hi everyone! i'm actually coming here from the ulcerative colitis forum because i had an ileostomy in november. just thought i'd give you a brief history so you know where i'm coming from. i'm pregnant and due in march and when i had just entered my 2nd trimester, my UC flared up pretty bad and i ended up having emergency surgery to remove my whole colon which had perforated (ouch) which saved my life of course. the surgeon left my rectal stump so that i could have future reattachment. somehow the baby made it too, which was pretty much a miracle. throughout all of this i was in and out of the emergency room and had 4 stays in the hospital. i got out just in time for christmas and have my fingers crossed that i won't have to go back until it's time to have the baby. besides going through all the emotions that go with this, i lost my dad to colon cancer in december. all in all, it's been a pretty rough couple of months.
i'm now in my 3rd trimester and am on TPN at home to stay hydrated and keep my potassium levels up. they are consistantly low and i cannot seem to get them to normal levels despite all the potassium tablets i'm taking and what's in the TPN. the potassium tabs say 'extended release', is this ineffective for people with ileostomies? they come out whole in my bag. also, has anyone been on TPN with an ileostomy? my stool is so watery and i can't seem to thicken it up, despite trying the typical foods they tell you to try to eat. i wondered if it was because of all the extra liquids from the TPN?
apparently there are only 5 documented cases of pregnant women having this surgery so it's been impossible to find anything online with others who have been in the same situation, but i wanted to ask if anyone here has been pregnant with an ileostomy? i'm having some challenges with trying to heal my incision from surgery with my expanding belly. also, i'm having leakage with my bags and i didn't know if anyone has any tips that worked for them? i've tried several types of different bags, etc. but it happened again last night and is so upsetting to wake up to.
this is quite an adjustment and i'm mentally having a hard time coming to terms with this bag hanging off of me. i'm telling myself it's only temporary and i'll get the j-pouch surgery because that makes me feel better for now. did everyone go through this? i feel like i have so much to be grateful for right now and i feel like it's so vain to focus on this, but it does get me down. anyway, i'm glad to have this group to learn from, so thanks to everyone here