SMALL BOWEL FOLLOW TROUGH QUESTIONS....plz help!

I am sceduled for one in one week next monday. I was just wondering if anyone else here has had one and I wanna be prepared for what it is. Ive never had one but I kinda know what it is, but not really lol. So I want all the details even if its something that was uncomfortable. And how is the Magnesium Citrate? plz post.!!!

My 7 yr. old had it done in March...she was a trooper! No problems, and she drank the stuff right down!

I think how long it takes depends on how fast the barium goes through you. Once the barium starts moving through the xrays themself dont take long at all, its a lot of moving around on the xray table to get different parts of the bowel on film. Its one of the easier bowel tests we have. Good luck. Jo

You will go in and drink something like an alka selzter (sp). Then they will ask you to hold the birp. The technician will take a picture. Then I took a pill(something like a pill) to see if I had trouble swallowing. He took picture. Next I think what happen is the technicidan prepared the gross stuff to drink I drink very fast if not I get nausuated. Once you are finished drinking 2 cup fulls I think, you will let tech. know that you are done. He will then get the radiologist to come in w/him and he will have you lie down take pictures roll over and raise the bed up to standing position so that stuff you drink coats your insides. Then they will lay you back down taking pictures the on and off the whole time. You'll be asked to roll over onto one side and then the other side. Then the raD. has you drink some stuff as well so he can get picture of all that. I am basing all this on my own experience. I promise it is nothing to get worried about or scared. The only thing I think that may make you uncomfortable is the drink. Don't eat anything b/f going and take magazines back there with you of food. They more hungry that you are and the more you think about food the quicker it flows through you. You may be there a couple of hours. I think mine lasted from check in to check out no more than 2 hours.

Mine always take longer than others, about 4 hours. I'm always the last one.

I've had this done twice. This test was pretty easy for me. Make sure you take something to read while you are there. I read between x-rays because you have to wait a while. I had to drink this stuff that reminded me of cheap potpourri- I know it is crazy but that is what the smell reminded me of. They took several x-rays and then the one at the end where you can actually see you intestines moving around. It was pretty cool to be able to see it moving. When I had mine done the lady that did it told me I was the fastest person she had ever seen get done with that test. She said she had people who had to come back the next morning to get the last x-ray done. My bowels move so fast, I guess I'm just lucky (lol).

sweetnshyiowachick -

Chug down that barium... do not sip. That was the worst part. The rest is a cake walk. Everyone is right on how long. If you know your system and how long it will take, be sure to tell the nurse. I told them I would be ready to go in 40 minutes and I was. When the nurse gave me the two containers of barium, I took one in each hand, shook vigorously then threw them back as if I was at a beer chugging contest to get it over real quick and get on with it. :)