www.incontinentsupport.org

I have not tried the Tena guards. I wasn't sure that the 8 inch width would fit comfortably in my small underwear (boys size). However in Tena's favor is the challenge of keeping "everything" in the right spot of the narrower Depends or Prevail guards. I may very well try the Tena if I can get a sample but I want to get rid of (by wearing) what I've gotten so far. I still have a few Depends guards and one Depends shield, a package of Attends Breathable, a small handful of Northshore brand briefs, and a package of Tena Flex that I may never wear cause I hate the stiff and painful tabs.

Well, with all the supplies you have left, when the time comes to get something, AgeComfort has a try 5 sample program, almost all of them at n/c. If you get an order of $50, the shipping is covered, worth keeping in mind. The Abena guards are much more narrow in the crotch, and very wide at the top, with guards, best guard I have tried to date. Puffy

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Puffy
BC, Canada
Fighting the "Bladder Battle" since 1995

gtrudeau,

I too am a skinny runt (130 lbs) and I understand that your incontinence needs change over time. Mine do too. My advice is to experiment, be flexible to meet varying needs, and develop an inventory of different products so that you can manage well, whatever the level of incontinence you are experiencing that day.

Thanks Pat. I've decided that Attends Breathable is going to be my product of choice with lighter days managed by guards (Prevail or Tena). The diapers are comfortable, thin, and absorb the same as a guard. I'll use guards when traveling to visit family or in a hotel with the kids. One diaper has repeatedly lasted the entire day (remember I just dribble) so no changing is necessary. i sleep bare so my skin does air out every night.

Thanks for the advise everyone.

I received a sample of the Tena guards and they are quite comfortable. they fit nicely and they are wide enough at the top to be truly effective. I may wear the attends until I burn through my stock but I may also donate the attends to Goodwill and get some of these. No fast decisions though. yesterday was a bad day for leaking and I'm not sure how wet the Tena would have felt in such a situation.

The doc put me on Finasteride to shrink my prostate but it will take up to 6 months for me to notice any improvement. She also gave me Terazosin but I've been hesitant to try it because the side effects can be more pronounced. I might try the 1st one tonight.

I did try Terazosin for the 1st time last night and didn't experience anything negative like I was worried about other than a slight headache. I'm on the 1mg dosage and I didn't experience any dizziness or fainting which the Dr. had warned me usually happens with the 1st dosage. Maybe I would have experienced it if I was awake but all went well last night.

Still not wild about Terazosin though. The usual procedure is to raise your dosage up to 5 and then 10mg after a while and first dose phenomena can be experienced with each change in dosage. Terazosin lowers blood pressure which is why it can cause fainting and dizziness. It can also cause never ending erections which is a medical emergency. I'm going to talk to the wife but I'm thinking of not taking this at all but probably staying with the Finasteride. Finasteride takes up to 6 months to work and increase the risk of aggressive prostate cancer but the other side effects are minimal. The increase in aggressive cancer is in part due to the drug interfering with the prostate markers that alert doctors to the presence of cancer. The rates of prostate cancer are lower if on the drug but the rates of aggressive cancers are higher, 6.4% versus 5.1% for men receiving a placebo. You have to stay on the drug for life to not lose the benefits it gives.

I'm really not sure how I will proceed regarding the meds. I think it's a good bet that my prostate symptoms will not get better without the meds.

Also I am seriously considering Pygeum as a treatment. Side effects seem to be less and studies have demonstrated genuine improvement in men who use it.