Men: Has anyone self catheterized? Does it help urinary symptoms?

Answer 1

This is sometimes done as a fetish. It is not recommended, because unless you are very careful to use a sterile method (as taught to medical staff) then you run the real risk of infecting the bladder or urethra, causing considerable pain and possible scarring.

If you are incontinent, you can wear an external catheter. This consists of a condom-like attachment that goes over the penis. At the end is a plastic tube that leads to a bag. You can wear this under clothing - the bag straps to the lower part of the leg and can easily be emptied at public restrooms etc without special equipment.

Internal catheters are only prescribed when absolutely necessary - this is usually because the patient is unable to pass urine in the normal way, not because of incontinence.