections into the skin of the scrotum to numb the area. Hubby isn't good with needles, so my hand got crushed, but hey, far less painful than childbirth I can assure you, so I smiled sweetly (and mentally plotted revenge). The doc then proceeded to feel the scrotum in order to locate the sperm tubes (vas deferens) and made a small incision to access them.

The doc gripped a section of the vas with forceps, pulled it out through the incision and held it up in a loop. He then took an instrument that bared resemblance to a soldering iron (excuse my lack of technical terms) and actually burnt through the looped tube, removing a section about an inch in size, with the tube ends then slipping back inside the scrotum. The same procedure was done with the other tube and that was it.

Amazing!! It really was. So quick, and with the heat being the seal for the ends of the tube there was no need for anything else to be done. I then had to leave the room, whilst the doc cleaned hubby up. No stitches were required, just a thick sterile pad placed over the scrotal area, and the tight pants back on to support the area. Hubby had to apply pressure to the op site (which was still numb so not at all painful) and the doc helped him up and brought him to me in the recovery room.

He had to lay there for 10 minutes, continuing to apply pressure to the op area. The nurse came in to check on him, and gave him a letter for our GP. After those 10 minutes were up hubby was allowed to get dressed and we were off home. The whole thing from
arriving at the hospital to leaving, having taken just one hour.

Hubby was not allowed to drive after having his vasectomy (standard practice), so as he wasn't prepared to let me drive the car, we got a cab home.

So, post op care. Hubby was instructed to take it easy after the op... keep the op site dry (and the dressing on for 2 full days), put his feet up and generally relax for a while. So that's what he did. I sprung to action as nurse wigggly supplying pain killers, hot drinks, icepacks, and some TLC (only a bit mind, it was a minor op, not life threatening surgery).

Hubby was in a bit of pain, but he described it more as a discomfort - tightness and tugging in his abdominal area. Apart from that, (oh, and passing out twice which we put down to taking Ibuprofen) the evening passed uneventfully. He stayed in bed, and slept from 9pm round 'til Saturday morning.

Saturday brought the swelling, and new meaning to the term big boy! Okay, I shouldn't laugh, but Linford Christie's lunch box didn't have a patch on hubby's that day. The pain, again, was more of an abdominal discomfort, and an obvious slight tenderness at the op site itself. Hubby found paracetamol to give the best relief for that, and the application of icepacks helped too.

It's recommended that you get up and about the day after the op and back to normal as much as is possible, excluding work, and strenuous activity though for 48 hours. Hubby was quite able to make trips back and forth to the kitchen although he was walking rather oddly.

Sunday and things were still progressing well. It's recommended that driving isn't resumed after a vasectomy until you are comfortable enough to perform an emergency stop if required, so it's really up to the individual to assess the right time. Hubby felt comfortable enough to drive on Sunday afternoon, so we went shopping. I can assure you his wallet was in far more
pain than his balls!!!!!!

Monday morning, hubby went back to work! Light duties only though (as pre-arranged with his boss). He came home a bit achy, but no more so than usual. Monday night and he was able to remove the padding and have a soak in the bath. Being a typical guy, he sulked when I suggested that a handful of salt would be far more beneficial to his op area than his usual bubble bath, but he did agree.

After his bath, he had to apply the sterile pad (received on op day) to the healing wound, and keep it there until it came off of it's own accord, which happened to be during the course of the next day.

As for sex (has to get a mention somewhere), again it's down to the individual to resume when comfortable enough to do so. Once this becomes the case, plenty of it is advised to clear out the store of sperms left in the tubes. Remember to use some form of contraception though, as at this stage those little spermy buggars are still live. Hubby felt up to it (no pun intended) on the following Wednesday night, so not even a week from having the op.

Around 2 weeks on, and you'd not really know he'd had anything done. The incision had healed and the scar was not even an inch long. Hardy noticeable even on close inspection! Now, it's a case of waiting for the all clear.

As hubby is under 35 (just) he has to give samples at 14 and 16 weeks post op. (Men aged 35+ are required to give samples later - 18 and 20 weeks post op). The procedure is to produce a specimen in the jar provided by means of masturbation. (Affectionately termed by hubby as 'janking in a jar'). The sample is then taken to the doctors or direct to the hospital (you will be advised of this) with a completed lab form, and of course details filled in on the jar.

If both tests prove clear (ie no live sperm) then hubby is officially sterile, and there is no need for any contraception to be used as his baby making d
ays are well and truly over. Roll on the end of this month when we'll get the results of the 2nd test!!

For us, hubby having a vasectomy was certainly the right choice to make. We knew from the start of our relationship that we didn't want anymore children, so it was the best thing to do. Even with that in mind, we left making the final decision about the op for several years... nothing changed in that time so we went ahead with it.

I would urge you to think very carefully about it though. You must consider this a totally permanent measure. Although reversal operations can be performed the chance of actually having a child is so very very slim. This really is a life changing decision - make sure it is the right one for you!

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