prolapse

Hello! I am a 42 year old woman that has suffered from IBS-C for 6-7 years. I noticed a major difference after the birth of my second son and since then, my condition became increasingly worse. I was taking stool softeners and Amitizan twice a day. My symptoms vary every day and sometimes every hour....pain, bloating, gas, etc... about two years ago, I noticed a serious problem and would later find out I had rectal prolapse. I attempted to deny I had a problem until it became a situation I could no longer afford to ignore. I made an appointment with a colon specialist and two months ago I had a sigmoidectomy with a rectal plexy. To complicate matters, my bladder stopped working and I had to return home with a catheter bag. Not even four weeks out of surgery, I was in the emergency room two times with migraines and UTI infections. I finally got that cleared up and I landed in the hospital with a lower bowel obstruction. Since the surgery, I have had very strange bowel movements with the frequent urge to go (15 or more times a day). The movements are not always stool but lots of mucus.....even incontenience on occasion.  My surgeon scheduled me for a gastrogaffin enema test next week. I would like to connect with someone my age that has had a sigmoidectomy. I have read many blogs for people that had diverticulitis and had their sigmoid colon removed, but not prolapse. I have so many questions and would love to chat with someone dealing with similar problems.

Hi there, I had 90% of my sigmoid removed due to cancer, where my tumor was located, along with 15 inches of my colon above that point. I have now been left with multiple bm's for life, the way it was explained to me was w/o a place to store stool and allow it to back up through out your day (a sigmoid's job), stool will keep sliding down and need to come out. I can actually feel it slide down, gravity usually brings it on too. I can use the bathroom and then sit down to watch a TV show, but if I have to stand up for some reason, more stool slides down and the pressure to go is intense, I need to go. I have had minor drips and accidents if I don't relieve myself.

As far as prolapse goes, my uterus is very, very low and my GYN has said I should have a hysterectomy "someday", I am way overdue to see him and I know he'd strongly encourage me to have one right away, he has said my bm count and urgency would go down if I had a hysterectomy.

Do I believe him? No actually I do not. I have read of so many lawsuits and complications from the mesh they use to create a new sling to hold all the organs in their original place after the uterus is removed.

I am dealing with things as they are.

Complicating my situation is I had my GB removed during my resection. I probably have the bile salts D at times too so I am currently trying cholestyramine powder (it's helping, somewhat). I also take a really good probiotic, along with a mild stool softener (to keep my stool consistent in texture, so it's more easily passed).

Consequently, I have never been normal after my initial colon resection, 13+ years ago (technically after my ostomy reversal surgery).

I feel your pain and discomfort. If you need surgery for a prolapse, be sure to have several opinions and have each surgeon describe in detail what they would do to repair your situation. Ask for the specific name of the mesh they use and make sure there are no recalls on it or thousands of lawsuits from recent patients. Some of these patients have needed more surgeries post relapse repair, to remove mesh that invades other organs.

Good luck to you.