Whats the reality of the process/recovery/life after a vasectomy? Wifes having some complications from her birth control, and we are definitely done with kids.
Im scared to google, because the last time i did that i became convinced i had syphilis that went to my brain.....
Following. Three kids, over 40, last pregnancy was dangerous for my wife. Time to get snipped (or whatever they do today). I just remember my buddy getting it done and walking around the office with a bag of frozen peas down his pants for a few days. Looked...uncomfortable. And cold.
I've only known two coworkers to get snipped; one with three kids and the other w/ none.
Both early 30s, both worked at a military base as civilian police. The one w/ zero kids got snipped in the States and the other one got snipped across the southern border. Both took three days off of work, IIRC.
The State Snipper was healed or seemed normal after the three days.
The Southern Snipper....well...have you ever seen purplely bruised grapefruit? I think it took him a bit over a week or two to get back to "normal"
One data point. OK, you could call it two. 
Some pain during the procedure. Bearable, but not fun. Recovery was OK.
Follow post-op instructions. Don't be too eager to run a function test.
Do get the QC test afterwards so that you know it worked. Blanks are good.
Relax. One or two fewer things to worry about in life.
It's not a big deal. I have a HIGH tolerance to drugs, so the initial painkiller shot did little for me. (yes, its an injection somewhere you would prefer not to be poked with a needle, but I hardly noticed.) The doc gave me a second shot, then proceeded with poking to test the effect. I explained that I was feeling what he was doing and it was not good, so he went for a third. Even with that, I was aware of some tugs and pressure, nothing painful but certainly uncomfortable. He insisted an elephant would have been flat on its back, I blame college. In all, it took only a few minutes and I walked out the door.
Afterward, I took it easy and laid on the couch for the evening. Some soreness, a few shooting pains that lasted half a second, nothing that bad at all. I have hurt more after a trip to the dentist or working under the car. The next day, I was back to normal. I can't recall if I had the stitches out or if they dissolved.
You have to get tested afterward, which I never did. I know I should have, but I got busy and never got around to filling a cup and dropping it off at the lab. I figure it took my wife and me 5 years + fertility treatments to get pregnant the first time, so the odds were low. It's been 6 years and no more kids so I assume it worked.
2 things: First do it... seriously. It's not that bad, your wife can get off the crap and it only gets better. Second: Go under. If i had to do it again, I'd find a dr that put me clear under because that was not pleasant (I'm a wuss).
Recovery was 3-4days of icing and tylenol. Normal activities within 2 weeks. No side effects (outside of the mental of smelling yourself burning). I traded mine for a PS3.
Time for some funny stories. TL;DR? Do it, it's easy.
I didn't take the happy-time pill they prescribe to make you chill during the procedure. I thus tried to make small talk. Nothing more strange. Concentrate really hard on not kicking the doctor in the face, because you really will want to.
I drove myself home. They say not to. Oh well. I went to work the next day. They say not to. Oh well.
The nurse said "call us if there is excessive swelling", but I'm an engineer. I need a specification. I asked them to "define excessive swelling", and they said "If the swelling itself is golf ball sized, you should call". Oof. So I asked how to prevent -that-, and they recommended the frozen pea routine.
Cue work the next day, as I gingerly walk in with two bags of peas, drop one in the freezer and bring the other to my seat. I switched them every hour or so. During the very last interval, I had a problem. I stood up and it looked for all the world as if I had just wet myself, and not a small amount. I had a long long walk to the car, and you can't just say "It's pea juice" and leave it be.
They give you sample cups. Two. I must not have been super alert at the time. I heard that I was supposed to fill them and bring them a week later. Tunawife would have nothing of it.
The super nice lady said that, while she appreciated the effort it took to fill two before work, she needed one this week, and one next week. I got another free cup.
Anyway it was fine, other than the hilarity. Go for it.
Went in for consult after my 4th was born. I was 32.
Dr: Why do you think you want this at your age?
Mazdeuce: Hear that noise? That's my wife watching my four kids in your waiting room.
Dr: Right, how does Thursday sound?
We talked about cycling during the 15ish minute procedure. Sat on the couch for two days. Got checked for swimmers after six weeks. Done and done. You'll have discomfort for less than a week and it will enable your wife to not worry from now until menopause. Do it.
bobzilla said:2 things: First do it... seriously. It's not that bad, your wife can get off the crap and it only gets better. Second: Go under. If i had to do it again, I'd find a dr that put me clear under because that was not pleasant (I'm a wuss).
I, on the other hand, think it's better to avoid general anesthesia if possible. There have been a lot of anecdotes floating around about an apparent link to dementia and recently some scientific studies have found some possibility of a connection:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5601762/
https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/about-dementia/risk-factors-and-prevention/general-anaesthetics
I say tough it out, just in case. I've had pain in my nuts bad enough to cause hallucinations before, I lived.
I had it done about six months after mini-Jav #2 was born. In and out in about 20 minutes, sat on the couch for a day, and then that was it. Easiest and least painful procedure I've ever had done.
Fun side-effect, your ah... "run times" increase by a noticeable margin afterwards.
find a guy who does no incision no anaesthia
https://www.drsnip.com/ <-- silly name.. no pain.. took one day off work and no issues on Monday. Back in the gym a week later. Used a hydrojet to inject the numbing agent through my skin directly with no needles. It was neat tech. My insurance paid for it 100% No copay, period.
Do it.
I did it with the local anesthesia. My guy swabbed the area with a topical novacain-based anesthesia before the shot(s?). You will feel pinching and pulling, and of course the smell of the cauterization.
