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Posted 8/13/2013 9:46 PM (GMT 0)
Well, I had my post-op visit with the surgeon today and he has decreed that I'm ready to go back to work on Monday (19 days post-op). I tried to beg for leniency (I thought it would be nice to have a couple more weeks to wean myself off of the bidet and expand my diet) but he felt he really couldn't medically excuse me since I don't have any pain, am only having 5-6 BMs per day, etc. My biggest complaint right now is rectal spasms -- they really stop me in my tracks, literally, but they seem to be reducing somewhat in frequency.

I'm putting together a little kit to bring to work with spare underwear, travel baby wipes, a tube of A&D, and maybe a tiny squirt bottle that I could fill up at the sink. Any other ideas? Moral support always welcome... oy!
Posted 8/13/2013 10:43 PM (GMT 0)
Wow, that was fast! You will be fine. I found that when I was at work and my mind was occupied, I barely gave my new plumbing a thought. I think about it much more when I'm home and that still holds true almost 3 years later. I was at the beach the other day and didn't need the bathroom (except to pee!) the entire time. I didn't go until I got home so a full 10 hours. Happy back to work and life as usual! :)
Posted 8/14/2013 12:00 AM (GMT 0)
That's so fast! I had my post-op visit today too. She says things are good overall, but I'm still going 15 or so times a day. She wants me to have a little more time to get that under control. I will go back to work Sept 3, the day after Labor Day. Will be weird since I've been out since Feb 26!
Posted 8/14/2013 4:35 AM (GMT 0)
Wow!! Look at you, Miss Speedy Recovery! It's great that you are healing and your body seems to be adjusting so well, but I do know what you mean by wishing you could have a couple more weeks to feel more comfortable with everything. Before my surgery, the surgeon told me it might be up to 12 weeks before I could work again (a totally NON strenuous job) just because I was so sick and might take a long time to heal. When she told me I could definitely go back at 7, and maybe 6 if I wanted, I was kinda surprised, sad and overwhelmed. I opted for 7, but would've taken more if I could've gotten it!

That said, I know you will do great getting back into the swing of real life. Sounds like you have a pretty good plan in place. Sorry I can't give suggestions, but I know nothing about life with a JPouch! Do you have any big plans for your last weekend of "freedom"?
Posted 8/14/2013 5:21 AM (GMT 0)
Wow, only 5-6 BMs peer day? Congrats. That's great. I'm almost 3 months post-op and I go like 10 times a day, but then again, I drink coffee and eat sweets ;) Sounds like you are healing well ;)
Posted 8/14/2013 8:22 AM (GMT 0)
congrats Liz and best of luck!
Posted 8/14/2013 12:03 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Liz,

I am so glad to hear you are doing well. I hope everything goes well at work.
Posted 8/14/2013 5:36 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Liz,
That is so soon to go back to work I don't know what you do for work but just take it easy when you go back you will probably feel really tired for the first few days. Really good to hear that your doing well though x
Posted 8/14/2013 7:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hi thanks everyone!!

Wouldn't you believe it, right after having my "great day" yesterday and having the surgeon tell me I "win the award" for fastest recovery, I had a full on accident in my sleep! Not just a dot of leakage, but like... a huge mess. I have a lot of problems with insomnia, my whole life not just because of UC, and I think it has really screwed me up this time. I have trouble falling asleep at night because of the insomnia and because the spasms wake me up when I start to fall, then out of exhaustion I fall into a DEEP sleep around daybreak and that is when I had the big accident. I'm going to try taking Tylenol again before I go to bed tonight and hopefully that will give me enough relief to fall asleep normally. I stopped taking Tylenol around the same time that I started having small amounts of nighttime leakage so I'm hoping this will be the answer. I NEVER had a leak or blowout in bed with my ostomy bag so this was really sad for me :( Anyway, moving on!

Marianne - thank you, I do find I can go longer when I'm distracted. I hope my pouch is as lucky as yours and your sister's (sister, right?)

Alison!! 15 times! My hat is off to you, I hope you are keeping the BB under control. If I go more often than every 2-3 hours it starts rearing its head on me. I was out of work with my UC flare and first surgery from October to March, it was REALLY weird going back but I got into the swing of things pretty quick. I bet everyone will be excited to see you again.

UCW, tell your mom her well wishes must have helped wink I don't have any plans for my weekend of freedom except to hang out with my boyfriend and go to breakfast at the neighborhood cafe, read the paper, and relax. I want to do something big to "celebrate" like a trip but not feeling quite there yet!

Thanks penny. I am working up the nerve to try coffee but not ready yet! Everything is still too liquid.

And thank you to Kim, Hodaya, and Crohnielass!

