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Had a Dr visit the other day because my PSA is up again. He doesn't think it's cancer because it's been much higher before. But he thinks it's severe BPH and wants me to have another MRI. If BPH is confirmed, he's talking surgery to clear obstructions. He mentioned TURP and some other I didn't catch. Has anyone had this procedure done? A lot of the side effects are rare but include incontinence, impotence and retrograde ejaculation. Nothing that I want to experience.  

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  • Graduated to octogenarian status today, so we went out for dinner. Never thought I’d get this far. 

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Sounds like you may be SOL. /jk

 

Good luck with everything. 

 

26 minutes ago, Crapinon said:

A lot of the side effects are rare but include incontinence, impotence and retrograde ejaculation. Nothing that I want to experience. 

 

Eh, they make pills for that. 

32 minutes ago, Crapinon said:

Had a Dr visit the other day because my PSA is up again. He doesn't think it's cancer because it's been much higher before. But he thinks it's severe BPH and wants me to have another MRI. If BPH is confirmed, he's talking surgery to clear obstructions. He mentioned TURP and some other I didn't catch. Has anyone had this procedure done? A lot of the side effects are rare but include incontinence, impotence and retrograde ejaculation. Nothing that I want to experience.  

 BPH is not something to ignore. I have two friends that ignored the problem and ended up in an emergency room because they couldn’t pee, and ended up with a catheter shoved up their Johnson for TWO MONTHS until a surgeon could get them in for surgery. 

There are multiple treatment options for BPH depending upon how serious the symptoms and how the blockage is occurring. TURP is historically the most common treatment but HoLep laser is a new treatment that is getting very positive reviews for multiple reasons. 

A good urologist will stick a camera up your Johnson to see how the blockage is occurring. There is a chance you could do what’s called a partial TURP, which doesn’t cut away as much material as a full TURP. There potentially wouldn’t be retrograde e in that scenario.This could be a good option. Less material. Less risk.   

If a full material removal is required and it were me, I would do HoLep first, Aquablation maybe as a second choice, TURP third. Aquablation also has a low chance of retro e. I wouldn’t look at Rezum or other procedures because those haven’t gotten very good reviews. 

HoLep, TURP, and Aquablation have very low odds of incontinence or ed. 

I had a PAE for my BPH. I would look into that.

48 minutes ago, Dbeasy said:

 BPH is not something to ignore. I have two friends that ignored the problem and ended up in an emergency room because they couldn’t pee, and ended up with a catheter shoved up their Johnson for TWO MONTHS until a surgeon could get them in for surgery. 

There are multiple treatment options for BPH depending upon how serious the symptoms and how the blockage is occurring. TURP is historically the most common treatment but HoLep laser is a new treatment that is getting very positive reviews for multiple reasons. 

A good urologist will stick a camera up your Johnson to see how the blockage is occurring. There is a chance you could do what’s called a partial TURP, which doesn’t cut away as much material as a full TURP. There potentially wouldn’t be retrograde e in that scenario.This could be a good option. Less material. Less risk.   

If a full material removal is required and it were me, I would do HoLep first, Aquablation maybe as a second choice, TURP third. Aquablation also has a low chance of retro e. I wouldn’t look at Rezum or other procedures because those haven’t gotten very good reviews. 

HoLep, TURP, and Aquablation have very low odds of incontinence or ed. 

 

50 minutes ago, Dbeasy said:

 BPH is not something to ignore. I have two friends that ignored the problem and ended up in an emergency room because they couldn’t pee, and ended up with a catheter shoved up their Johnson for TWO MONTHS until a surgeon could get them in for surgery. 

There are multiple treatment options for BPH depending upon how serious the symptoms and how the blockage is occurring. TURP is historically the most common treatment but HoLep laser is a new treatment that is getting very positive reviews for multiple reasons. 

A good urologist will stick a camera up your Johnson to see how the blockage is occurring. There is a chance you could do what’s called a partial TURP, which doesn’t cut away as much material as a full TURP. There potentially wouldn’t be retrograde e in that scenario.This could be a good option. Less material. Less risk.   

If a full material removal is required and it were me, I would do HoLep first, Aquablation maybe as a second choice, TURP third. Aquablation also has a low chance of retro e. I wouldn’t look at Rezum or other procedures because those haven’t gotten very good reviews. 

HoLep, TURP, and Aquablation have very low odds of incontinence or ed. 

When we were discussing treatment he mentioned TURP and something I couldn't catch (hearing aids are next). I asked chatgpt about his preferred procedure and it said HoLep first and Turp second depending on size. I'll ask him about them when we speak after the MRI.  

29 minutes ago, msbesq said:

I had a PAE for my BPH. I would look into that.

