Preparing for surgery

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAUL!!!
I think it's cool to start your new year with a new gastro process....
I see a year of change for you....lol!!!

Are you on any pain meds at all?


What did the doc say about the state your colon was in?

Great to hear your pains have subsided as well.

quincy

With too much output you are at risk of dehydration, right? I figure that's why you're still connected to IV part-time. Continuing best wishes! / Old Hat (nearly 30 yrs with left-sided UC ... [etc.])

Hi Paul,

Sounds like you've really been through it the last couple of weeks.

I had my colon out in Sept. of 2007 and I some of the same complications that you had.

I had an ileus so I ended up being in the hospital for 14 days, had 3 NG tubes inserted and removed during that time,

couldn't keep anything down for the first 12 days after the surgery.  I also had my surgery with an open incision, so

I have a vertical scar about 9-10 inches long.  I was diagnosed with UC in my mid-twenties and was 53 when I had my surgery.

I was first discharged 9 days post-op but didn't even make it out of the hospital before I started throwing up and ended up

pulling my incision open a couple of inches, and was re-admitted for another 5 days.

In my case the surgeon let me keep the rectum so he re-attached the ileum to the top of the recturm so I never had a stoma.

My surgery was because of dysplasia showing up in one of the biopsies from my last colonoscopy in May of 2007, but they let me keep my rectum because the lower part of my colon didn't show any signs of colon disease.  They did find cancer in my ascending colon after the colon was removed, but the cancer was only .1 centimeter in size and had not spread beyond the mucosa and sub-mucosa.

So I hope you get to go home soon and continue to improve.  It may take a couple of months, maybe longer, before you get your strength back, but you will get better. 

It will also take a while for your body to adjust to the new "plumbing" but at 14 months post-op I can do most of what I was able to do before the surgery.  I had a friend at work who had had j-pouch surgery and had told me to look at the surgery as not the end of all troubles but the beginning of my body adjusting to a new normal.

By the way, did you have the j-pouch surgery?  I wondered because you mentioned a 2nd surgery later.

Rick

Hey Paul, happy belated birthday!

Thanks, it looks like my output is starting to go down. The doctors aren’t ready to let me go home today but I thing tomorrow is a good possibility. It has been 14 days since surgery.

Take care,

Paul,

No way - your birthday is the same as mine - November 1st! I used to say 'remember remember the 1st of November' instead of bonfire day LOL, though the thought occurs if you are in the US you won't have bonfire day. My dad brought me a huge chocolate cake for me and i'm proud to say i polished most of it off, thankfully I am well enough to do that, in the future you should have no problems with chocolate cake!

Hang in there it will only get better.

Thanks everyone,

The doctors were in this morning and I'll be here at least another day. Over night was rough. I had a blockage most of yesterday with very painful stomach cramps. I could barely stand it. At about 1:00am I woke up and emptied my bag. There was only 200cc since the previous morning. Five minutes later it was full with 450cc. Since then I have been emptying my bag very often. The blockage is gone and I am feeling better. This afternoon they removed the staples from my incision, all 35 of them. It hurt more than I thought it would.

Happy belated birthday Ian. I hope yours was better than mine. I am in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Red, don’t be envious just yet. My recovery has been harder than I thought it would be. The actual surgery and a few days afterwards was the easiest part.

Take care,

Paul, did anyone tell you why you were having all those blockages? Are they still treating them with a tube down your nose?

Thanks everyone. I only had 2 blockages and the second one they didn’t give me an NG tuble. This morning the doctors told me at least one more day. I almost beg them to let me go home but they insist I stay because my outputs are still too high. They really don’t want to let me go if they think I may be back soon. My room mate left a few days ago and they gave him the option to stay another night. I now have another room mate and he seems to not know what’s going on. He told me he didn’t know why he was here. I talked to his wife and she said he had colon cancer and now has a permanent ileostomy. I really don’t like my ileostomy and can’t wait to have it reversed.

Take care,

No it’s not normal but it does happen. My first room mate had the same problems and was in the hospital for 2 ½ weeks. I’m trying to break his record. My second room mate was out after 10 days. I have been here so long that many nurses com back from several days off and are surprised to see me here.

Just a few hours ago there was some real commotion in my room. My new room mate pulled out all his lines and tried to get out of bed by himself and then fainted. There must have been 6 or seven doctors and nurses rush to him. They even pulled my curtain closed so I couldn’t see but I heard a lot. They are now giving him 2 units of blood. They were talking about moving him up one level of care but he is still in my room. I feel really sorry for him and his wife. Just 10 minutes before all the commotion I briefly talked to him and he held up the small bag that drains the incision and it was full of blood. Mine was never that full and was only pink in colour.

Today I snuck a few sips of coke from my wife. It was really good. I also had some potato chips. Apparently they are recommended eating.

Hi Paul, glad to hear you are feeling better everyday (albeit slowly). Bratcat didn't have any issues with her surgery. She did take several weeks to heal. And it probably was close to 3 months before she started seeming like her old self. She doesn't love her ostomy but has learned to deal with it. In the beginning, she (and I because I help her with it) had trouble learning how to change it. We even took an emergency trip back to the ostomy nurse at the hospital because we couldn't figure out how to keep it from leaking. In the beginning, it took almost 1-1/2 hours for us to change her wafer! That included her removing the old one, showering, trying to prepare the new wafer, putting it on, etc., all with her crying. Now she can do the whole thing in under 30 minutes (including a shower).

Hopefully the time for healing will go very fast. Bratcat is having her reconnect surgery on Monday. It's been 4 months (she waited an extra month to do things in school). In many ways, these 4 months have flown by.

Feel better each day. Give yourself a chance to heal. Give yourself a chance to get used to the ostomy. Keep your spirits up!

Still no departure date?

Must be tough on your roommate too - sounds like he doesn't know much about wots going on.

Hope your daughter's surgery goes well, Bennie. May i ask what the difficulties with changing the bag are? or is it a bit different with a temp ileostomy?