Minor blockage

If the stoma is putting out and things are flowing, you should be able to eat. I'd ease into though to be sure. I have only ever had two blockages, and they are no fun. Good luck!

I think I might be having a minor blockage as well. I had very little in my bag when I woke up this morning, and little activity since then. What is there is watery and doesn't smell great at all. Thing is, I don't feel any pain, discomfort, bloating or nausea. Since I'm only a week out of surgery I'm hoping it's just part of the ups and downs and trying to not worry TOO much, but having nothing to do but sit here and wait makes that kinda tough.....argh!!

Liz- I hope it is quickly smoothed out and you feel normal soon!

Hey, anyone, here's a basic question: the small gut of a person with an ileo is basically identical to that of a normie except at the stoma, so does that mean ileo blockages are essentially due to food stuck on the inside of the stoma? And if that is so, does that mean that jpouchers get less blockages than ostomates, or is the incidence similar and if so, why? Just curious about the whys of these things.

K makes sense, sd. Of course, in end ileo setup, the cuts are all at the stoma end, unless the were additional chunks sliced out for nasty crohns. Still curious though if jpouchers have any less blockage incidence than ostomates or not -not that ai think that should be an important factor in deciding on surgery types vs other much bigger ones, but I was curious.

Thanks for the kind words everyone. My output is starting to be a lot more "normal" today and I'm sure I'm over the hump.

So, funny thing about that "blockage" -- I'm not entirely sure that's what it was!! I had a massage this morning (heavenly -- do get one if you can!! the therapist knows all about my issues and does the whole thing with me lying on my back or sitting up) and mentioned to the therapist that my stoma might be gurgling a lot because I was getting over a blockage, and he shouldn't be alarmed. He replied that massage therapists love to hear stomach/intestine gurgling because it means that the person is really relaxed. He went on to tell me that when you have a lot of stress or adrenaline while or after eating, it can slow down digestion or stop it completely.

Well, funnily enough, I spent darn near an hour last night immediately after dinner chasing a GIGANTIC roach around my apartment. I hate roaches and the thing nearly gave me a heart attack! It wasn't until after I killed it that I looked down at my pouch and noticed it was empty. I wonder now if it wasn't the food I had eaten (which was fibrous, but not beyond the norm for me) but simply the adrenaline! Anything like this ever happened to you guys?

For Pro and SD, regarding blockages for those who haven't had any cutting/scar tissue above the stoma -- the issue is that pulling the end of the small bowel through to the outside is an unnatural position for the intestines. They don't totally "lay right" because of that and they can sometimes work themselves into conformations that encourage blockage as a result. A few people on this board have even had experiences where the small bowel twisted as a result of the unnatural positioning, leading to severe blockage (I did a lot of searches for blockages last night ;)). I too am curious if this is still an issue when the j-pouch is constructed and connected, and will definitely ask my surgeon... unfortunately my guess is yes. However, the vast majority of blockages occur in the first year after surgery when the intestine is still getting "settled" in the new position, so hopefully it won't be a persistent issue.

Well, whatever was slowing my output yesterday is certainly not a problem today! I'm guessing it's all just the up and downs of adjusting so soon after surgery, but things are flowing like crazy today, so I guess all is well. Hope you are feeling better too, Liz! :)

I just posted this response on another thread, but I'll copy it here since it's the same subject matter....

The day before I left the hospital I told my surgeon how surprised I was at all the things I was allowed to eat so soon. She told me that out of all her MANY MANY ostomy/ileostomy/jpouch patients, only ONE of them has had to have surgery to correct a blockage. He ate Bok Choi, which is pretty much the most fiberous, roughagey thing you could eat. She says use common sense, everything in moderation and everything will be fine.

Chew, chew and chew some more....everything should go through. The three blockages I've had in 2 years were all a result of being in a rush and eating fruit on an empty stomach without thoroughly chewing....that's my 2 cents anyways...