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Advice from JP veterans?

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Posted 11/15/2011 8:58 PM (GMT 0)
My JP was placed back on Tuesday the 8th for abdominal abscess using the CT scan guided method. I don't have a lot of drainage into the bulb and I haven't had any trouble following the regimen of flushing, etc. I have an appointment to be seen on Monday and presumably have it removed if they think it has done its job.

I was looking at my care instructions and they said I should be changing the dressing every day or when it gets wet. I realized then that nobody had ever changed the dressing on this thing....it was still the same dressing they put on when they did the procedure! I was doing a pouch change last night, so decided to change the dressing after.

Pouch change was a nightmare....not my normal time of day, stoma more active than I'm used to dealing with, etc. I finally got that all situated and then took the dressing off the JP site. There was a pretty decent amount of pinkish drainage coming from the insertion site. I had to use a couple of different gauze pads to catch it and then finally just put the new dressing on. The old dressing seemed to be somewhat dirty with this stuff, but I don't know if it's recent or what because it was so old. Today I put a second dressing over top of the one I applied last night because the stuff was seeping through and getting on my clothes and stuff.

Of course, my question....is this normal? I have no fever, no increase in pain around the insertion site, and the skin there isn't red. It looks a bit puffy around there, but I don't think anymore than it was while I was at the hospital. This stuff almost looks like what should be going into the bulb or something. I guess I should change the whole dressing again tonight or tomorrow so it isn't wet underneath there.

Why does it always have to be something? This has been the most difficult and taxing process of my whole life and I'm just mentally tired of all of it. Sometimes I just wish I would get struck by a meteor or something so I wouldn't have to deal with anymore medical crap! *sigh*
Posted 11/15/2011 9:05 PM (GMT 0)
If you were really sick going into surgery, expect to have delays in recovery. Your body has been through a lot BOTH before and after surgery. It will get better.

Sue
Posted 11/16/2011 1:18 AM (GMT 0)
No meteors, it will get better, and hopefully this will be a blur someday.... I had a huge cry in the middle of the night last night, and boy did I feel better afterward -- highly recommended.

I only had the JP in the hospital, so probably not relevant, but when they took it out, I soaked through two different johnnies before someone finally put tegaderm on the dressing, and then it took a few days to dry off all the way.... that was after the drain was out, but it makes sense to me that the tube wouldn't get all of the fluid going on in there..... just my thinking, not positive it's accurate.
Posted 11/16/2011 2:34 AM (GMT 0)
Oh, blueglass....there was a good bit of crying through that stoma change alternated with gritting my teeth and a few choice words and setting my mind that some rogue poop was not going to get the best of me. Once I saw the mess under the dressing it was just too much. I got it all put back together and then cried some more and kept telling my husband how tired I am and how I don't want to deal with this stuff anymore. I do believe I wished for a fairy godmother who would show up and do my pouch and dressing changes for me until I felt better. :-( I've been assigned home care, but the last few nurses they sent were useless to me....having no clue about stoma care and one having never even seen an ostomy before. Nope, I have to suck it up buttercup and deal....and I will. Right now I'm just exceedingly tired and want this part to be over. Have to keep my eyes on the prize and remember how far I've come since starting this whole journey. Can't let myself go off track now.

And then there are people like yourself who have been through all of this plus more and then I feel like a real baby for complaining! I guess the only reality that really sinks in for us is our own, but I have to remember it could always be worse and be grateful for the progress I'm making, the skill of my medical team, and the love and support of the people I have around me helping me.
Posted 11/16/2011 3:05 AM (GMT 0)
Hey, don't use me to feel bad about your own feelings! I never had a short stoma like yours or so much trouble w/the pouch or that ct drainage procedure thing that you had, or a jp at home ... right now i just have to stay off my wound but I'm not sick. I think you're going through a lot, and I understand why you've been so upset. Just being in the hospital is exhausting and takes a long time to get over....

So no, you're not a baby because you're complaining....

And it is good to have all the gratitude things too, because they are real. But your discomfort, exhaustion, frustration etc are also real....

Are you doing any crochet? It really is relaxing in the midst of so much stress.....

Yes, you have come far, and eyes on the prize, you'll get there.
Posted 11/16/2011 6:15 AM (GMT 0)
Blueglass and Run4Pancakes- I really feel for you two. To be going through these difficult times for so long must be unbelievably hard. My 4-month healing ordeal seemed so grueling... I cried uncontrollably all the time... yet I can't even imagine what you are both going through to have such issues month after month. You are both very strong. I am rooting for you and hoping things improve soon.

Run4Pancakes... not sure about the JP drain. During my first surgery, I had one in my belly that was held in place with a stitch. I changed the dressing over it everyday, but I don't remember having a lot of drainage out of the little wound while the tube was still in. Once they pulled it, a little bit of clear pink fluid came out of the leftover wound hole for a few days. I think I remember changing the gauze twice a day until the drainage stopped. Then I put a band-aid over it until it scabbed up and healed. It was a small but deep wound so it took a while to heal and looked a little pink around the edges at times. It never got infected though.The much larger CT guided drain I had placed through my butt cheek a month post-op for the pocket of fluid in my belly stopped draining after 5 days. They took it out while I was still in the hospital, so I never had to change the dressing by myself while the drain was still in. However, once they pulled the drain and I went home, the healing scenario was similar to the one I mentioned for the other JP drain. The difference was that it was on my butt, and I couldn't see it so my husband had to change the gauze and band-aids on the little wound. I remember that spot was sore for a while too because it went through the most meaty part of my glute.

With each drain, I do remember that as the fluid slowly stopped coming out of me and there was less going into the bulb, sometimes the drainage left in the tube between my body and the bulb looked really thick, pinkish yellow, and gross... like it was coagulating. I kept thinking that the plastic tube was plugged from this stuff and that there must still be tons of fluid in me just waiting to come out and bust through the gunk in the tube. The doctors assured me that wasn't the case and the thickness drainage in the tube was just a sign that there wasn't as much fluid leaving my body anymore.

I know your home health nurse is useless with the ostomy, but does she know anything about JP drains? My home health nurse helped me with the first one a bit.

Good luck and hang in there.
Posted 11/16/2011 9:46 PM (GMT 0)
Oh yes....one more thing....how bad is it going to suck when they pull this thing out? Is it very painful?
Posted 11/16/2011 11:18 PM (GMT 0)
Mine wasn't painful going out, just weird in that the tube was way longer than I thought -- just kept pulling and pulling.... maybe uncomfortable, not painful....
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