HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

First Colonoscopy. Help???

Support Forums
>
Ulcerative Colitis
Which method works best in terms of no vomiting/acceptably cleared out?
Moviprep - 50.0% - 2 votes
Miralax/Ducalax/Gatorade blend - 50.0% - 2 votes
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 5/15/2011 8:26 AM (GMT 0)
I've had a lot of symptoms including constipation and blood/mucus in my stool....doctor wants to check me out just to be safe. I've been prescribed MoviPrep (sp) but after reading a forum about it, I'm absolutely TERRIFIED to take it. Throwing up is my worst fear in the world and I know I won't be able to handle it if I start to throw up. I'm not exaggerating or being dramatic, I just won't be able to do it. When people complain of nausea from MoviPrep, is it just because of the taste? I think maybe I could handle a bad taste, I'm just terrified of having an upset stomach that leads to vomiting. Also, I'm a really really small person (5'2 115 pounds) and I can't think that I need to drink all of this stuff. Whenever I've gotten diarrhea from being sick, I've always cleared out within like 3-4 bowel movements. But that's not the main concern..the main concern is nausea/vomiting. I'd say I have a strong stomach for taste but if I *do* get a gag reflex then it's pretty much a done deal. What is this ducalax/miralax/gatorade mixture? Can someone who's used this mixture tell me how to do it?? Because I'm really thinking screw the moviprep and swallow pills. Just any information possible, please...this is all really new and scary. My colonoscopy is scheduled for noon on Monday.
Posted 5/15/2011 9:09 AM (GMT 0)
Hi shortnsaucy!
I've never used Moviprep but after doing some research I found the same stuff you did. Lots of vomiting and from what I found it was either from heartburn or taste. I did find hints from others. Drink it super cold, suck on hard candies in between gulps, hold your nose, and use a straw.

There are other preps out there. I always use Golytely. Its a lot more liquid but it doesn't taste awful. I would call your dr maybe the on call service. Tell them your concerns about vomiting. There would be no point in trying to do the prep, having diarrhea, vomiting and then not being clear for the colonoscopy and havIng to do it again. Oh and make sure you have someone to drive you home after!
Posted 5/15/2011 9:41 AM (GMT 0)

Hi, and welcome to the forum. I've just been through the same sort of thing myself with my first colonoscopy, and the thought of taking the prep (not Moviprep, I have to say) filled me with more fear than the thought of what the procedure might find, because vomiting is something I've always lived in dread of also. I sort of have an advantage in that I'm a health professional, but having spent many years trying to reassure and advise patients taking bowel prep about vomiting, only to see them bring it up anyway, it helped to get my anxiety levels up nice and high beforehand as I was sure I was going to.

As it turned out, the preparation I took tasted less bad than I'd feared, although it wasn't the kind of stuff I would want regularly. I still felt like retching a couple of times while I was trying to drink it, but I managed to put it off by deep breathing and taking lots of sips of lemonade.

You can't guarantee that you won't be sick, as far as I can see, but what you can guarantee is that if your prep isn't full enough then passing the scope will be a waste of time, and you won't be able to have the procedure until you've completed another round of prep - I know it isn't very helpful, and I don't know if doing what I did helped me to keep it down. As I said, I totally dread being sick, and deep breathing with sips of lemonade is what I usually do to try and avoid it. I can't guarantee it will work for anyone else, I just know it works for me, as I hardly ever vomit when I'm unwell (twice in 20 or so years.) If you're anything like me, you'll have strategies to put off the actual act of vomiting anyway - try working through them. It will be worth it if it means your bowel will be clear enough for the scope to see.

I'm sorry I don't know anything about alternative preparations, and I've only ever tasted the one I had to drink. I couldn't even begin to give you any taste comparisons between the one I had (Picoprep) and the others that I've seen used.

Sorry if that's not encouraging, but from where I see it, there is no magic bullet that guarantees you won't. If you're as scared as I was about it before I drank the prep, then I don't envy you.

