Posted 8/20/2012 12:42 AM (GMT 0)
Fresh,
1~ Best of luck!
2~ In a nutshell, I was constipated from Labor day weekend, until Thanksgiving last year. By the time I got my gastro to send me to someone else, I was on DAILY 13 doses of Miralax, 4 Amitiza pills, 6-8 doses of Lactulose, PLUS weekly, 2 enimas, and 2 colon preps! AND my gastro was going to make me wait until January to see him again until he decided to do something else..I told him NO, we have done the "let's wait and see what happens" thing wwwaaayyyyy to long!
So he sent me to a Continence surgeon who after hearing my story, told me his first priority was to get me my quality of life back. <3 that man!
3~ So, in January he took out my large intestine ( that had been so stretched out from the constipation that it died), and 2 feet off the small one for better connection, and they did my hysterectomy at the same time.
At the time of surgery, they offered me an epidural for pain management, so I did that. I do not know if you will have that option, I may have only gotten it because they did the hysto too, or maybe because it was such an intense surgery..but I highly recommend it! I found it better than a pain pump simply because you really need to be AWAKE to hit your pain pump! So for the first 2 days, it really was a blessing. It gave me the chance to sleep and let my body start to recover.
4~ Food: I had to keep it light and easily digestible. No fresh veggies, seeds, skins, light on meats...Just for a little bit. My doc told me that for a while any fresh veggies would come out looking like they did when they went in. He was right! lol..but I am just NOW (yup, 7 months later) starting to eat 1 meal a day. I was eating 1 meal every 2-3 days for a long time because if I ate any more than that I would be incredibly ill. (bloated, gassy, VERY uncomfortable)
I also cut WAY back on portion size, and anything greasy. I supplemented my diet with a lot of V-8 Splash to get nutrients. I am sure the dietician will come see you and make suggestions while you are in the hospital.
I have lost 70 lbs., and my pant size can fluctuate 2-3 sizes in hours, or days. If I eat something that bloats me, I go up a size, but days when I feel great, it goes down. Before surgery I was in an 18-20 pants. I am now in a 12 comfortably..but can go up to a 16 on a bad day. SO get some elastic stuff for a bit.
I know this has been long, and I am sorry, but I hope it helps.
Good luck!! I hope this ends all your problems :)