Songlady without colon!

Hi! I have been thinking of you, Q, because my now 1 year old Kitty was apparently a nervous wreck while I was gone ( and my husband was not home too much!) Now she is staying by my side, or cuddling on my lap, quite a bit, but she can't quite understand why I will not play an active game of Toss the Toy Mouse - which usually ends up with me on the for with a yardstick, retrieving the toys she has batted under the furniture for safekeeping.
She sure is cute and cheers me up!

So, some other info about my experience: in was in for 5 days. Partly because, as nssg has noted, I had a drain that stayed in until discharge morning. The Foley cath only came out the night before my discharge ( in fact, that was how I "celebrated" the countdown to the New Year- the resident came in and took it out just before midnight! But things were sore after each of those removals.
My surgeon generally does not like to discharge someone with a new ostomy on a holiday. If there were issues with the appliance (or any other issues) you have not been processed into any home care system yet, medical offices are closed, so if you have issues you need to go in through the rigmarole of the ER. So he recommended staying until Jan 2, and frankly, I was Happy with that.
Food: in went in to the surgical suite about 7:15 am. I was awake enough to look at a clock in Recovery at about 1:30pm. They gave me ice Chips, though i just wanted just enough to wet my mouth, because I was queasy. ( I was pro active in asking for anti nausea meds, and never vomited.
I do not remember exact timing, but by the next morning I was burping some and passing gas into the bag. So I had clear liquids , but sometime during the I was OKed for a low res, low fiber diet.

There was not a lot of guidance other than one of those food lists. I ordered a plain baked chicken breast, mashed potatoes, steamed carrots.
Ate 2 bites of each and chewed well. Ouch! Horrible pains during the night!

Since then I've been smarter: yogurt several times a day, fish once (extremely easy on my system! Soup, peanut butter, homemade Mac and cheese...basically, it seems to be a story we're all familiar with: eat your best " flare" foods, add new things as you feel is prudent.

I am having discomfort especially at beginning and and of day, which makes sense. This morning my lower back hurt more than anything else, because of my sleeping position- lol!

If anything I have been through can help anyone else, I am glad to share!
And if you have surgery scheduled, the best piece of advice, again from nssg: remember to bring your ChapStick! ☺

Songlady,
very happy you are doing well. Thank you for sharing your experience.
My husband is having a colectomy on Monday and I am trying to gather as much information as possible in order to be helpful for him.

Do you have any advice for "uc spouses"? How can I be the most helpful during the hospital stay and the return home? I want to care for him but I don't want to be overwhelming or add any stress to his transition.
Any advice from any of you who have gone through surgery will be most welcome!

He’s going to want to sleep a lot and there will be professionals taking care of him. Just be an advocate for him if he needs anything that he’s not gettting. Also, just give him his space to rest and recover. Make sure that he is listening and at least trying to do what the doctors/nurses are telling him to do. After 3-4 days he should be feeling pretty good.

How is your husband feeling about the colectomy? It is emotionally tough for some people there is an adjustment period. I was so sick at the time that I wanted my colon out so I would feel better.

In a few weeks he’ll be able to eat the food that he loves to eat, maybe make meal plans for when he can eat his favorite foods again. Also, order ostomy samples from all the ostomy supply manufactures so he can see which products he likes the best, make sure you ask for the ostomy accessories too.

Maria I'm in sought of same boat. No meds except Pred are work for me,I know it's end of trying this and that. Time to remove this diseased body part. After 32 years of having UC I'm looking forward to a better quality of life. My surgeons office is trying to get an O.R for Tuesday if possible. If not another day next week Only good things ahead

I look forward to sharing with u. How old is hubby?? Where is he having surgery?? How long has he had UC?

Maria B said...
Songlady,
very happy you are doing well. Thank you for sharing your experience.
My husband is having a colectomy on Monday and I am trying to gather as much information as possible in order to be helpful for him.

Do you have any advice for "uc spouses"? How can I be the most helpful during the hospital stay and the return home? I want to care for him but I don't want to be overwhelming or add any stress to his transition.
Any advice from any of you who have gone through surgery will be most welcome!

I can say that from your responses and your level of concern, that your husband is very, very lucky. Having someone in your life who is supportive, is probably the most helpful thing possible. My significant other always made me feel better. Nearly immediately following surgery, we were out, enjoying each other's company like we hadn't in such a long time. I was eating whatever I wanted, and not rushing for the toilet... It takes time, and it's an adjustment. I don't think anyone is promised a full night's sleep, at least not every night, but you will be free of the illness, the drugs, the doctors, the costs, the restrictions to your life (and your diet for the most part). My health is so much better. I am no longer pudgy from all the steroids or starving myself... My story is in my signature. best of luck to you both.

Ok. We can call ourselves class of 2018. Good luck

Sounds good

notsosicklygirl said...

Maria B said...
Songlady,
very happy you are doing well. Thank you for sharing your experience.
My husband is having a colectomy on Monday and I am trying to gather as much information as possible in order to be helpful for him.

Do you have any advice for "uc spouses"? How can I be the most helpful during the hospital stay and the return home? I want to care for him but I don't want to be overwhelming or add any stress to his transition.
Any advice from any of you who have gone through surgery will be most welcome!

I can say that from your responses and your level of concern, that your husband is very, very lucky. Having someone in your life who is supportive, is probably the most helpful thing possible. My significant other always made me feel better. Nearly immediately following surgery, we were out, enjoying each other's company like we hadn't in such a long time. I was eating whatever I wanted, and not rushing for the toilet... It takes time, and it's an adjustment. I don't think anyone is promised a full night's sleep, at least not every night, but you will be free of the illness, the drugs, the doctors, the costs, the restrictions to your life (and your diet for the most part). My health is so much better. I am no longer pudgy from all the steroids or starving myself... My story is in my signature. best of luck to you both.

I read your story with interest, but there was no part three for the take down surgery. Is that posted somewhere else?

songlady said...
Plucky - I put a long venting post on the Ostomy page. Sheesh, I did my first change completely alone 2 days ago, and it took me three attempts an hour apart to get the darned thing to not leak. My stoma opening is below the surface of my abdominal skin, so every time I tried to tack a moldable wafer into place, the pressure of my fingers seemed to cause the thing to drip harder, wetting the area and preventing anything from sticking. And getting output under wafer, bag, etc.
Finally I ate 2 marshmallows, and also used a hair dryer to make sure the skin where the output was dripping was really dry. That was 48 hours ago.... knock on wood, all is OK so far!

The tips on this and the ostomy boards are wonderful. Thanks to all!

How are you doing now with your bag changes ? Have you tried different bags ? I still have home nurses coming twice a week and it’s been a month this week . So not ready to do it on my own. I have had 3 leaks and was terrified each time I had to do it myself ( had my daughter and boyfriend help ) each time we messed up on one bag . Thinking I have to now watch the nurse more closely . I was using a one piece and I just switched to a two piece . Started watching YouTube videos they have helped me a great deal build up the confidence I only have 2 visits left

I agree, nssg - I need to do this on my own in order to learn. I'm like that with everything: if we are driving somewhere new on vacation, I don't REALLY learn where we are if my husband is driving: once I am behind the wheel I "get" it.

Just now the home ostomy called and offered to come by and simply watch as I changed it! Yeah!

One of her amazing pointers: when changing the bag, pull the undies down some and tuck a trash bag into the elastic, so the open trash bag is hanging out in front of you! Easy to drop trash into, and if there are drips they go into the bag!