My aim in this is to document my personal journey, feelings and experiences with wet shaving and my not so good diagnosis of prostate caner... It won’t be a daily thing more as I think if it or a get news one way or the other and how in feeling about it all. I should point out I have no health insurance but here in Aussie the public health system is amazing.... at least where I am in Victoria.
Hopefully I won’t bore anyone to tears but if it encourages any of you to get tested then it will be worth while....
I am now 50 and It all started 10 years ago when I got a call from my elder brother to inform me that he had aggressive prostate cancer... and that I should be tested. (He has had his prostate removed and is doing great, he is also 10 years older than me)
I was given the digital exam and was told that while my prostate was enlarged all seemed fine, so the doc sent me for a PSA blood test and it was REALLY low.... so I got tested every year and it remained low i.e. at about 1 - 2, I don’t remember exactly but it was so low that it was questionable that it was accurate, almost.
BTW the digital exam really isn’t anything to worry about, sure it’s embarrassing and uncomfortable but its all over in about 10 seconds. Don’t do it on a full bladder....Just brace yourself and think of England.
Anyhow, back to the story, over the 1st 8 years my PSA score remained low then I skipped year 9 and last year it doubled which raised some eyebrows and the testing lab suggested I get things checked again. So I had another PSA test and it doubled again about 4 months later but still so low that if it were my first the doc would have said that nothing was wrong.. So I was sent to the urologist and was given another digital exam... thinking of England.. and was given the option of leaving it or having the prostate biopsy ..... he said there was about a 30% chance of cancer but because of my family history it would be better to check just in case. With not having health insurance I was put on the public waiting list...
Coincidentally it was at this time I started DE shaving (properly) with a TTO Comoy razor my eldest son brought me 6 months earlier. I didn’t realise it at the time but this proved to be a rather pleasant distraction and started taking pride in how I looked and presented myself. That in itself was a big confidence boost. I was having a ball trying stuff, improvising and I was the recipient of a really cool synthetic brush in a PIF, which was so much better than the cheap eBay badger brush, $9 delivered.. (don’t buy one of those they are awful) mind you that was better than the paint brush I was using. I also joined B&B at that time too and found a great group of guys and gals... and the best run forum I have been a part of on the net... ever. I started www.coffeesnobs.com.au and B&B is being run much better than I ever ran CS. Tho Andy who is running it now is doing a Stirling job and is one of the good guys.
I brought my 18 year old son a Merkur 20C razor and shave cream and balm for his birthday and he loves it. For Christmas I gave my 15 year old son and myself a black WCS razor which I had a few issues with both heads but they very kindly sent replacements at no charge. both replacements are great. In the mean time tho I had brought two Maggard’s V3 Dark heads and put them on the WCS handles. Just because we could and both my son John and I really liked them. The WCS ones were ok too but i found that it was a tad awkward under my cute button nose... the V3 head is a bit slimmer.
In my Christmas stash I also picked up an Ogallala Bay Rum soap which I happily discovered with its really heavy clove scent soothed my stuffed lungs and my breathing and cough almost returns to normal. I have mild Bronchiectasis which is thickening of the tubes in my lungs the result of 29 years servicing photocopiers.... So long as I keep using the OBR soap every few days it seems to help. (I may be confusing confusing causation with correlation and it may be all a placebo but i don’t really care if it seems that it works for me then it works.) I am on antibiotics for the rest of my life, which keeps the chest infections away or helps too.
In January I brought a few soaps and stuff and was sent a Mamabear’s Bounty soap by Sue and it is amazing. Her shipping is super fast. I did a write up on it here in B&B it’s well worth a try.
In February I got the call from the hospital booking me in for my first visit at outpatients for the info session and a chat with the urologist / surgeon and was put on the waiting list again for the TRUS Biopsy and was asked if I wanted it done at The Epworth University Private Hospital here in Geelong but still treated as a public patient as they do the overflow from Geelong Public. Under the Australian Federal Government Shared Care Scheme. So I agreed...
On March 23rd I was booked in for the biopsy and it went off without a hitch. I felt ok but that night I was passing blood clots with difficulty and bleeding when pooping and I was a bit scared, I rang Nurses online and told them what was going on and they suggested that I see a doc within 6 hours but said to call Doctors at home service to come and check me instead of going into emergency. So a really nice doctor came to see me a few hours later and by that time things had started to come good.... major relief. The next day I felt ok but tired on the Saturday however I felt dreadful and stayed in bed most of the weekend except Sunday morning I went to church but took it very quietly, then went back to bed. I did meet a guy who had had a prostate biopsy and had his prostate removed and he said that the biopsy was worse than the operation... that strangely made me feel better..
