Bladder Retention

[cleofet]

Sorry this is very long.  In May 2007 I had lap band surgery, I weighted 305.  I turned 55 in May of 08.  In March of 2008 I started to have trouble urinating, the flow was not as strong as it had been.  I thought it was scar tissue from a previous surgery for a blockage 6 years prior.  They emptied my bladder with a catheter and I had 1650 ML in me and I did not even have the urgent need to urinate.  The urologist said there was no scar tissue.  He catheterized me and I wore the bag for almost four weeks.  When I returned they took the catheter out and did another test and said that if I passed a certain amount of urine by 3 pm that day they would not have to put the catheter back in.  Well about 10 minutes before 3 that day I went to the bathroom and did pass the amount required.  The next day I started having chills and feeling nauseas.  I called the doctor and he said to come in to the office the next day.  I did and I was told that I would need to self catheterize three times a day.   I asked what was going on and the doctor said I had what they call neurogenic bladder.  I asked what caused it and he said that my bladder was stretched from years of holding my urine. It didn’t make sense to me because I was going to the bathroom on my own before he catheterized me for four weeks in March.   I was taught to self catheterize and had to do that three times a day and take three different kinds of meds.  It just got worse until I wasn't going at all on my own.  When I went back to the doctor a couple of months later they changed one of the meds to Flowmax and dropped the catheterization to twice a day.  He said that if the meds didn't get me going regular then there is a surgery to trim the Prostate so that the Urethra would have more room  but they said it wasn't a guarantee and if it didn't work I would have to self catheterize for the rest of my life.  The flowmax gave me many side effects including not being able to climax.  He had said earlyer that the prostate was not enlarged.  We made an appointment with a different doctor for a 2nd opinion and that doctor said the surgery to trim the prostate probably would not work.  He said that he would tell me to stop the meds since they aren't really doing any good but causing side effects and I will be catheterizing to empty my bladder any way.  My wife researched Bladder retention on the internet and found something called sacral nerve manipulation or stimulation (I can't remember which) also known as Interstim and the next doctor visit (original doctor) we asked him and he said yes they can try that and that he has performed about 15 of the surgeries but for incontinence not retention.  We did it and it did not work.  Now I am up to between 4 and 5 times a day catheterizing and I can not go at all on my own.  I do have the urge to go now but nothing not even a drop comes out on its own.  I am not taking the meds any more but I am still having trouble climaxing most times.  I do get an erection but just when I am ready to ejaculate the feeling goes away and nothing comes out.  I continue to have the erection for awhile though.  There has to be something that can be done.  I do not understand why this happened and I feel like I am the only person this is happening to.  I have tried to do research to find some one that specializes in bladder retention on men but I haven’t had much luck.  Have you ever seen this problem in someone my age or any one for that matter.  I have gone to a Neurologists but he says he doesn’t see anything except some arthritis.  I am becoming more and more depressed about this situation and my quality of life is going downhill fast.
  Please help if you can.