Posted by Mary on 6/2/2008, 9:12 pm, in reply to "Re: Any ladies using a catheter?"

Hi I'm a 27 year old female I & have been using catheters for about a year and they're great. I was horrified when it was first suggested to me but I got a referral from my GP to see a Continence Nurse at the hospital and she was really lovely and very understanding. She showed me how to do it using a diagram and then sent me off to the loo with a few catheters and after a couple of goes I managed it, no problem! It doesn't hurt me at all, occasionally it stings slightly & it's not comfortable but really it doesn't hurt. Most toilets have sanitary bins in the cubicles so you can get rid of the catheter afterwards straightaway without anyone knowing. It's the shape of an applicator tampon & they're small enough to go into a pocket if need be. They actually go in just like a tampon but the only tricky bit is learning exactly which hole to insert it into (not nice for anyone to read I know, but it is rather crucial)! It took me a while because I kept pressuring myself to do it quickly & kept putting it into the wrong place(!) but you soon learn where it goes & now I find that it's very easy & quick. For me it literally does mean that I can do everything that I want to and I can travel anywhere - I can even go to the toilets with my friends which I used to shy away from before. Also, because I know I have the catheters as a back-up, nine times out of ten I don't even use them because they give me the confidence to relax and try, and it doesn't matter if I can't because the catheters will do it for me. Let me know if you have any other queries. Good luck if you do decide to go ahead. I think its a worth a go!! Mary

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