very serious question

[diguilio]

okay i have go to see a urologist. i am very afraid what is the doctor going to me ????????????

[tired_teacher]

Why Urologist?

I am sorry you are apprehensive about seeing a urologist. We all get a bit uneasy when our PCPs send us here and there. Why are you being sent? Are you experience bladder incontinence, spasticity, or frequency problems? I hope things go well for you.

[jreagan70]

Hi diguilio:

If you do an Internet search for "what to expect at a urologist appointment" several website pages -- including expert sites -- about that will come up in the search results. If you read them you'll get more viewpoints than you can get from a few responses on a message board.

There will be a physical exam, so in that respect it might be compared with an appointment at the gynecologist.

I look at it this way. Some of the tests we have to go through -- for MS or anything else -- might be uncomfortable at the time. But worrying about them in advance doesn't help anything (and makes the whole experience worse), and when they're over we can just go home and forget about them.

[palmtree]

You might be able to get by without a physical exam on the first visit if you tell them you don't want one. I got sent to a urologist in September and I've stalled them through 2 appointments without an exam.

To give you some more practical advice I will tell you about my first experience in 2009. My PCP sent me because I was getting constant UTIs. They asked me to pee in a cup and then empty my bladder. They did an ultrasound of my bladder which showed that it wasn't empty. So they gently inserted a catheter into my bladder. It didn't hurt at all. It measured about 500ml (half a liter).

The doctor was very concerned and said, we are going to put a Foley catheter in you and see you in 2 days. Being the good patient that I always used to be, I figured the good doctor would make everything turn out right. After the 2 days the catheter was out and I was free to go home to some lengthy logging of various data.

I had to measure every drop of liquid I consumed and compared it to how much urine came in a 24 hour period. He had me stand on my head...anything to get the urine out.

There is more to all the acrobatics he put me through but the thing I wanted to tell you (not to scare you but to give you a chance to take charge of your care) was that, after they had taken that Foley catheter out of me I started leaking urine, a lot. Before I walked in that office I never leaked a drop in my life. Foley catheter do that. So, my suggestion to you is if they say, "we are going to put a Foley catheter in," say "no, please teach me to self cath."

Do you have any idea why they are sending you? It would easier to prepare you if we knew more.