I should point out that you are given 3 days worth of antibiotics, you MUST take them as prescribed to avoid a serious infection. Also drink LOTS and LOTS of water it help prevent blood clots by keeping your water works ... well working.
I took the next day off work as I felt like a pin cushion and that things were bruised inside plus the i don’t play very well with the sedative I tend to feel like real crap for about a week afterwards....
Work as normal on Monday just on light duties, still feeling like a pin cushion... and walking rather slow.
About this time i won a PIF that Franko was running for a Zenith brush ... so amazing thank you.
I was called from the hospital a few days later to see how I was going and I asked how long the results back. She said about two weeks unless the result was really bad...
So the wait.... the longest 1.5 weeks of my life... I got the call for the appointment on the 4th of April .... then got another call... which was can we reschedule for later in the day because the surgeon wanted to talk to me himself..... That is when I started to think ... “Oh no...”
My wife and I have a regular date night every week, which is usually Thursday night but we did it a day earlier to cheer me up a bit as I was starting to worry.
The 4th rolls around and my wonderful wife and I both go to the appointment and the surgeon said I had prostate cancer but it was only in 1 of the 12 samples with a Gleeson score of 3 and that the prognosis was very good and that it probably wouldn’t go any further... but even aggressive cancers have to start somewhere....... I was a bit numb at this stage and just took in the info but felt relieved that while the result wasn’t as I had hoped it was far from being awful news as my brother had.. From there I was assigned to a cancer nurse Rebecca who was amazing and we had her laughing when she was trying to explain what was going on... it was either laugh or cry by that time. The nurse is contactable pretty much as I need her with in reason. Here in Victoria they have a support system for those who have cancer which I was totally unaware of. I was given lots of info and pointed to helpful websites... being warned not to Dr Google too much and to stick to reputable websites. Also my surgeon is the head of urology in these parts so that is totally awesome. I am in very good hands.
While my out look is great and I am exceedingly lucky to have caught my cancer so soon and I praise God for that... I have found in my quite times or i am alone doing nothing I start to get anxious (is the best way i can describe it, its not exactly that but close) as for me officially being told you have cancer rocked my boat a tad. In my head I know it will be all good and i will beat it...late at night or on my own it nags at me and I have had more than a few sleepless nights.
There was also a mistake made where I was billed for $850 for testing the samples and that was like a sledgehammer and almost sent me into a spin... Fortunately I got my wife to call the hospital and double check and it turned out a wrong box was ticked and the bill should have gone to the hospital instead....
I have found that if I am writing configs for the GPS trackers we sell or keep my mind occupied it really helps... I have come up with some neat ways to make the trackers and web tracking platform do some stuff it wasn’t designed to do and to do it well. WIN for me.
As I posted in DE Shaving helping to keep me sane....
DE saving is helping keep focused on the good things, I put on some cool music and pamper myself for a while and end up looking and feeling much better. I assure without it I would be feeling very crapola... check out Samantha Fish in Spotify if you like Blues/Swing
My old pastor Kirby sent me an ebook “Don’t Waste Your Cancer” by John Piper a web version is here..
Don’t Waste Your Cancer | Desiring God
It really helped me get things in perspective and see the positives in it.
Since I have been given the news I have told those at work who need to know found that I have some amazing family and friends who care and are praying for me... My work has been very supportive and letting me have any time i need which is a massive relief.
Even here on B&B guys who I don’t know from a container of shave soap are praying for and sending me positive thoughts and pulling for me. To all those guys I say a HUGE MASSIVE thank you ... it has really helped to lift my spirits.
Special thanks to Jeff who is PIFing me a some Uncle Jon’s soap ... seriously I woke up feeling very average this morning and it really teared me up for a moment and then had me smiling all day. (I am just about to post this and it still makes me blurry eyed)
What I have learnt so far...
My goal is to share my journey and feelings (good or bad) and i hope it will encourage other blokes get tested especially if you have a family history of prostate cancer.
Feel free to add to this thread your experiences but try to keep this as positive as possible. I have had enough “Oh NO... reactions”
If any of you are going through something like this, know you are not alone and feel free to either comment here or PM me if you want to chat about stuff and keep you chin up and keep shaving....
It is early days for me and its an unknown road ahead but I know I am not walking it alone... for that I am eternally grateful...