I went out and got my haircut today and the stylist told me she can see I have new growth coming in to replace all the hair I lost after the surgeries... progress... progress...
Posted 8/14/2013 8:44 PM (GMT 0)
my girl.. i think it is stressing you so much going back to work so fast. honestly, i can trully understand you. i'd want some more time too, cuz it's not only the healing itself, but it's also adjusting emotionally and physically. that leak you had is a true bummer. can you talk to your dr tell him you need some more time?

i don't have experience with j pouch, but i know it gets better with time from ppl who went thru it. a friend of mine (j poucher) had same problems. it took up to a year for everything to work well, but she now says she feels great and controle issues are no longer a problem for her. she used immodium and said that helped a lot to regulate things and controle better. i know you know all about immodium. maybe a very small dose, cuz you don't have that many bms, but just to help with controle?

congrats on your new hairdo :)
Posted 8/15/2013 9:51 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Liz
I just checked in to see how you made out following your take-down surgery. I have been reading experiences at J-Pouch.com as suggested by members here but I wanted to check back with you. You had responded to my query the day before your surgery. I am still undecided as to what route I will take. My ostomy is working fine and I have been fortunate that I have not had any leaks or accidents. The worst I have had [physically] is some mild skin irritation, but, I have still not mentally accepted it. I still get freaked out, angry and depressed with every trip to the BR. I really am embarrassed to admit that given the fact that the ileo literally saved my life but I have to be honest. I am also experiencing some pain associated with the mucous fistula so I had a CT Scan yesterday to rule out any problems there. My surgeon will follow up with me after he gets the results. I also experienced a really high spike in my liver enzymes as the result of a medication I was taking for an apparent TB exposure. That came with many very uncomfortable symptoms that hindered my overall recovery. I am starting to feel better again and making an effort to rebuild strength & stamina. I need to get back in decent health to have the next surgery. Whether that be J-Pouch construction or removal of the remaining rectum remains to be seen but either way I want to get the show on the road.

I will be watching your posts. Hope things get better for you really fast.

Kathy
Posted 8/15/2013 6:36 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Pluot,

I have the feeling you could do with another week of recovery, yes? Where I am, a doctor would consider that reason enough to sign whatever for another week. Tell him you're not entirely in control of the matter, tell him about the accident (but maybe than at it happened during the day). I think 19 days is not very long, although it's manageble and in many cases realistic, you're just not quite up to it yet. I stayed home 3 weeks after take-down, I think, and once I was back felt really stressed out about having accidents and put myself very frequently on the toilet just to check. I also had to worry about the hour and 15 minutes traveling to get there and back, and got to know every cafe bathroom along the way. So I think it's a good idea if you could stay home until you feel confident and unstressed. Talk to the doc again. I just don't have any experience with being ill/surgery in the states.
Posted 8/15/2013 7:26 PM (GMT 0)
Wow Pluot. You are freaking awesome. Seriously. Hands down. Whichever way you end up going (asking again for more time or heading back to work), you should still know you're freaking awesome!
Posted 8/15/2013 9:08 PM (GMT 0)
Hey B'D, you are right :) I am splitting the difference and just taking a week of vacation days, instead of trying to haggle any more with my surgeon. I think he is at the end of his rope with me (I LOVE to ask questions and want to know ALL the details -- he is old school and only likes to share 'need to know') and I have tons of vacation saved up anyway because I keep accruing it while I'm on disability.

Could be a coincidence but after taking Tylenol at bedtime I finally got some sleep and had NO leaks all night, not a drop. I'm still getting up twice per night, but that was the norm with my stupid loop ileo so it isn't that hard on me... Is it weird to say that I kind of missed my "quiet reading time"? Sometimes I would bring a book into the bathroom when I was emptying my bag and then realize... uhhh... no reason for that!

Ekta!! YOU are awesome! I still can't believe you're going back to your residency between surgeries, that is bad ass.

Kathy. It's a tough adjustment, don't feel bad that you aren't super comfy with the ileo yet. If I were you I would not even worry about the next step right now. You need to get back to health and feeling good -- THEN decide. When you are feeling well and back to doing the things you enjoy and health issues aren't top of mind, you will have better perspective about how to proceed. For me it came down to gut feeling (haha, gut). I went to a therapist, even, to talk out the decision, but I realized that all I really wanted was someone to "give me permission" to do the j-pouch.

Hodaya, I'm definitely keeping Imodium in the back of my mind... I still have an industrial size bottle of it!! So great to hear your friend is doing well... I wish I knew someone in real life who had a j-pouch. Odds are I've met at least one but I didn't know it at the time :)
Posted 8/17/2013 5:09 PM (GMT 0)
Liz- Good luck heading back to work! It's tough because when I went back full time it's expected that you are 100% which isn't reality. The hardest part about going back for me was fitting in all the other things that I want to work on mentally and physically. I'm very schedule oriented. I try to go to the gym and lift weights before work and run after work. Keeps me focused. I had problems sleeping before I started back to work too. I think you'll find once you get back to a normal routine you'll be fine. Best of luck!
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