Confidence, catheterising, fear and finding your way back to yourself

If you've ever been handed a medical device and sent home to figure it out alone, this episode is for you.Dr Sula is joined by Angie Rantell, Consultant Nurse in Urogynaecology at King's College Hospital and Senior Lecturer in Pelvic Health at Brunel University, and Kiera, a psychological wellbeing practitioner, patient advocate with Convatec and catheter user herself. Two perspectives on the same experience -one clinical, one lived - sitting down together.Kiera shares what it was like growing up with bladder symptoms from childhood, the years of being told tests were normal, and the long road to finally learning intermittent self-catheterisation, including the months of setbacks that nearly made her give up. Angie brings twenty years of teaching patients to catheterise, and how her own approach has changed dramatically over that time once she realised the skill isn't really about the technique at all.Here's some of what you'll take away:Why help-seeking takes years for so many women with bladder issues, and what tends to be the tipping point that finally gets someone into a doctor's officeThe difference between teaching a procedure and teaching a life skill. Why where and how catheterisation is taught matters as much as what's taughtHow fear and tension physically interfere with catheterisation, and the small mindset shift that helped Kiera stop bracing against her own bodyWhat recurrent UTIs after starting catheter use actually mean, and the realistic, layered approach to managing and reducing themWhether you're navigating bladder symptoms yourself, learning to use a catheter, or supporting someone who is, this episode will help you feel less alone, better informed, and clearer on what comes next.This conversation connects closely with the work I'm doing with Convatec Continence Care and their Me+ programme, which supports people using intermittent catheters with both practical guidance and emotional wellbeing resources. Find out more at www.howwereallyfeel.com/in-partnership-with-convatecYou can access the Me+ free holistic programme here (UK) https://shorturl.at/TsOdG or here (USA) https://shorturl.at/Lh8XS You can access references and resources discussed in this episode, fact checked and collated by our show researcher and trainee health psychologist, here: www.howwereallyfeel.com