Penile-Preserving, Laproscopic Peritoneal-Pullthrough GCS with Dr. Heidi Wittenberg, Post-Op Week 4/Month 1

26
u/the_weird_stuff
Fri Sep 27 06:07:03 2019 UTC
(7 comments)

(see post history for previous entries about this surgery)

This post covers post-op week 4/month 1. This has been the first week home, and another week of relatively rapid healing/etc. I'll also cover some "month 1" stuff, including things I might have forgot to mention before.

Swelling

Swelling seems to be the biggest source of suffering post-GCS, and I think I've addressed it properly so far. This week, the swelling has went way down! I'm not sure why but I'm inclined to think it's related to time and my increased activity level - mostly alot of walking & stairs.

I haven't needed the donut pillow at all the last few days...sitting on hard surfaces & such aren't uncomfortable, but I don't sit too long (<1 hour at a time) and I can still feel stuff being pushed around.

Dilation

Probably relates to the decreased swelling, but this is also alot easier too! 99% sure there's granulation but 1) it's not getting in the way, and 2) I think some of it is starting to go away. It's basically got to the point where after some initial discomfort I just slide it all the way in. Sometimes it goes in without any trouble at all (when I haven't been active).

I've tried the next size up (blue) once a day these last few days. I can get it in most of the way, but it's uncomfortable & takes long and TBH it's not worth it for me right now. Still having a penis means that there's alot more inside which makes stuff alot tighter. And I worry about the peritoneal tissue being fragile. I'll try moving to it again next week.

One thing that I might not have mentioned - dilation messes with my bladder and the associated muscles. I've always had bladder control issues but ugh . I can almost guarantee that the next time I sit/lay down after dilating, a little pee will squeeze out. It's getting better as I heal & swelling goes down, but it's still annoying.

Healing

  • Like I said above, there's some granulation tissue. Today seems less than the last couple days, but I'll need a few days to make sure it's actually going down.

  • Discharge is changing from thick opaque white/yellow/green to sticky clear-ish yellow/green. As the protein stuff lessens, the discharge is clearing up. It's not very water-y, but slimy.

  • I officially just use pantyliners now because they're so much more comfortable than anything else, but I don't mind the discharge that gets on the underwear.

  • I make sure to do sniff tests daily to make sure there's nothing iffy since I'm only douching once a week now, but everything's fine so far. It has a scent that's not strong nor offensive, and it smells like "me" which is super weird! I'm kinda worried that means I'm not washing well enough even though I shower after each dilation (3x daily!). My B.O. is very unoffensive (vegetarian + healthy + estrogen I guess?) and it reminds me of that, but a bit more "warm".

  • Nerves are violently reconnecting. I still don't have feeling near my vagina or on my scrotum yet, but lots of weird nerve-healing-feelings have been happening down there.

  • Muscle control (e.g. closing/opening the vagina or parts of the canal) is very TBD. I've got a couple muscles figured out but I'll have to wait for most of the practice until 3 months. I have figured out how to "pull" in the dilator! Pretty cool.

  • Arousal no longer feels uncomfortable in the scrotum/vagina, and like before, the penis is functional.

Conclusion

I'll probably start taking daily walks in a local forest park in addition to everything else. I'm back to normal activities, albeit more laying-down-ish positions than before. I might even try starting a bit of yoga.

I might post another weekly update next week, if there's anything interesting to report. Doing reports weekly rather than monthly isn't any burden, and the consistency keeps me from forgetting about it.

Feel free to ask whatever in the comments!

all 7 comments


3
u/illyriarose
Fri Sep 27 06:36:05 2019 UTC
(3 children)

The weekly updates are definitely appreciated. I'm looking forward to reading one more of them next week before I start writing my own.

You mentioned your physical activity has increased, but what about mental clarity? How much of the day do you feel capable of critical thinking? Or is the entire day partially muted mentally?

Also, not to hijack your post but it seems topical when you mentioned the larger dilator being a tight fit, I was hoping u/Androgynoplasty might be willing to comment on how much max dilator size varies when erect vs not erect (after things are recovered and stretched). Will things just compress down and be tighter, or will the larger dilator no longer fit? I'm guessing it'll be a few more months before you can fully answer that yourself.

Also, I totally get the B.O. thing. I'm vegan + healthy + active + estrogen and some of my partners tend to almost get high on my smell. I'm curious how things will smell downstairs in a few weeks.

Thanks again for these posts. They've been a huge help.

2
Fri Sep 27 06:51:33 2019 UTC
(1 child)

Also, not to hijack your post but it seems topical when you mentioned the larger dilator being a tight fit, I was hoping u/Androgynoplasty might be willing to comment on how much max dilator size varies when erect vs not erect (after things are recovered and stretched).

