Surgery Update

What kind of surgery did you have?

My resection solved my pain and eating issues immediately (well, after the pain of the surgery subsided!). Now, my disease relapsed, or whatever you want to call it, just 34 days later but it still hadn't affected my eating habits or caused pain yet.

I'm so sorry you're not better. What does your GI say?

I had a resection at the terminal ilieum. Seems like I have the same symptoms I did coming in and they got all the bad stuff out and said i was crohns free... well as much as you can be at least...

after my resection surgery I was hospitalized for 2 1/2 weeks and then it took me 2 more weeks at home before I felt "back to normal" or well what my normal is now. I still have D every day but for the most part am pain free. Just stay at home & try to recoop. Everyone heals at a different rate.

Realize that a resection cuts the bowel and "stitches together" so the intestine seems solid. But the nerve endings have been cut and they need to reestablish the connections. Think of it this way: if you take a chain saw to a wall and cut the wires behind while you were at it, the wall can be patched up and repainted but the wires are still loose !

It took me two months to recover from one resection: the big mistake I did was to lie in bed feeling sorry for myself, bloated like a frog. Instead you should remain upright and MOVE THE LEGS AND WALK AROUND, anything to remain active.

With the new antiTNF drugs, if you stay on it, the adhesions that form after resection tend to grow less and heal quicker. So Humira or Remicade will keep the inflammation lower.

On months 3-5 I did not feel bad but not completely better, that resection lasted 15 years and felt much better.