If you’re reading this, you’re probably considering having a vasectomy. Or maybe you’ve already signed up and you are counting down the days until it is over and done with. An upcoming procedure can definitely cause some anxiety if you don’t know what to expect afterward. Lucky for you, you’re in the right place. We’re going to break down the everything you need to know!
Immediate Postoperative Period
Two words! Couch Potato!!! You should 100% take it easy for the first 24 hours after your procedure. You should minimize most activities and find a good book, TV show, movie, game, podcast–whatever your favorite medium is to keep you company while you relax. You should apply ice 20 min on/20 min off in the first 24 hours to help with pain and swelling.
Vasectomy Pain Management
You will be given some local numbing medicine for the procedure. This should keep everything comfortable for a while, but you may notice a little uptick in pain/discomfort once it wears off.
For pain control at home, over the counter medications do a great job at controlling post-vasectomy pain. You should start with tylenol/acetaminophen. You should take 325-1000mg every 6 hours as needed. You should not take more than 4000mg in a 24 hour period. IF you still have pain despite taking the tylenol/acetaminophen, you can add ibuprofen/motrin. You can take 200-600mg every 6 hours as needed.
Since each can be given every 6 hours, some people like to alternate and stagger the medications so you get some relief every few hours. For example, you can take Tylenol at 6:00, then Ibuprofen 3 hours later at 9:00, then Tylenol 3 hours later at 12:00, and so on.
After a procedure, you may not be 100% pain free for a few days while everything heals. The main goal for post-procedure pain control is to keep you comfortable enough to move around and continue with your daily activities. If the pain is not controllable with over the counter medications, let your provider know!
Physical Activity and Rest
After the first 24 hours of being a couch potato, it is totally okay to slowly ease back into your normal daily activities, but you should start slowly and avoid any serious exercise. In the first 10-14 days, you should be fine to walk, drive, and return to work if you do not have a physically taxing job. After the initial 10-14 days, you can increase your activity based on how everything is feeling.
Let’s say you’re an avid runner and are used to running 5 miles each night. By day 10, if you’re feeling good and want to start running again, maybe try for a one mile light jog. If that goes well, maybe increase it the next day, and so on. It is SO important to start slow and listen to your body.
Managing Swelling and Bruising After a Vasectomy
Swelling and bruising are part of the normal healing process after any procedure. There are three main things to help keep these to a minimum.
#1. Ice in the first 24 hours. You should do 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off to let things have a break from the cold. This helps constrict the blood vessels which lessens the amount of blood flow to the area. It can also make things a little numb, which is an added benefit!
#2. Scrotal support. This sounds contradictory, I know! A lot of people think that you should keep everything off of the scrotum and let it hang. BUT, hanging can actually put a lot of stress on the scrotum and allows for more room for swelling and bruising. The best thing to do is take pressure off of the scrotum and keep it nice and close to the body. You should wear scrotal support in the form of a jock strap or brief underwear.
#3. Take. It. Easy! Most guys *want* to be a couch potato after undergoing this procedure. Everything is a little bit sore and the anxiety surrounding having the procedure can just take a lot out of you in general. But I also know some guys don’t know how to just sit down and do nothing for a few days. It will be very tempting to just continue on with life as normal the next day– playing basketball, hopping on a bike, getting on the lawn mower, etc. However, even if it feels fine and not super painful at the time, you will regret it later. Your body needs time to heal from the procedure. Returning to these activities too soon can just increase your chances of swelling and bleeding/bruising. After the first 10 days, you can slowly start adding back all of your normal strenuous activities a little bit at a time!
Does it Hurt to Pee After a Vasectomy?
A vasectomy should not affect how you pee. The surgical site does not involve your urinary tract. However, your underwear does help support and take pressure off of the scrotum, so when you pull down your underwear or adjust everything when you pull your pants back up, things may be sore.
Hygiene and Care of the Surgical Site
You should keep everything clean and dry for the first 24 hours. After that, you should shower daily. You don’t have to scrub at your incisions, but you should let soap and water run over them. You should pat dry and avoid rubbing at your incisions too much. You will have 1-2 stitches, let them fall off on their own. Taking daily showers is important to keep the wound clean while your skin is healing.
Does a Vasectomy Leave a Scar?
Any time an incision is made, there is scarring. That part is unavoidable. The good news is that the incision is very small and due to the wrinkly skin in the scrotum, the scars are often hidden in the folds and not easily visible. It may be prominent at first, but scars will soften and fade with time and can do so for up to two years.
Resuming Sexual Activity
You should refrain from sexual stimulation for the first 10 days. After that, as long as your pain is controlled, you can start easing back into sexual activity. Remember that a vasectomy involves cutting one of the tubes that delivers fluid to the ejaculate. Because of this, it is normal to have discolored semen the first few times you ejaculate, so don’t be alarmed!!
When you resume sexual activity, it is advised to continue to use another form of birth control until your semen analysis results after 50 ejaculations.
The recovery from a vasectomy can be daunting, but we hope this article helps you feel a little more prepared. Purely Vasectomies is available for any questions or concerns and we will be with you every step of the way!