Nowadays I am able to get the orange dilator (largest) in to the second to last dot regardless of if I am erect or not. When I started dilating a week post-op I started with the green dilator (second largest) and I didn't have any issues with being erect causing the dilator not to go in as easy, but that might be something that varies between surgeon's techniques and also individual healing and anatomy size differences.

1
OP
Fri Sep 27 21:12:55 2019 UTC
(0 children)

I started with the green dilator (second largest)

Wow! That's great!

2
OP
Fri Sep 27 21:11:51 2019 UTC
(0 children)

You mentioned your physical activity has increased, but what about mental clarity? How much of the day do you feel capable of critical thinking? Or is the entire day partially muted mentally?

I've been at 100% clarity since probably the day after my packing was taken out. My mental energy for critical-thinking-like activities has been back to normal since sometime during week 3. I actually spend almost the entire day doing critical-thinking-like things now.

The issue mentally has been my ASD...I have alot less energy to deal with things. Assuming you don't have ASD, your mental experience of it will probably be different.

Although, I wasn't back to normal for a few months after my orchiectomy.

Will things just compress down and be tighter, or will the larger dilator no longer fit? I'm guessing it'll be a few more months before you can fully answer that yourself.

I actually have a bit of accidental experience of this, and it did get tighter for me (ouch).

Also, I totally get the B.O. thing. I'm vegan + healthy + active + estrogen and some of my partners tend to almost get high on my smell.

Yeah, it's really nice having B.O. that some people actually like. It means I need less deodorant, muahaha.

Thanks again for these posts. They've been a huge help.

Glad they've been helpful! Very much looking forward to your posts ;~).

2
u/Androgynoplasty
Fri Sep 27 07:23:41 2019 UTC
(1 child)

Thank you for another update!

Swelling seems to be the biggest source of suffering post-GCS

Swelling definitely is the big thing that causes a lot of discomfort. As you continue to heal and more swelling goes down, expect things to start to feel better and better, even if all your nerves haven't fully come back online.

I haven't needed the donut pillow at all the last few days...sitting on hard surfaces & such aren't uncomfortable, but I don't sit too long (<1 hour at a time) and I can still feel stuff being pushed around.

Awesome! While my inflatable donut was my best friend after surgery, I totally recommend everyone to ditch it as soon as safely and comfortably possible because the height difference it causes when sitting can totally wreck one's sitting posture for a while. As someone with back issues, this was rather annoying.

I've tried the next size up (blue) once a day these last few days. I can get it in most of the way, but it's uncomfortable & takes long and TBH it's not worth it for me right now.

A tip for sizing up is to do a normal dilation with the size you are normally using, then when you take out the dilator, gently slide the next size up inside as far as it will go without pain, leave it in for a few minutes before removing and cleaning up. It should be much easier to insert after you have loosened up already. You should be able to use the current dilator for lesser time while increasing the time you have the new one in, and adjust the ratio over time (weeks/months, everyone's pace is different) until you can just use the new size entirely.

One thing that I might not have mentioned - dilation messes with my bladder and the associated muscles.

This is something that often gets forgotten and goes unmentioned. I found that peeing before dilating and after will relieve most of the issue. Over time it should go away though.

Nerves are violently reconnecting.

Woo, electric burning bee stings! They still happen occassionally even at 15 months post-op, but they do lessen a lot over time.

2
OP
Fri Sep 27 21:19:35 2019 UTC
(0 children)

I totally recommend everyone to ditch it as soon as safely and comfortably possible because the height difference it causes when sitting can totally wreck one's sitting posture for a while. As someone with back issues, this was rather annoying.

Yeah it's pretty awkward. I ended up badly slouching whenever I used it...my back isn't happy.

A tip for sizing up is to do a normal dilation with the size you are normally using, then when you take out the dilator, gently slide the next size up inside as far as it will go without pain, leave it in for a few minutes before removing and cleaning up.

Hm I'll try that. I'd like to get up to the blue one at least but it's painful pushing it in. If I can do it slowly/painlessly via your method, the extra time is fine.

Honestly I won't really know what size I want until 3 months when I can do things with fingers/toys.

Woo, electric burning bee stings!

Yeah haha it feels exactly like this. By the time I process the sudden pain it's over.

1
u/sourdoughsmitty
Fri Sep 27 14:40:08 2019 UTC
(0 children)

Thanlyou for the updates .these are helpful to those of us deciding which typr of srs to get.I think I read in your earlier posts that you will be getting a labiaplasty as well. I am looking forward to this stage from you. as I am non binary if it looks good i may consider it. Or just vagineoplasty instead Phylis💞