Enema newbie

This post is going to be graphic. It is not for the faint of heart, and I am not writing with the intent to offend or upset anyone. If you think you might be upset or disgusted, please look away now.

Disclaimer aside, started Rowasa enemas a few weeks ago. Felt so much better in just a matter of days, but have crazy D. no mucus. no blood. just large quantities of brown porridge type D. I cannot leave my home for several hours in the morning. I missed my daughter's preschool. I've had to cancel a trip, a playdate, pretty much all plans for the first 3-4 hours of the day. (I know, I know- First World Problems. Sigh)

Talked to the pharmacist today while picking up new corticosteriod enema that was prescribed because Rowasa is causing D. This was prescribed by a covering physician who spoke to me via a message from his nurse. The pharm. said that the D is the result of the introduction of thr enema to my body. That enemas can cause D and it may happen for awhile, until my body gets used to it. Did anyone else have this? I guess everyone is different, but can you give me a ballpark time frame?

I feel like this is as problematic as the UC, but not as painful. I sneezed today and had an accident. It was gross. I was so glad that I was home and not in public. Thank God for small miracles!

No need for a disclaimer on a post in a bowel disorder forum. As it takes an awful lot to bother us, and this doesn't come close lol.

I've never had diarrhea due to rowasa. The liquid is supposed to be absorbed by you large intestine, leaving only the medicine coating. Any chance you have a sulfite allergy? As they make a sulfite-free rowasa, sf-rowasa, for those who are.

That's not graphic for this forum!

Enemas CAN make your stool looser -- not all of the liquid is going to get absorbed all of the time. However, enemas won't give you the type of diarrhea you're describing, unless you're allergic or intolerant to something in them.

Thank you all for your replies! I'm glad to know that this type of D is likely an intolerance. As luck would have it, my Colon and Rectal Surgeon had a major surgery of his own, and is out of the office indefinitely. The provider covering for him had not returned my phone calls over the last two days. My gastroenterologist is on vacation until the 28. The Nurse Practitioner from his office calls me back, to prescribe new drugs, but hasnt been able to answer my questions. She writes thequestions down, pages the on-call doctor and calls me back. She is not helpful, and I'm worried and frustrated. They prescribed a corticosteroid enema for me, which I will start tonight. I used Canasa last night and woke up feeling great.

Thank you for you allowing me to share my symptoms and vent my frustration with leakage and missing out on all my activities this week. I guess I feel like I shouldnt complain because I know people have worse situations than mine, and I am a stay at home mom, so my schedule isnt filled with appointments that most people find important. I do try to be the best mother I can, and I feel sad and guilty when I cant get my daughter to school or out to socialize with other kids her age.

Your replies were really helpful, and I appreciate you sharing your experiences with me. I suspect it is my sulfa allergy affecting me. Do you think I should press the on-call doc for SF Rowasa or just take the steriod enema?

cek1014 said...
I am new to this website but I wanted to say that I tried the rowasa enemas about a year ago and they also made my diarrhea worse..like way worse.

I am so sorry that this happened to you as well. It is pretty awful being trapped in the bathroom. I wonder if this is just the body getting used to the medication as the pharamcist told me, or something else. Do you have an allergy to sulfa? I also administer in the bathroom. Lie still for about 5 minutes. wash my hands and high tail it into bed. I was wondering if I laid still longer, if I would have less D.

Sorry to hear Humira is giving you trouble with your cycle. That's annoying and makes it hard to plan. I hope you feel better soon!

quincy said...


I was once on the nightly enema for 4 months....with diarrhea that eventually cleared...but it was a frustrating time for me.

Did you just ride out the intense D? Was it better than your "regular" symptoms?

quincy said...
Are you on an oral 5ASA?

I was nursing a baby. My doc said I could do Rowasa and he thought I could still nurse "with caution" and watch the baby's weight gain and BM's, or I would need to cease nursing and take Canasa and Lialda. I hate taking pills. I only nurse my son once per day now because I am afraid of the effects of the Rowasa on him, but hate to give up that one session. He is so little and I feel bad for him because nursing really comforted him. I nursed him exclusively for 8 months, because breast milk is shown to lower UC in babies while on Canasa. I hope he doesnt have to go through this.