I drove myself home in my standard car afterwards without too much trouble. I did have some pain in the evening afterwards which was solved with ibprofin. They gave me a perscription for harder stuff but I never cashed it in. Like the others, too quick of movement will reward you with a sharp stab of pain for a little bit. I relaxed on the couch that evening and tried not to move too much. By taking it easy that evening and the next morning, by the afternoon I was working on replacing my trucks' water pump.
And follow the recommend test followup. Why go through all this and risk still having another kid?
I had it done a couple of years ago for similar reasons
It isn't bad, some discomfort for a couple of days but other than some medicine the day of I didn't take any pain medication afterwards. They did give me some anti-anxiety medicine for before the procedure, seemed to work well enough. I'd recommend taking a couple of days off or at least planning it for the weekend just because walking around was uncomfortable. There are some risks as there are with any procedure but I recommend it. If for no other reason than it got my wife off birth control and dealing with the ongoing risks and side-effects of that.
Find a doc that does it under general anesthesia. Thwn make sure you take ut easy like they tell you. Not sure what recovery is like if you do, but i know what its like if you go back to work 36 hours after surgery and it SUCKS. After healing its AWESOME.
WonkoTheSane said:Do it.
I did it with the local anesthesia. My guy swabbed the area with a topical novacain-based anesthesia before the shot(s?). You will feel pinching and pulling, and of course the smell of the cauterization.
I drove myself home in my standard car afterwards without too much trouble. I did have some pain in the evening afterwards which was solved with ibprofin. They gave me a perscription for harder stuff but I never cashed it in. Like the others, too quick of movement will reward you with a sharp stab of pain for a little bit. I relaxed on the couch that evening and tried not to move too much. By taking it easy that evening and the next morning, by the afternoon I was working on replacing my trucks' water pump.
And follow the recommend test followup. Why go through all this and risk still having another kid?
This is in accurate description of my experience. I'll also add that they screened what they were doing from me during the procedure so I couldn't/didn't watch, which I recommend.
The kicker on my experience was that out of "professional courtesy" my wife, the veterinarian, observed the entire procedure. Downside of not being under the general was getting the remarks and commentary along the way.
Easy peasy. Do exactly what they tell you too, meaning take it easy for a couple days, ice your balls, and don't have sex to try it out before you are supposed to. All these things will add to recovery time if not done.
I was also 32 with 4 kids. One of the smartest things I have done.
PS. If you are scared remember what it looked like watching your kids come out of your wife's cooter. Then suck it up and quit being such a little bitch.
Yep, no biggie. I honestly barely remember anything about it, it was so minor.
Best $200 out of pocket I ever spent. I have three kids all spaced two years apart or less. I was done. She was done. I was 31 when I had it done.
Dont let a bunch of wimpy ass men in your life talk you out of it. It’s easy and nearly pain free.
Planning on it after wife and I decide if we are one and done or going for #2.
If you had to name a different procedure that you may have experienced with a similar amount of pain?
I've been through kidney stones and a herniated disc that required surgery and months of recovery, so I know I've been through worse. It just helps to have a reference.
Easy procedure, easy recovery. I love my kids but I should have done it years ago when my wife and I first floated the idea... not after five pregnancies.
I can’t imagine what it would cost if you have general anesthesia. I had 2 co-workers go through it and both are wussies. One guy had no kids and had to get witnessed paperwork done. He used my urologist who did it in his surgery center. Cost him a ton. The other guy had in done in his doctors office and he paid the $40 copay and the cost of a set/up tray of instruments.
You could always DIY. This is grassroots ya know.
In reply to Dusterbd13-michael :
In my case, not a big deal in any way. I had mine done maybe 10 years ago and wish I had done it 5 years sooner.
Had 1 consult with my GP, who referred me to a couple surgeons, including the one who had done the GP's snip previously. The same surgeon had also done my umbilical hernia so I was comfortable with him. Another consult with the surgeon and we were on the schedule. No out-of-pocket cost to me, with OK insurance.
They're usually scheduled for Thursday / Friday to give you a few days' recuperation. Mine was a Friday; I was at the surgical center by 6:30a, under anesthesia by 7:00a, in recovery by 7:30a. DW drove me there and back. I spent a couple days on the couch with a bag of frozen peas on the affected area. You'll want 3 bags, in freezer rotation. I never even filled the painkiller prescription. I was back at work on Monday morning to find a longneck beer and 2 large round rocks on my chair. Heh heh.
My 30-day recount was zero, so we were cleared for action without contraception. DO NOT SKIP THE RECOUNT - I know a couple who have 5 kids (surprise twins) because they were too stupid (for lack of a better word) to follow up with the doctor before going without a net.
Post-recovery, physical side effects were pretty much zero. Our love life took a nice upswing because of the increased spontaneity (we had been using physical barrier protection - a diaphragm). My, ummm, output was about half of the previous volume, but there was zero change in sensation and never any pain.
Neither of us had any emotional issues either. I sometimes miss being able to make such a big mess once in a while, but that's it, and it's more than balanced by nobody having to sleep in the wet spot.
If you are finished having children, then do it. Not a big deal. Follow the recovery instructions.
In reply to GameboyRMH :
Meh, we all gotta die of something. At least with dementia I can have an entire library in one book. (bad joke)
I had mine done around 32. We had no kids and the doc was asking if I was sure. The wife looked at him and said "He's sure." OK, I made that up but yes they do want to make sure you don't want to change your mind. Wife and I had been talking about it for a couple of years and we were sure (and glad). Already having kids makes some of the inquistion probably unnecessary.
As for nut pain.... I didn't realize how bad it COULD hurt until 2 hernia surgeries later. Let me tell you about OIC..... not fun. But my junk was huge for a couple days after those!
Wait, what were we talking about?
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