Resection surgery tomorrow.. Eeek!

pack slippers! I hate cold tile floors.

You will wake up in pain, I am sure of it... but it will only get better from there! Make sure you walk plenty starting the day after to help get the recovery process going. I walked 2 times on the first day. Make sure you bring stuff to keep you entertained, if you can. Slippers is a great idea as well :).

Good luck to you, and know that following the surgery, things will only get better day by day... and the end result hopefully will be a lot better for you!

Chapstick! Your lips will get really dry and the gift shop charges a fortune for it. Get more than one because you will probably drop it and it will roll under the bed where you can't get it and it is really gross.

Get one of those telescoping back scratchers especially if pain meds make you itchy. You won't want to bend to scratch your legs. Plus, it has other uses, like poking people that are trying to make you laugh right after surgery.

Be really careful with your cell phone. I keep it on that hospital table and I always spill something so I keep my phone in a zip-lock bag for the first few days when I am extra spacey. It sounds silly but it has saved me a few times. Just make sure to keep you phone on the opposite side of the fluids.

Yes, good luck with the surgery.

If you've got somebody to visit you, I wouldn't worry about taking in loads of stuff: they can always bring whatever you're missing. My hospital isn't advanced enough for wi-fi in the wards, so no internet access: oddly enough, I didn't miss the internet at all. Had a kindle, PSP and a couple of puzzle books to pass the time, so I was sorted for entertainment. There were also private TVs over each bed (well, I say private: they weren't ****ing private when morons failed to use headphones for them), but I wasn't interested in those.

Thanks for all your replies, it means a lot.
So, the surgery went well. Not sure how much of TI was removed, will ask my surgeon tomorrow. I woke up in recovery feeling only a small amount of pain, assuming this was to do with some anaesthetic blocker I had. I am on a morphine drip now which is good because I can feel the pain creeping in. Before I went under my surgeon said there was a chance I would have a stoma, as I had a colonoscopy the day before which showed things were a mess and the fact I am on 20mg pred which us not great for healing.
Anyway, so after the surgery etc I am totally groggy and get wheeled into my room. A couple of nurses came in and one was explaining my chart etc and said "she has a bag" which she showed them... I was like "nooooo" at this point I hadn't seen my surgeon yet and had no idea I had a bag, so I burst into tears. Not what I was expecting.
I know 100% it is for the best to allow my body to heal! but it's going to take a couple of days to sink in. Apparently I will have it for 8-10 weeks, then another surgery for reversal. If anyone has been in this situation feel free to respond! I gave not seen a stoma nurse yet, so I am very clueless! I haven't eaten in a few days, but apparently I am on liquids tomorrow. Woohoo ;)
Again, thanks for all the tips. Looking forward to healing!

I'm sorry about your temporary stoma, but at least it's not permanent.... :/

(Would absolutely love to have my stoma reversed. Stuck with it for the rest of my life, and it's a horrible thing. 8-10 weeks is absolutely nothing: already had mine nearly a year.)

Hi Aussiegirl,

I hope you are feeling better. Did your surgeon say why he needed to give you a temporary ostomy? I'm supposed to have surgery in March. I hope I don't have to have one. By the way, was your surgery laparoscopic?

Glad to hear your surgery went well and that your pain levels aren't too high. Also very happy that your stoma is only temporary - my surgeon has told me that I'm better off having a permanent one rather than having a reversal to avoid the need for further resections in the future :( But I still have time to think it over thankfully.

I hope you continue to recover quickly and that the next 8-10 weeks fly by!

They removed 30cm and an abscess. It did seem like the stoma is a lot of a preventative measure to avoid infection and having to do an emergency surgery. I think if I wasn't on the pred it wouldn't have been such a possibility. Trust me, I would rather not have this stoma, but I suppose in the long run it will be a good thing seeing as I should heal nicely. My date for stoma reversal can't come soon enough, as I am just not used to it! I guess not having any time to prepare for it has contributed to this :-/
But on a positive, I really cannot get over how much less pain I am in compared to the crohns itself!

Hi Aussiegirl,

I just wanted to see how you were making out post-op? In your opinion would working from home two weeks post-op be possible?

Hi Aussiegirl2008,

I saw my Surgeon last week and will be having a total colectomy with a permanent stoma. He recommeds removing the rectum and making the stoma permanent due to where the disease is. Most of my large intestine is affected as well as my TI. Thankfully my small intestine is mainly only affected by mild inflammation only some of the time. I was in hospital at the beginning of January, I flared whilst on 30mg of pred and my crp went up to 312 so he wanted to operate in 6-8 weeks, but due to other issues I am having and trying to get sorted out as well as being at Tafe (finish in June), we are waiting until end of June/July for the surgery. I'm seeing the stoma nurses at the Hospital next week to pick their brains as I have loads of questions and then I see my Surgeon again in April to book in. I think I'm comfortable with what needs to be done - I'm 43 in 7 weeks, I'm not having any more kids and I've been so sick since October last year and I've run out of medication options (now pred dependant) that if it can make me better then I'll be happy.

Glad that you're feeling well and recovering from your surgery quickly. I hope I recover as fast!