Yes this one is interesting too. It is a bizarre procedure but seems to work pretty well for people who have the right BPH profile. 

I researched for several months and decided on PAE based on several factors: No cath necessary, quick recovery time(although the first week was painful) and very few reported side effects( I had none). The other option I looked at extensively was Urolift but I was not a candidate due to the size of my prostate( in excess of 80 ml) which is the recommended max. I ruled out TURP because anecdotally it went poorly for my father and a friend of mine. I was on Tamsulosin(Flomax) for 5 years before it finally stopped working. It should be your first choice and possibly Avodart before any procedure.

15 minutes ago, msbesq said:

I researched for several months and decided on PAE based on several factors: No cath necessary, quick recovery time(although the first week was painful) and very few reported side effects( I had none). The other option I looked at extensively was Urolift but I was not a candidate due to the size of my prostate( in excess of 80 ml) which is the recommended max. I ruled out TURP because anecdotally it went poorly for my father and a friend of mine. I was on Tamsulosin(Flomax) for 5 years before it finally stopped working. It should be your first choice and possibly Avodart before any procedure.

My urologist had done some urolifts over the years and found it too ineffective too often. When I researched online there were tons of people with failed urolift procedures. Agree that trying drugs first is the best path. Delay more serious treatments if possible.  

Urologists will never recommend PAE because they can’t do it. It’s done by an interventional radiologist only. HoLep was my second choice.

1 hour ago, msbesq said:

I researched for several months and decided on PAE based on several factors: No cath necessary, quick recovery time(although the first week was painful) and very few reported side effects( I had none). The other option I looked at extensively was Urolift but I was not a candidate due to the size of my prostate( in excess of 80 ml) which is the recommended max. I ruled out TURP because anecdotally it went poorly for my father and a friend of mine. I was on Tamsulosin(Flomax) for 5 years before it finally stopped working. It should be your first choice and possibly Avodart before any procedure.

I took Flomax for 2 days. The second night I passed out in the bathroom. I barely made it to the floor before everything went black. Probably a blood pressure drop but I refused to take it after that. 

Talk to your PCP then about Avodart to shrink your prostate. Another thing urologists won’t deal with.

Cross-posting…..

TEXTING FOR SENIORS

BFF - best friend fell
BTW - bring the wheelchair
TTYL - talk to you louder
BYOT - bring your own teeth
LMDO - laughing my dentures out
FWIW - forgot where I was
IMHAO - is my hearing aid on?
OMMR - on my massage recliner
ROFLACGU - rolling on the floor laughing and can’t get up

On 9/1/2025 at 7:34 PM, troph said:

Whatever you do, never go full TURP.

This coming from @troph makes it especially well played.

I let my dumbass self get out of shape...again. At my advanced age it only takes a couple of weeks without regular exercise to get real weak and easily fatigued. Just taking out the trash makes me break a sweat. The good news is that I got off my ass and started up my "old people" exercise routine.  Gotdammit I hate the realization that anything more than exercise "for seniors" leads to strained muscles and joints. I was really getting after the kettlebells, but when I strained my back so bad I could't move I realized that even that is, for now, beyond my capacity.  So 30-40 minutes on the elliptical. Don't miss a day. Just do it, and all that crap.                

17 hours ago, Not that Bob said:

I let my dumbass self get out of shape...again. At my advanced age it only takes a couple of weeks without regular exercise to get real weak and easily fatigued. Just taking out the trash makes me break a sweat. The good news is that I got off my ass and started up my "old people" exercise routine.  Gotdammit I hate the realization that anything more than exercise "for seniors" leads to strained muscles and joints. I was really getting after the kettlebells, but when I strained my back so bad I could't move I realized that even that is, for now, beyond my capacity.  So 30-40 minutes on the elliptical. Don't miss a day. Just do it, and all that crap.                

I also use an elliptical regularly, as I simply cannot run without f'ing up knees and back (have never been able to). I also do weights and bodyweight stuff, but the joints in a 60yo are not the same as when I was 25 for sure.

I highly recommend the Norwegian 4x4 protocol (insert standard disclaimer about checking with doctor before starting an exercise program). I used to do Tabatas on the thing and they made me feel like dying. But didn't really move the needle in terms of fitness compared to the Norwegian, at least for me. And it's not like I haven't been active consistently for my whole adult life, so not starting from nothing. The Norwegian 4x4 workouts are much less "I feel like I'm dying", but yet according to my Apple Watch, my VO2Max has steadily improved since I began them 8 months ago. 

You only need to do this about once a week to see results, and it "scales" for any fitness level. I.e., you do the workout at the highest intensity you can sustain for the 4 minute periods. So, at the start this will be lower than it will as you improve. And the improvement started pretty quickly for me. Other days I do more normal "Zone 2" work on the elliptical, or walk.

