Barry’s story: Open-ended experience

Destiny has arrived! While I find it hard to believe, my vasectomy is 36 hours old and I’m feeling great. I’m an open-ended, NSV patient in Kansas, USA. The only sign of my procedure is slight swelling the size of a quarter at the incision site, and a bruise the size of a dime on the right side of my scrotum. My procedure took place at “High Noon” on Wed, May 23, 2001. I actually shot a few hoops of basketball, and went on a short walk with my oldest son that evening! The next morning I took the kids to school and then washed the car in the afternoon!

I began my research on having a vasectomy about 8 years ago, after the loss of our first pregnancy which ended in a miscarriage. I felt so terrible for my wife having to go through both the emotional and physical strains of pregnancy… six times was enough! We feel very blessed to have three healthy children, and still hurt from the two miscarriages and losing our first son after six days of life.

Why not have the vasectomy sooner, some are probably asking? It took a little while to have our “perfect” number of two children, and then a case of strep throat combated with antibiotics, (which lessened the effectiveness of the birth control pills) brought our third child into the family. Our newest son is nine weeks old, and since he was healthy, and due to the fact that my wife could not endure another pregnancy due to health complications, I knew it was time to take action on my endless years of research.

When I began my quest for knowledge, all I could find was info pertaining to the conventional vasectomy, two cuts, and sealing both ends of the vas! Thank goodness for Al Gore and the internet! It’s great sites like this one which makes information gathering a breeze, and with sites like Ken Reda’s open-ended documentation, and Kevin Cleaver’s site, I knew exactly what I wanted, and what to expect. However, living in the largest city in Kansas was no help to me, due to the fact that not a single M.D., or Urologist would do a NSV procedure. Thank goodness also for the AVSC site, where I found the name of an actual NSV trainer. I told my wife I’d travel as far as it took, in order to have an Open-Ended, No-Scalpel Vasectomy. And as always, she was supportive! My travel only took me a little over an hour out of Wichita, to Marion, Ks.

Once there, Dr. Hodson (a WebMD.com doctor) was ready to fulfill my destiny! The doctor said I was “as cool as a cucumber” during the initial consultation, and said that Valium, etc. only make you loopy, and that I wouldn’t need any “relaxers”.

The vasectomy

My wife was allowed to attend and could have even helped with the procedure, but she declined. I had shaved the night before which probably saved a few minutes, and believe it or not I think the shaving was the most difficult part of the whole procedure! Once I was on the table the doctor began to numb my scrotum with about three sticks of a needle. I was amazed at how quickly the numbing medicine took effect. Not even the needle sticks were painful, which I had read in other personal experiences, to be the worst of the pain. Once I was numb, my left vas was located and clamped beneath my scrotal skin. The doctor then took the sharp tips of an instrument and punctured and spread a very small opening in which both my vas were delivered, and cauterized, as well as the sheath, which was cauterized over the prostatic end of each of my vas. The opening is smaller than the end of an eraser on a standard pencil, which was also cauterized to close/seal the wound. So I didn’t even receive one stitch for the whole procedure! Amazing! From the first stick to the last sizzle, it took 17 minutes. It probably could have even gone quicker, but I talked with the Dr. the whole time! I even asked if I could lay the surgical drape down flatter so I could get a better view! The whole procedure seemed so refined and simple. I couldn’t believe that it was actually complete!

After the procedure

I felt so good that I actually drove the one hour worth of travel home, including going to the McDonald’s drive-through for lunch. I must admit I was prepared for the journey home, I had two bags of frozen veggies ready in the cooler of the van. Peas and corn are the greatest (except when the bag of corn has a tiny hole in it and your crotch smells like a roasting ear!). I’d guess that I kept my “gems” nice and cool for about 10 hours straight, minus the hoops and walk! I only changed my gauze pads once. When I arrived home there were only a couple of drops of blood, and then the pads were clear each time I checked when I had to use the bathroom. By evening, I didn’t need the pads due to no bleeding/oozing.

Another piece of advice to anyone who has actually read through this novel is to consider some smaller underwear instead of the jockstrap! I’m typically a boxers kinda guy, so confinement is something to get used to, but you have to have some kind of support! I tried on a jock and knew there was no way I would be able to wear that 24/7 or more when I go back to my physically demanding job. The ultimate solution is to buy two briefs that are actually a size too small, for the support, and yet, still feel more comfortable than an athletic supporter. I recommend two briefs, one to wash and one to wear! Then if you ever lose weight, you have two new pairs of underwear!

The Dr. said to wait for a week before having an ejaculation, so I told my wife to enjoy her week’s vacation! Then it’s the dawning of my second puberty, which I just might not outgrow! Quite frankly I’m ready and waiting, but I’ll be good and follow the doctor’s orders.

Then it’s six weeks or 12 ejaculations, which ever comes last, before the sample submission!

Lastly, perseverance holds true, know what you want, and find the doctor who will fulfill your wishes. It’s definitely worth the time and effort to find an NSV Dr., in order to avoid the after-effects of a conventional vasectomy. Whether or not you chose the open-ended is a matter of personal opinion, I just felt it was the logical choice to prevent the pressure build-up on the testicles. I’m still amazed at how quick, simple, painless, and easy it was to ensure that there would be no more heartache or health risks associated with another pregnancy.

I want to thank everyone at Vasectomy Information and the forums. This is a wonderful site that offers so many avenues towards sharing experiences, research, and countless links to the world!

Submitted by Barry