After the birth of our third child, my wife and I have decided we’re done procreating.
So one of us (namely me) is going to have to do something about it.
I am planning to get the big V following this race season.
Any firsthand experience out there -
how bad?
how long to recover?
how long before you can really train again?
any limitations?
(I’m shifting uncomfortably just typing this)…
one of my athletes had it done this spring.
seemed minor. out patient, 4-5 days of “icing the boys”. a week of no training, then he was right back out there.
Kurt
September 19th I will be able to tell you…
No big deal, you will be back to normal (training included) in two weeks or less if it goes as planned.
The real workout is completing the post op assignment of rounds fired before you can check to see if it worked.
Had procedure on a Friday afternoon. Promised my wife (and doctor) that I would do no training for 1 week.
I ran 4 easy miles on the treadmill the following Thursday. I didn’t ride again until the next Sunday, but I felt like I probably could of on Wednesday.
It really was no big deal…literally and figuratively. 
A “friend” of mine was cut last winter. He said that he was sweating like it was 100 degrees and 100% humidity lying on the table waiting. It really was painless though. As soon as the doctor was finished on one side, I started breathing again because it was more about the nervousness than the operation. I mean “he” started breathing again. I dont remember exactly how long but it was maybe a couple of weeks for full recovery. The first couple of days are a little sore obviously but no big deal. He doesnt take pain meds either. 18 months later he tells all of his friends that it is way better than hearing his wife complain about the side effects of the pill. Seriously though , there are long term effects from the pill. I (he) would do it again in a flash. Hope this helps.
Not bad at all. Try to ensure your surgeon uses a single incision, as opposed to two incisions. That will speed recovery. I had mine done on a Friday, took the full day off, and was back at work on Monday with minimal bruising. A couple of suggestions. Bags of frozen veg works better than ice packs - they just conform better. Don’t drive a stick on the day of your surgery. Watch out for your dog nosing around trying to figure out why you are not feeling well.
I was back fully exercising within a week, though there was no cycling in my life at that time. I would probably wait until your stiches are out in about 10 days before cycling. I think I took two of the of the tylenol 3’s they perscribed - that was about all.
The freakiest thing about a vasectomy is not the surgery, but rather the freezing. Usually you will apply a topical anaesthetic cream prior to surgery, but then they bring out this needle that looks for all the world like a lawn dart. Now your topical takes care of any pain when they put the deeper freezing in, but your brain is telling you that you are not frozen and to run like hell. Surgery takes all of about 10-15 minutes, and is no big deal.
It took you 3 kids to decide to stop breeding?
How good an actor are you?
I had mine 2 years ago after my second was born. To quote my Urologist, “I do them on Fridays. You take the day off. You go home, lie on the couch with an icepack if you need it. I’ll give you pain meds, but you probably won’t need them. The key is to milk it over the weekend. Stay on the couch, watch DVD’s and have your wife bring you food and beers. Try to act it up and keep it going all weekend, this may be the one and only time in your life she’ll wait on you hand and foot. She knows you’re making the ULTIMATE sacrifice for her. As for training… take a week off. You can swim probably the following Monday. I would take two weeks off from running and maybe three weeks from biking just because of the pressure on the saddle. You’ll be able to judge it yourself.”
How bad? - It’s NOTHING! I took one Oxycodone just to see what it was like and puked (common). After that I took 2 Advils and then realized I didn’t need any pain meds at all. In fact, I didn’t even need icepacks. There was no swelling. I was a little sore, but no pain without meds. Just sore as if you had been kicked in the nuts an hour ago. Not enough to hurt over it, but sore enough to remember that it happend.
How long to recover? - I made it through Saturday afternoon before my wife realized I was faking it and she kicked me off the couch and started giving me honey-do’s again. I was back to swimming and running at full speed 2 weeks later. I took an extra week before biking.
