Must we forsake coffee and beer to fight incontinence?

Love your questions about the beverages, Nick.  I was a submarine sailor from many years, 90 hour weeks not uncommon when underway (I reconstructed once that I had slept about 10 hours once over a 3 day training op). Plus, we operated on an 18 hour day, like all American subs, 3 six-hour shifts, so there was no "routine,"  we had no natural rhythm we could get into, and most guys never knew if it was night or day, unless they worked in control.  So we sucked down massive amounts of coffee, I probably averaged 20 cups a day.  

I had my DaVinci removal 2.5 years ago, January, 2015.  I now drink about 5 cups of Maxwell House Columbian a day, and probably 3 beers a day.  My urinary control is much better today following surgery than it was prior to surgery.   The coffee does not challange me at all, but beer is trickier.  It will cause me accidents if I don't go "regualrly." The alcohol relaxes the muscle, I suppose.  I also drink at least a half gallon or more of black or green teas daily, so in my one particualr case, there has not been imparement.  I never drink decaf anyting, coffee or tea -- it is all full-bore.  I have massive fatigue all the time, likely the aftermath of huge amounts of chemo from my other cancer, Lymphoma, so I basically require drug-doses of caffine to function.

As Cleveland noted, continence will take a little time; play it by ear.  Virtually all guys need pads, at least for the first several weeks or month, some longer. But it does not indicate what your final baseline will be.  The Kegels are very helpful for most men, but I needed retaining after surgery; it just did not "feel the same."

Keep the hope alive,

max