Cheers
Rich
Hopefully I won’t bore anyone to tears but if it encourages any of you to get tested then it will be worth while....
I am now 50 and It all started 10 years ago when I got a call from my elder brother to inform me that he had aggressive prostate cancer... and that I should be tested. (He has had his prostate removed and is doing great, he is also 10 years older than me)
I was given the digital exam and was told that while my prostate was enlarged all seemed fine, so the doc sent me for a PSA blood test and it was REALLY low.... so I got tested every year and it remained low i.e. at about 1 - 2, I don’t remember exactly but it was so low that it was questionable that it was accurate, almost.
BTW the digital exam really isn’t anything to worry about, sure it’s embarrassing and uncomfortable but its all over in about 10 seconds. Don’t do it on a full bladder....Just brace yourself and think of England.
Anyhow, back to the story, over the 1st 8 years my PSA score remained low then I skipped year 9 and last year it doubled which raised some eyebrows and the testing lab suggested I get things checked again. So I had another PSA test and it doubled again about 4 months later but still so low that if it were my first the doc would have said that nothing was wrong.. So I was sent to the urologist and was given another digital exam... thinking of England.. and was given the option of leaving it or having the prostate biopsy ..... he said there was about a 30% chance of cancer but because of my family history it would be better to check just in case. With not having health insurance I was put on the public waiting list...
Coincidentally it was at this time I started DE shaving (properly) with a TTO Comoy razor my eldest son brought me 6 months earlier. I didn’t realise it at the time but this proved to be a rather pleasant distraction and started taking pride in how I looked and presented myself. That in itself was a big confidence boost. I was having a ball trying stuff, improvising and I was the recipient of a really cool synthetic brush in a PIF, which was so much better than the cheap eBay badger brush, $9 delivered.. (don’t buy one of those they are awful) mind you that was better than the paint brush I was using. I also joined B&B at that time too and found a great group of guys and gals... and the best run forum I have been a part of on the net... ever. I started www.coffeesnobs.com.au and B&B is being run much better than I ever ran CS. Tho Andy who is running it now is doing a Stirling job and is one of the good guys.
I brought my 18 year old son a Merkur 20C razor and shave cream and balm for his birthday and he loves it. For Christmas I gave my 15 year old son and myself a black WCS razor which I had a few issues with both heads but they very kindly sent replacements at no charge. both replacements are great. In the mean time tho I had brought two Maggard’s V3 Dark heads and put them on the WCS handles. Just because we could and both my son John and I really liked them. The WCS ones were ok too but i found that it was a tad awkward under my cute button nose... the V3 head is a bit slimmer.
In my Christmas stash I also picked up an Ogallala Bay Rum soap which I happily discovered with its really heavy clove scent soothed my stuffed lungs and my breathing and cough almost returns to normal. I have mild Bronchiectasis which is thickening of the tubes in my lungs the result of 29 years servicing photocopiers.... So long as I keep using the OBR soap every few days it seems to help. (I may be confusing confusing causation with correlation and it may be all a placebo but i don’t really care if it seems that it works for me then it works.) I am on antibiotics for the rest of my life, which keeps the chest infections away or helps too.
In January I brought a few soaps and stuff and was sent a Mamabear’s Bounty soap by Sue and it is amazing. Her shipping is super fast. I did a write up on it here in B&B it’s well worth a try.
In February I got the call from the hospital booking me in for my first visit at outpatients for the info session and a chat with the urologist / surgeon and was put on the waiting list again for the TRUS Biopsy and was asked if I wanted it done at The Epworth University Private Hospital here in Geelong but still treated as a public patient as they do the overflow from Geelong Public. Under the Australian Federal Government Shared Care Scheme. So I agreed...
On March 23rd I was booked in for the biopsy and it went off without a hitch. I felt ok but that night I was passing blood clots with difficulty and bleeding when pooping and I was a bit scared, I rang Nurses online and told them what was going on and they suggested that I see a doc within 6 hours but said to call Doctors at home service to come and check me instead of going into emergency. So a really nice doctor came to see me a few hours later and by that time things had started to come good.... major relief. The next day I felt ok but tired on the Saturday however I felt dreadful and stayed in bed most of the weekend except Sunday morning I went to church but took it very quietly, then went back to bed. I did meet a guy who had had a prostate biopsy and had his prostate removed and he said that the biopsy was worse than the operation... that strangely made me feel better..
I should point out that you are given 3 days worth of antibiotics, you MUST take them as prescribed to avoid a serious infection. Also drink LOTS and LOTS of water it help prevent blood clots by keeping your water works ... well working.