I hope all goes well for you next Monday

Posted 5/15/2011 9:46 AM (GMT 0)
dont fear just try it out if does not work with them, move on untill u get something that does,never give up. gd luck
Posted 5/15/2011 9:52 AM (GMT 0)
I had already 3 colonoscopies and the last one was with the MoviPrep. Previous two were with something else, probably even OTC, thus I remember mixing it with Gatorade. And it was better than MoviPrep. It is about taste, really. But you should be able to handle the first dose (4 glasses within 1 hour), the most important one :-) I had problem with the second dose, I was able to drink just one glass without gagging, rest was gone down the drain. I just flushed myself with a tons of water afterwards (and remember, 24 hours before the procedure only on clear liquid diet, so it helps anyway). And my colon was absolutely clean and good for the test. But, from experience, next time I WILL opt for something else, so if you can, call your doctor and tell him about your concerns. I'm sure he'd rather have you "clean" on the table so he should give you something else.
Take care.
Posted 5/15/2011 11:31 AM (GMT 0)
Don't fear the colonoscopy or the prep. I just had my first one done about 3 weeks ago. Like you, I have a total fear of vomiting. I'm 38 and I have not had to vomit since I was a kid in the 6th grade. I thought for sure I'd throw up doing the prep, but I didn't. In fact, the prep was not as bad as I had heard it would be. I used Suprep. It tasted sickly sweet but I was able to drink it without problem. I also worried how I would do with that much diarrhea. I thought for sure I'd dehydrate or feel faint. But I didn't. My prep was divided into two doses and each dose produced about 12 or more episodes of full diarrhea. I had no cramping or bleeding or anything that I feared.

You will get through this. I know you will. If I can do it(and I'm loaded with fears), you will have no problem.

Let us know how it goes.
Posted 5/15/2011 12:48 PM (GMT 0)
The Moviprep really doesnt taste that bad, the stuff I had for the 2 previous ones was worse tasting. I had no issues with vomiting, but due to the amount of fluid you have to drink it is a really full feeling. This will be the worst part of your procedure and it really isn't that terrible. Just be sure to stay home and not plan on going too far from a bathroom for rest of the day when you drink it, it is very effective at cleaning you out! The actual colonoscopy is nothing to fear, they give you meds via IV to sedated you as well as a med that makes you not remember much of the procedure as well as having some sedation properties also. They used Fentanyl 200mcg and Midazolam 10mg for my last procedure. All will be fine. Good Luck!!
Posted 5/15/2011 1:41 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome to Healingwell. I hope the scope goes well and that nothing serious shows up. I have had numerous colonoscopies over the years with various preps. My favorite was the Osmoprep pills but I believe they don't like to prescribe them anymore because of possible kidney complications. I did the Moviprep 2 years ago and I was only able to do the first container. The taste wasn't really that bad but I was so full and bloated that I just couldn't get myself to do the other jug. I was even slightly nauseous from it. But I didn't throw up.

On my last scope, I did the Suprep and even though that one has less you have to drink, I was still unable to get down the second dosing. Both times with the Moviprep and the Suprep, the first dose was enough to clean me out. As long as you go clear and eat light for a few days before, usually the first dose will be enough. But the key is drink LOTS AND LOTS of water to avoid dehydration. Also be sure to refrigerate it so it's really cold and use a straw placed at the back of your tongue. Hold your nose if you have to.

Good luck!
Posted 5/15/2011 1:51 PM (GMT 0)

Red_34 said...
Also be sure to refrigerate it so it's really cold and use a straw placed at the back of your tongue. Hold your nose if you have to.

Good luck!

 

 

Very Good advice!! I never heard of that but will use that trick next time!!

Posted 5/16/2011 4:05 PM (GMT 0)
I have had about 15 colonoscopies, the prep being the worst part.

Back in the 70's the colonoscopy itself was pretty bad, the anesthesia was terrible in those days and it was very painful. In the last 10 years the anesthesia is wonderful: you very gently lose consciousness and when you wake up you feel like nothing happened.

The prep is another matter: the prep lasts a long time and you simply have to get through it. Anticipatory fear needs to be erased out of yourself, it is YOU that has the power to do this.

1) Above all I get into an attitude that I need to get this done, 3 sips at a time.

2) First you need to start at around 3 in the afternoon, sometimes the first 3 hours nothing happens to me, the real action starts 5 hours into the process.

3)I will sip the prep three sips at a time, without breashing or tasting it. Immediately I follow it with a gulp of seven up, I psyche myself that this iis going down, breathing into my abdomen. Relax, a couple of minutes later do the same thing...if you feel nausea then breathe down some more, settle it, drink another gulp of seven up. Your goal are these 3 sips, not the whole concoction. One step at a time !

You can do it, if you break the problem down into sub-problems of mini-sips in this manner. Focus on the seven up gulp which will settle the sips.

