I thought I would post because it seems there are quite a few people and people's children going in for surgery because of their severe UC. It's almost my year anniversary of my final surgery. I can only comment on J pouch surgery since that is what I had done. For me, I knew I didn't want a permanent ileostomy so I opted for the J pouch. My sister has had a j pouch for 20 years so I figured, what the heck, she has done awsome.
I had my first surgery in June 2010. The colectomy and the J pouch was made. I had the temp. loop ileo for 3 months and then in October 2010 I had my final surgery (takedown). It was a tough recovery getting thru all that but I just want to say it is SOOOO worth it now. I cannot believe what a difference in my life this surgery has made. And I fought it tooth and nail! I wish I had done it a lot sooner..it would have saved me and my family a lot of grief. It is a scary thing to face...and I can't imagine having my child have to face surgery like some folks on here. That would just kill me. But if one of my kids was suffering like I was, I know now that surgery is a life saver. It's so nice to be able to eat whatever I want again. I don't have to take anymore nasty drugs. I just pop my multi-vitamin everyday.
So for anyone facing surgery or contemplating it, it's not the end of the world. It's a beginning to your journey back to health. I love my J pouch! 