I took the next day off work as I felt like a pin cushion and that things were bruised inside plus the i don’t play very well with the sedative I tend to feel like real crap for about a week afterwards....
Work as normal on Monday just on light duties, still feeling like a pin cushion... and walking rather slow.
About this time i won a PIF that Franko was running for a Zenith brush ... so amazing thank you.
I was called from the hospital a few days later to see how I was going and I asked how long the results back. She said about two weeks unless the result was really bad...
So the wait.... the longest 1.5 weeks of my life... I got the call for the appointment on the 4th of April .... then got another call... which was can we reschedule for later in the day because the surgeon wanted to talk to me himself..... That is when I started to think ... “Oh no...”
My wife and I have a regular date night every week, which is usually Thursday night but we did it a day earlier to cheer me up a bit as I was starting to worry.
The 4th rolls around and my wonderful wife and I both go to the appointment and the surgeon said I had prostate cancer but it was only in 1 of the 12 samples with a Gleeson score of 3 and that the prognosis was very good and that it probably wouldn’t go any further... but even aggressive cancers have to start somewhere....... I was a bit numb at this stage and just took in the info but felt relieved that while the result wasn’t as I had hoped it was far from being awful news as my brother had.. From there I was assigned to a cancer nurse Rebecca who was amazing and we had her laughing when she was trying to explain what was going on... it was either laugh or cry by that time. The nurse is contactable pretty much as I need her with in reason. Here in Victoria they have a support system for those who have cancer which I was totally unaware of. I was given lots of info and pointed to helpful websites... being warned not to Dr Google too much and to stick to reputable websites. Also my surgeon is the head of urology in these parts so that is totally awesome. I am in very good hands.
While my out look is great and I am exceedingly lucky to have caught my cancer so soon and I praise God for that... I have found in my quite times or i am alone doing nothing I start to get anxious (is the best way i can describe it, its not exactly that but close) as for me officially being told you have cancer rocked my boat a tad. In my head I know it will be all good and i will beat it...late at night or on my own it nags at me and I have had more than a few sleepless nights.
There was also a mistake made where I was billed for $850 for testing the samples and that was like a sledgehammer and almost sent me into a spin... Fortunately I got my wife to call the hospital and double check and it turned out a wrong box was ticked and the bill should have gone to the hospital instead....
I have found that if I am writing configs for the GPS trackers we sell or keep my mind occupied it really helps... I have come up with some neat ways to make the trackers and web tracking platform do some stuff it wasn’t designed to do and to do it well. WIN for me.
As I posted in DE Shaving helping to keep me sane....
DE saving is helping keep focused on the good things, I put on some cool music and pamper myself for a while and end up looking and feeling much better. I assure without it I would be feeling very crapola... check out Samantha Fish in Spotify if you like Blues/Swing
My old pastor Kirby sent me an ebook “Don’t Waste Your Cancer” by John Piper a web version is here..
Don’t Waste Your Cancer | Desiring God
It really helped me get things in perspective and see the positives in it.
Since I have been given the news I have told those at work who need to know found that I have some amazing family and friends who care and are praying for me... My work has been very supportive and letting me have any time i need which is a massive relief.
Even here on B&B guys who I don’t know from a container of shave soap are praying for and sending me positive thoughts and pulling for me. To all those guys I say a HUGE MASSIVE thank you ... it has really helped to lift my spirits.
Special thanks to Jeff who is PIFing me a some Uncle Jon’s soap ... seriously I woke up feeling very average this morning and it really teared me up for a moment and then had me smiling all day. (I am just about to post this and it still makes me blurry eyed)
What I have learnt so far...
- Keep shaving no matter what, it helps one feel good...
- If you are given not so good news and you have cancer, talk to family and friends, you will like me, be surprised how much those around you love and care about you. I would be a blithering mess if i had tried to keep this to myself.
- Keep busy
- If you feeling a bit meh talk to someone...
My goal is to share my journey and feelings (good or bad) and i hope it will encourage other blokes get tested especially if you have a family history of prostate cancer.
Feel free to add to this thread your experiences but try to keep this as positive as possible. I have had enough “Oh NO... reactions”
If any of you are going through something like this, know you are not alone and feel free to either comment here or PM me if you want to chat about stuff and keep you chin up and keep shaving....
It is early days for me and its an unknown road ahead but I know I am not walking it alone... for that I am eternally grateful...
Cheers
Rich
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. Hang in there Rich.