Of course, YMMV.

Edited by SurlyORama

On 6/27/2025 at 5:28 PM, mininghorn88 said:

I would love to wear contacts but there is no way on God’s green earth will you find me voluntarily touching my eyeballs. So…I suffer with wearing glasses and trials that it brings.

But you're not touching your eyeballs...the contacts are. 

We should have a getting old rocks thread … first submission would be the Sunday afternoon catnap. 

4 hours ago, scramblyn said:

We should have a getting old rocks thread … first submission would be the Sunday afternoon catnap. 

Getting old rocks, eh? I’ll be 73 next week and this is how I spent the weekend with my wife. We bought a limestone rock that was pulled out of a local Catholic cemetery. It had been one of many used to line roadways there. I needed a stone to mount my Mother’s sundial. We had it on a wooden fence post for years but it had decayed. Yesterday I dug a hole and we used a rock bar to jimmy it off of my trailer and set it in that hole. We used pipe clamps to grab it and pivot it in the hole to point north and south. This morning , we mixed 4 bags of quikrete and secured it.

image.thumb.jpeg.db72142d2e9e1bcbd602c4827270d1d2.jpeg

image.thumb.jpeg.c5ef55e45cc6edaf1c95e72a66fc37f7.jpeg
 

We are both pretty tired tonight but next weekend we are going to build a low retaining wall around it and mulch it all to match the Peony bed behind it. At times it sucks getting old but not always. 
ETA: I’m not sure how I posted the top pic twice. I must be getting old. 

Edited by Shoxthemonkey

I just ordered a nose and ear hair waxing kit from Amazon. Will report back in due time. 

1 hour ago, Shoxthemonkey said:

Getting old rocks, eh? I’ll be 73 next week and this is how I spent the weekend with my wife. We bought a limestone rock that was pulled out of a local Catholic cemetery. It had been one of many used to line roadways there. I needed a stone to mount my Mother’s sundial. We had it on a wooden fence post for years but it had decayed. Yesterday I dug a hole and we used a rock bar to jimmy it off of my trailer and set it in that hole. We used pipe clamps to grab it and pivot it in the hole to point north and south. This morning , we mixed 4 bags of quikrete and secured it.

image.thumb.jpeg.db72142d2e9e1bcbd602c4827270d1d2.jpeg

image.thumb.jpeg.c5ef55e45cc6edaf1c95e72a66fc37f7.jpeg
 

We are both pretty tired tonight but next weekend we are going to build a low retaining wall around it and mulch it all to match the Peony bed behind it. At times it sucks getting old but not always. 
ETA: I’m not sure how I posted the top pic twice. I must be getting old. 

That’s what I’m talking about. Rock on old man! 

On 9/1/2025 at 4:44 PM, Dbeasy said:

 BPH is not something to ignore. I have two friends that ignored the problem and ended up in an emergency room because they couldn’t pee, and ended up with a catheter shoved up their Johnson for TWO MONTHS until a surgeon could get them in for surgery. 

There are multiple treatment options for BPH depending upon how serious the symptoms and how the blockage is occurring. TURP is historically the most common treatment but HoLep laser is a new treatment that is getting very positive reviews for multiple reasons. 

A good urologist will stick a camera up your Johnson to see how the blockage is occurring. There is a chance you could do what’s called a partial TURP, which doesn’t cut away as much material as a full TURP. There potentially wouldn’t be retrograde e in that scenario.This could be a good option. Less material. Less risk.   

If a full material removal is required and it were me, I would do HoLep first, Aquablation maybe as a second choice, TURP third. Aquablation also has a low chance of retro e. I wouldn’t look at Rezum or other procedures because those haven’t gotten very good reviews. 

HoLep, TURP, and Aquablation have very low odds of incontinence or ed. 

Nov 2021 TURP recipient here. Mine was not cancer related, but rather blockage of the bladder that was diagnosed the day that I could no longer pee.  My 2 best days that year were the day I got my catheter, and the days I no longer needed it. Mine was a partial TURP, I no longer take FloMax after the TURP (well really once I had a catheter buddy), but a mentioned there are meds to help set time, if needed.

On 9/14/2025 at 7:13 PM, nnm said:

I just ordered a nose and ear hair waxing kit from Amazon. Will report back in due time. 

Yeah, we're going to need video. :popcorn.gif

5 minutes ago, Mother mopar said:

Do we though

Steve Carell Introduced Kelly Clarkson With A "40-Year-Old ...

