This is the third part of the story of my vasectomy.  Read parts one and two before you read this one.

Saturday was my birthday.  I’ve never quite had one like this.  First off, I didn’t do much celebrating.  I was kinda single-minded in documenting my vasectomy.  So I didn’t even realize I was 36 until mid-way through the morning.

I started the morning, “No pain until I got up. Gravity is not my friend. Continuing to wear special man-support. #vasectomy“.  Now to be quite clear, I was wearing (and have been wearing) a “jock-strap” to keep everything in place.  I had a friend comment that he thought briefs would be tight enough.  Let me assure you they are not.  I think part of my success came from the fact that I kept gravity from taking it’s toll.

The next thing I did was use frozen peas.  Their small size meant that they could wrap around the area and cool it.  My doctor told me to only use them 20 minutes out of every hour, but “Turns out I’m no good at judging what 20 minutes of peas on my lap is. #vasectomy“. Yep, I often forgot.  I spent much of my birthday on my easy chair with my feet up, which come to think of it, wasn’t all that bad.

Saturday nights I normally go to church and edit the service in preparation to take it to our second campus on Sunday morning.  Since I didn’t go, I had people do that for me.  It was nice to stay home and relax.  It was during this time that I cooked my first meal.  I made chicken fingers and fries in the fryer.  Pretty much a set it and forget it until the timer rings kind of thing.

I had moments of pain, but mostly it was not a huge deal.  I think this was because I took it extra easy.  I was still concerned about my Sunday because I was planning on driving 45 minutes to our Frankfort campus and leading the video there (off my feet).

I showered for the first time since the surgery.  Following the doctor’s instructions to dry carefully (light blotting only) and went to bed.  I fully expected my Sunday to be filled with pain, so I planned on packing my medicine just in case.  I drove in my 5-speed car without incident and headed into the church.  I received sympathy from all involved (including a doctor who was leading the morning), but forgot to pack my medicine, even though I was sure I had.

The morning went without incident except for small amounts of pain that I dealt with and moved on.  I was grateful to have a team to depend on.  My pastor says, “You’re never not leading,” so I took the opportunity to teach the other guy on the team more of what I do.  He was such a help, having picked up the hard drive with the video on it from the night before.

I went home and returned to my chair for some cuddle time with my daughters who knew not to sit on my lap.  I took a nap and went out to celebrate my birthday at my favorite restaurant.  We looked at Christmas lights and came home.  I decided to remove my jock strap and keep to briefs before my transition back to my normal underwear.

I have one more sick day to make sure I’m no worse for wear.  The doctor tells me that I’m still about a week from sexual activity (a total of 10 days) and as many as 20 times before I’m sperm-free.  I’ve got to take in two samples before I know I’m cleared to use this as my primary method of birth control (or should I say conception control).  I’ll update when that happens or if there are any complications.

Here’s what I learned:

Paul