4) When you start going to the toilet, make sure you clean the anus with a soft wipe, each and every time. It gets raw after a dozen bowel movements. I use also Balneol which is a cleanser for that area of the body. The rawness is my problem not the nausea.

All of us have been through this, and so can you !
Posted 5/16/2011 5:09 PM (GMT 0)
I did the Miralax prep and threw up from it. That was the worst part for me. I was able to get a full night's sleep the night before my colonoscopy. My doctor contributes the easy prep to a healthy diet.
Posted 5/17/2011 12:11 AM (GMT 0)
I won't take any prescriptions so when my doc scheduled me for my recent colonscopy, I consulted my nutritionist who said to just take 3 bottles of citrate of magnesia. They come in little glass bottles available at all drug stores as a laxative. It is not pleasant either, but certainly doable. You really do want to clean your colon out before the scope or it will be useless, but this is a less offensive way to go about it. I asked my doc first to explain how the prescription based ones function, then told him how I was planning to clean myself out. He told me I better take the drugs, but guess what, I didn't and I watched the entire video as it was happening and I was spotless inside! Food for thought! :)
Posted 5/17/2011 3:26 AM (GMT 0)
Hi there, I just had my first colonoscopy last week and was totally terrified of the prep for the same reason. I have a literal vomit phobia. I've had stomach flu, H1N1 and a kidney stone (not at the same time) and somehow didn't vomit once. So I hear you.

I live in Canada and we have something called Picosalax. The night before the test I took 2 Dulcolax tablets (was told to take 4 but was already in a flare so was pretty empty already). Then 2 hours later I took the Picosalax, which is a powder you mix into 150 mls of water. It was actually pleasant tasting and you don't have to drink gallons of liquid with it; just a cup an hour. I also took Gravol (Dramamine) as well just in case. I was fine.

They also told me to eat a low residue diet for a few days before to pave the way for the prep. Worked like a charm. So please don't worry! Find the most palatable prep out there that requires the least volume of liquids and you will be fine!
Posted 5/17/2011 3:43 AM (GMT 0)
I did the Dulcolax / Miralax & Gatorade prep. I too was pretty freaked out ahead of time (I'm also 5'2", and around 100 lb; I couldn't believe I had to do exactly the same amount of prep as everyone else!!!) But in the end, it wasn't as bad as I had feared. The Miralax & Gatorade part was actually just fine! Whatever it is, if it's a liquid you have to drink, I think it helps to have it *cold*. That way you don't taste it too much.
Posted 5/17/2011 6:02 AM (GMT 0)

NovaGal said...
I did the Dulcolax / Miralax & Gatorade prep.

How it is done? What you had to do, how to mix it?
Posted 5/17/2011 6:59 AM (GMT 0)
I never had to drink anything for a scope.

My GI did a sigmoidoscopy the first time. (My colon was too inflamed for a colonoscopy.) He told me to use two fleet enemas. My flare subsided, and he decided to do a colonoscopy to check the inside. Since the two fleet enemas worked the first time, he was okay with me using the same method. I had another colonoscopy, and again, two fleet enemas was enough.
Posted 5/17/2011 12:28 PM (GMT 0)
Here is what I did for the Miralax/Gatorade prep (my scope was at 1 pm, the directions are a bit different if you have a morning appointment):

Three days before scope: No fruits, vegetables, corn. No foods that contain seeds (tomatos, green chile, sesame seed buns, etc.)

One day before scope:

1. Only clear liquids for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

2. At 12:00 noon took 20mg (4 tabs/5 mg each) of the generic bisacodyl

3. Drank at least 6 glasses of water in the afternoon.

4. Mixed 1 bottle of Miralax 8.3 oz with 64 oz of Gatorade in a large pitcher and refrigerated

The day of scope:

5. Starting at 8 am, drank one 8oz glass of the Miralax/Gatorade prep every 10 to 15 minutes.

Note that you can find a lot of prep descriptions here: http://www.southwestgi.com/forms, in case you want more details...
Posted 5/17/2011 1:33 PM (GMT 0)
I took GoLytely and didn't vomit or get nauseous. I had my scope in the afternoon so my doctor had me drink half the gallon of GoLytely the night before and the other half the morning of the procedure. Worked fine for me. I didn't mix it with anything. I'd drink it and then take a drink of gaterade or lemonade or a bite of jello or something to get the taste out of my mouth. Good luck. You'll be fine.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply