Take down surgery/post-op

Went in for a contrast enema X-ray last Tuesday. (Not sure if there's an exact medical name for it). The contrast ended up on the outside of my intestine, so they admitted me over night to be sure there wasn't a hole in the intestine.
Turns out everything was fine, but I ended up having my third and final closer surgery unexpectedly the next day. I'm excited to be living "normally" again but not exactly looking forward to getting used to having bowel movements the "normal" way now.
Any suggestions as to dieting during/after recovery?
Any warning signs I should look out for now that I have/am using the jpouch?
It's crazy to think it's only been less than a year with the bag. Praying nothing goes wrong and I can live as normally as possible for as long as I can 🙏🏻
I have the usual soreness but I'm also having occasional sharp pains in my upper abdomen. I'm assuming this is just my intestine adjusting and it will get better with time?

Post Edited (Niks) : 2/13/2016 2:58:38 PM (GMT-7)

Cool! I was reading and when I read about the pouchogram, I was so sad for you, then I continued and i was so excited for you. Congrats on getting reconnected. My advice is, listen to your body. You may need to eat smaller meals for a while. I was using the toilet a lot in the beginning and I didn't really fight it. After a while, I realized a lot of the times I was going, the pressure I felt was gas. I was so scared to pass gas because of my past with UC and bad experiences... Over time, I have gotten my confidence back. I am still a little nervous about spicy food, if you eat something and it sets your backside on fire, you can probably eat it minimally or avoid it for a while and try again. I am just getting to the point where I am feeling okay about eating food with some heat. My handheld bidet is a lifesaver. I never had upper pain but it may just be surgery related. My stoma had a little pain for quite a while. Did they leave yours open?

Niks-

Congrats! Isn't it a great feeling? I am 5 months now being hooked up correctly again. I had a loop ileostomy due to a colon resection for diverticulitis. I found the reversal surgery easy, and went back to work after 2 weeks.

I went real slow with my diet adding fiber over time. I also limit dairy and meat. I never got that "Butt Burn" everyone talks about, thank goodness, but I did by Burts Bee's infant zinc oxide and used that everyday so maybe that is why. I also purchased that bidet from Amazon for $12.... greatest thing I ever bought and certainly feel this helped my skin in that area too.

In the beginning I think I went 18 to 20x a day, now I usually go about 5 or so. Over time as you can see, things have slowed down. I still get strange pains or feelings every once in a awhile, but then I think why wouldn't I, as things are so much different now in my intestines.

I found this site to be AWESOME as well as the folks who write on it!!! I agree, showering is terrific without that plastic bag. I also now do not worry about some food particle getting stuck in my stoma or those awful skin sores underneath the adhesive flange that you always had to keep covered. Every time I changed my set up I would get myself all upset at how big the sore may have gotten. But as all know, by placing the stoma powder on it - it does go away over time.

May you continue to heal!!!!

Niks-

I went about 20x a day for the first 4 weeks. Then I began to go between 15 to 18. I never had to get up during the night to go, and I never had any accidents. However, I did have to strain a lot sometimes to be able to go, as I would feel that I was not completely done.

I always have formed movements, although they were small. If you have a cat I would compare them to that. My surgeon said that was normal for my size. I am 5 feet and 98 lbs.

Then I went to going about 10x a day, now I am at about 5....usually just in the am and not so much during the day anymore. I was so stressed as to having to go during my workday. Please do not give up...things do get better!!!! I remember reading that and thinking yeah right.... But it does, just takes time!

I will say that in the beginning everything was so time consuming for me. Between going, then trying to keep the skin area clean and placing zinc oxcide on myself it was an extra 15 minutes every time I went.

Hang in there!!!!!!!!!!! Feel free to ask any other questions, as I vowed I would try to help others as so thankful I found this site, as not a lot of folks out there in our situation.