This will hopefully be a painless introduction to the process of getting a vasectomy. A vasectomy is a serious undertaking and should be considered irreversible. Any goggle worthy pics will be linked so as to spare the viewer.

Step 1: Visit Your Regular Doctor

Remember, this is irreversible, consult with your regular doctor first, ask him for recommendations for a board certified urologist and a complete physical. Check the credentials of your Urologist, don't just pick him from the yellow pages.

Step 2: Going to the Urologist

This is the initial uncomfortable part, you're asking this man to perform a surgical procedure on you, therefore there will be a complete exam. If you've never been to the urologist before, look forward to: A hernia check, a digital rectal exam, a microscopic exam of your seminal fluid and a check for epididymitis. At this point, some Urologist will request that you go to a counseling session, because a vasectomy is considered irreversible. Mine said "How's thursday for you?"

Step 3: The Day Before the Procedure

You will need to shave your genitals, if this is something you've never done before, a straight razor is NOT recommended. Use a quality disposable razor.

Step 4: The Day of the Procedure

Call off work. You will need a, preferably, attractive friend to drive you to the doctor's, if he has prescribed you a valium, take it about 1 hour before your appointment time.

The procedure, the doctor will have you disrobe, and your scrotum will be swabbed with betadine solution, the doctor will ask you to lay back on the table, but if you like you can prop yourself up on your elbows and watch. The doctor will inject Novocaine under the skin of your scrotum and after a suitable waiting period come back and make two small incisions into the skin. Reaching in, he will pull the vas deferens outside the scrotal sac. I'm a little hazy at this point ;-) But the deferens were severed and the ends tied. The vas deferens were pushed back inside and the incisions sutured.

Step 5: After the Procedure

The next two weeks will be the most uncomfortable of your life for the simple fact that you need to wear an athletic supporter 24 hours a day, removing it only to bath. I'd recommend having more than one ;-).

At the 10 day to two week point you will return to the doctor for the removal of the stitches.

At eight weeks you will return to the doctor with a "specimen"

At twelve weeks you'll return with another "specimen"

The specimens must be fresh, and uncontaminated.

At the twelve week point the doc should know whether the procedure was a success, until the doctor clears you you must continue to use other forms of birth control.

Step 6: The Aftermath

The most common question I'm asked by people is, does it change the, umm, outcome? The answer is no, there are no outward manifestations that a man has has had a vasectomy.

There are the possibility of complications in order of importance

Impotence
death
chronic testicular pain
changing your mind.

All in all, it's provided a worry free solution to birth control for my wife and I, and I've never regretted the choice.

Although I've stated that they're irreversible, that's not strictly true, but the expense of reversal is not generally covered by insurance and has a high failure rate.