Some pointers: Make sure your doc has hot nurses - it’ll probably be the one and only time in your life you’ll have a hot babe shaving your balls! So try and enjoy it. Don’t go to a Urologist with a sense of humor. Mine (my friend) covered up the stitch with a “strawberry Shortcake” band-aid. That gave my wife a huge laugh when she first saw it (I didn’t know). You’ll be a little black and blue around the incision (which is about a 1/4-inch long) for about two months. It doesn’t affect your sex performance afterwards. Everything that “comes out” looks and feels normal - just no sperm. It doesn’t change testosterone levels at all. NO UNPROTECTED SEX UNTIL YOU GET TESTED AFTERWARDS!!! This is the big one! Even though they cut the tube, there is still about 6-10 worth of ejaculations worth of sperm in the tube. (Very little when you shoot is actually sperm.) That sperm is still int hte tube alive and swimmin’ just waiting in line as each group in front makes their “exit”. The factory may start to close down, but there’s still inventory on the showroom floor. You’ve got to have sex with a condom or jerk off several times over the next few weeks to flush it out and then go to a lab to get tested. When the lab says, “zero sperm” - then you’re good to go. Woo-hoo!!! When my doc told me this I asked if it was under his orders and he said yes. So I told him I would need a prescription for that and he wrote me one to jerk off daily for the next 3 weeks! My wife got a real kick out of that!
I have no idea about the operation, but I will let you in on a little trick to help ease the pain.
A friend of mine had the procedure and he told his wife that the doctor said no sex for a week, but daily blow jobs would expedite the healing process. She’s really nice, but not the brightest lass …
This was years ago and as an aside we have both started doing tris since then. He is very fast and has won his AG at an IM. Not sure if the snip helped his time or not. I have heard it increases VO2Max by 3% (jk)
“The key is to milk it over the weekend.” Man, that sounds painful. I don’t think I would want to touch it for a few days, much less milk it;-)
I had mine done on the 19th.
there was little “pain” but discomfort and swelling was my issue. ice and then after a week, heat.
yesterday was my first ride back…
g
No big deal. Maybe stay off the bike 10 to 14 days. Bags of frozen corn and compression shorts are needed. I had a lot of swelling for a few days - a lot! I would suggest not using ibuprofrin or aspirin the next day as I did.
David K
no problems here either,in terms of recovery. as it turned out initally the first one didn’t take fully, so process had to be repeated. that’s why i strongly suggest no unprotected sex until you get the all clear. no scapel technique is clearly the best.
I had mine done at 6 years ago at age 33 - I should have had it done at age 13. My wife and I don’t have children and while the adoption option is open to us and discussed, there are no longer any health issues for her regarding birth control - thank goodness. There’s nothing like having sex without the worry of an unwanted pregnancy - wonderful!
I shaved myself before going in but the nurse wasn’t impressed and did a bit more razor work on me. I watched the whole procedure and it was fascinating. Recovery was quick and easy, no pain meds - back to training in less than a week.
No big deal. Maybe stay off the bike 10 to 14 days. Bags of frozen corn and compression shorts are needed. I had a lot of swelling for a few days - a lot! I would suggest not using ibuprofrin or aspirin the next day as I did.
David K
Compression shorts are key. Keep everything nice and snug for a couple of days and things will be fine. My friend how told me about how his went was back running 7 days after the cut.
The anticipation is far worse than the actual event.
one thing that has not been said in this thread is that it depends a little bit on precisely what procedure you are having done. several people have mentioned stitches, but there is at least one approach that doesn’t even need them. i had this done, and there was really no pain at all a couple of hours (+ frozen peas) after the procedure. the surgeon makes a tiny hole (<2mm) in the skin of the scrotum, pulls out the tubes, cuts+seals them, pushes them back in. the holes are like a large bee sting and heal rapidly.
that said, occasionally things can go wrong. one friend of mine got a fairly nasty infection from a more invasive process and was really hurting for a couple of weeks. this seems rare though - i have quite a few friends who’ve had this done and he’s the only one with any complications at all.
Congradulations on making a very smart move. It is cake. After a couple of days you won’t even notice you had it done. When I got mine in the Air Force I was put on a two week waiver from manual work but started doing all my usual stuff after two days.
I am proud of you for doing this. I wish more people would.
So - after a few months - tomorrow is the day.
Not looking forward to missing 4-6 days of training, but I am looking forward to a lifetime of guilt-free “activity”…