Ordered one of these from Amazon. It's supposed to be a nose hair trimmer. It looks like a tiny comb with a razor blade, but can't be sure until I get it.

image.png.62ff526b4e87feaa3d889b8c78e43b62.png

1 hour ago, Superhero said:

Ordered one of these from Amazon. It's supposed to be a nose hair trimmer. It looks like a tiny comb with a razor blade, but can't be sure until I get it.

image.png.62ff526b4e87feaa3d889b8c78e43b62.png

You too cheap for an electric one like a normal person?

On 9/14/2025 at 7:13 PM, nnm said:

I just ordered a nose and ear hair waxing kit from Amazon. Will report back in due time. 

One of the best personal grooming purchases I've ever made.  Nothing will ever be better than a bidet for personal hygiene, but this is super easy, very reasonably priced, and very quick.  Do it.  Your family (and/or sugar baby) will thank you.  

https://a.co/d/6VgyUqL

Attended a memorial service today for a young (70) member of our happy hour group. 
About 70 people showed up and all but a handful were old farts, blue hairs, & white hairs. 
Then it dawned on me that I was one of the oldest present, except for the decedent’s 90+ year old mother.

I'm retiring at the end of the month. I always though it would be a joyous time but I'm struggling. I've worked with my son for the last 15 years and I'm going to miss our daily interaction. And I've been doing the 8-5 for over 45 years. Every morning I woke up with something to do or accomplish. I've got a good flex time job lined up for about 10 days a month so I'm not stopping cold turkey but it's going to take some time to adjust. And on top of that I've got to have an MRI, surgery and a tooth crowned the first month off. For the last few years, I've focused on retirement priorities and finances, so we're in good shape for now.  But I never thought through this actual retirement part of getting old.

8 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Stock up on Metamucil.

LOL. That’s one thing I don’t need help with!

2 hours ago, Crapinon said:

I'm retiring at the end of the month. I always though it would be a joyous time but I'm struggling. I've worked with my son for the last 15 years and I'm going to miss our daily interaction. And I've been doing the 8-5 for over 45 years. Every morning I woke up with something to do or accomplish. I've got a good flex time job lined up for about 10 days a month so I'm not stopping cold turkey but it's going to take some time to adjust. And on top of that I've got to have an MRI, surgery and a tooth crowned the first month off. For the last few years, I've focused on retirement priorities and finances, so we're in good shape for now.  But I never thought through this actual retirement part of getting old.

I retire at the end of the month as well. We have a long term goal of moving to Spain for a few years and will be there January at the latest. But, it will be an adjustment. A lot of mixed feelings, but I'm ready for a different pace in life. 

Also. My eyes are getting worse with age.

I've been wearing glasses for 40 years for nearsightedness. The optometrist added 2.0 at the bottom of the lens for reading. I find myself raising my eyes to look at the computer screen because the text is too small, and I lose too much real estate if I increase the size of the font.

Time to go get my eyes checked again. 

I have a Bible I've used for many years that has notes and highlights in it.  I can no longer effectively read that size text and have to use the Bible app on my phone.  

11 minutes ago, T’Boo Ted Marshall said:

I have a Bible I've used for many years that has notes and highlights in it.  I can no longer effectively read that size text and have to use the Bible app on my phone.  

Or you can use your phone to zoom in on the bible.

On a few occasions when my coworkers go to steakhouses (they all seem to be poorly lit), we all break out our phones for the flashlight and/or video camera to see the menu. You'd think that people who can afford $100+/person meals would be of the older persuasion who would appreciate a little more light and menus with bigger fonts.

Haven't been in here in awhile... 

Some stuff I thought I would share after reading the last page or 2..

Put me in the camp for saying no to 'Urolift'.  Had the procedure... Efficacy is only a few years.  For BPH these days, 5 mg of Cialis (Tadalafil) has been ok to manage symptoms.  Still have nights where you get up quite a few times, but it isn't bad enough to want to go through the starting process of another procedure.  Getting double penetrated by cameras is not something you ever want to go through even once never mind multiple times.   In the past, I have been on FloMax but the retrograde ejaculation was a big downer.  Wife was ok with it though. :)

For dealing with prolonged time to 'finish' Saw Palmetto' might be worth a shot.  I know have taken it for a natural remedy for BPH and it made things happen a lot quicker than wanted.

For dealing with that quick finish, anti-depressants like Zoloft will help you stay in the groove a while longer.

 

 

 

 

Check out a PAE. No caths, very short recovery time and only an MRI to peek on the inside. Can only be done by an interventional radiologist, so urologists will never discuss it. No performance issues and retrograde is not a side effect 

Edited by msbesq

I picked up a hacking smokers cough in Chicago last weekend and its still around 10 days later.

Big green loogies.

I haven't had this in 40 years probably.  Guess I need to see my PCP.

1 hour ago, Superhero said:

Or you can use your phone to zoom in on the bible.

 

Yeah no.  I know that's an option but I might as well carry a magnifying glass.  

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