Lizzie, Have them do a CT scan with contrast looking for a leak. Is your WBC count elevated? I had a leak that was missed (not recognized on the CT scan) and my white count didn't go up (oddly...
Hey Felicia, et al., My husband and I are both physicians so we know how to take out NG tubes. I had the ostomy for about 4 months and then had the reconnection surgery. By then my white count had...
Hey Felicia, I lost 29 lbs in the hospital, but I was there almost 6 weeks. My skin just hung down. I have managed to gain most of that back though. The feeding tube wasn't fun. Eventually I made my...
Hi Felicia and everyone else, I'm Cathy W. I just wanted to let you know that even though I had a REALLY hard time back then, I'm better now than I was before the surgery. Don't let my bad luck scare...
Hi Holly, I had laproscopic surgery but I perforated and later they had to open me up big time. I think there might be something to the idea of a better field of vision. I suffered terribly, I can't...
Hi vandgsmom, I had the total colectomy surgery a year ago this week. I had my gallbladder out 18 yrs ago. I have butt burn but I don't think it is specific to the lack of gallbladder. All of us have...
Howard Welcome to the group. I had complications following my total colectomy and ended very sick. I had a 2nd surgery that landed me with a ileostomy. My hosp. stay only lasted 6 wks though, which...
Resa, I haven't heard of that kind of reaction either. You can have the burning sweats from too much magnesium but it would have to be alot, like 3 or 4 gms of magnesium at a time. You can also get...
Amey- Dare I ask if you've done a pregnancy test? Lesa- Your luck sounds about as good as mine! Glad you're back. I usually think that no news is good news. Cathy...
A reversal is where they put everything back together. It is also called a "take down". They opened me back up and disconnected everything so it could heal, and pulled my small intestines out through...
Hi everyone- I hope everyone is doing well. I'm just back from vacation. I did really well away from home. I even climbed the waterfalls in Jamaica, which was quite a climb. Strange foods didn't...
Phyllis- Glad to hear you're doing well. Don't rush yourself and listen to your body. Each day you're going to feel better in some way. Look for the positives, don't dwell on the negatives. Have a...
Where it says "Forum Page Listing"- go to page 2, then 3, then 4... Keep going backwards until you see "Total Colectomy Part 1" You have to look at all the listings on each page, if you go page by...
KAP- On the ostomies main list page, http://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=33 at the bottom there are pages of the lists that you can scroll back to. We're on part 11, and they count...
I ate a delicious steak last night and I had to get up early this morning to run to the restroom (which I usually don't ever have to do!) The salad probably didn't help either. Cathy...
Emma- you crack me up! Well, luckily I have 2 things in my favor. 1-I have my own pharmacy in my office and 2-my husband is a physician as well. Sometimes, I even have to have my husband do my paps....
I have heard of the yogurt for normaflora (good bacterias) but not specifically to alter the ph. Emma- tell me more about the steroid inj to sclerose. Which steroid? Is it mixed or diluted with...
You have to go backwards in the pages at the bottom. There's lots of good information in the back pages. Cathy W...
Thanks Annette. I'm feeling much better now, I hope you are too. 6 weeks has been the magic number to get to feeling normal!?!?! Cathy...
Dear KP- Your story sounds familiar to most everyone's here. Have you done a sitz marker test? It really is the gold key standard for diagnosing colonic inertia. It measures the amount of motility...
Hey Annette- Sounds like we had something similar happen. I herniated immediately after surgery, but it took them 2 1/2 weeks to figure out that I herniated and perforated. I was one sick cookie....
Phil- well said! I love the "no trotskys", oddly enough, I'm sad to say, I know exactly what you mean! Chertuc- they reopened my original scar for the 2nd and 3rd surgeries and let the stoma hole...
I have heard of having a colonoscopy, I would think to check the anastamosis site and whatever amount of rectum/sigmoid colon that you have left. The weight of the colon depends on the length...
Hi everyone- Remember the proverbial "no news is good news"? It tends to get quiet around here when all is well, when things start to go wrong, we all come crawling back for help. I am doing fine....
Chertuc- I had a total colectomy with the same terribly painful night, only my perforation wasn't finally caught until I was almost dead. It took 2 1/2 weeks for them to notice the herniation and...
Ron- With a nice clean cut, no infection, uneventful recovery, one should be healed at 6 weeks, no problem. To be sure, they do the barium enema. Rest assured that your doctor wants this surgery to...
Phil- Congrats on getting to go back to work. Working gets your mind off of every little symptom that you feel. It will help focus your attention on other things. It helped me. I go stir crazy...
Your doctor wouldn't do it if you weren't ready, failure is bad for business. I have heard of the 6 wk marker. My surgeon uses 3 months, except that in my case I was so sick that she made me wait 4...
Mel- when was your last BM? Are headaches/nausea new for you? You really don't want to get dehydrated, so you at least want to drink, even if it's small frequent amounts. Cathy...
hi everyone! Welcome Resa. Phil- I felt pulling and tugging too. And I had gas vs. stool confusion at first, but it went away quickly. I am 3 months out and I'm still trying to figure out this new...
Robin- Welcome back. I'm glad that you finally have a date for your surgery. It's like a light at the end of a very long tunnel. Abdominal swelling happens for a number of different reasons. First,...
Somer, you create quite the visual! I wondered if that would be good or not for us. I'll take NOT and move on. How funny! Cathy...
Stormy, Pouches are for ulcerative colitis patients not colonic inertia patients. Barring any complications, pouches and ostomies are not the norm. Know that an ostomy can happen (it did to me, but...
Somer, I'm finding that I have more reflux since surgery. As if there is less storage space or something. Ice cream gets me the worst. So far, Tums works pretty good though. Phyllis, I hope...
Phil, You should try pregnancy, labor and delivery! LOL Cathy...
Hi everyone, We got locked out of the last thread, so I figured I'd do the deed and start the next one. Zoe- I hope that you're dilation goes well. Whenever I get diarrhea, the stool is real thin...
Phil, For a while I kept feeling like I had to go all the time. I'd go and sit, but varied successes. I think some of it had to do with swelling, because that feeling has gone away for the most part....
Phil, I remember doing the same thing, checking the pouch that wasn't there anymore. Even I was afraid to give away my ostomy supplies, as if something bad was going to happen and I'd end up with it...
Zoe- we've missed you. How have you been? Cathy...
Mom23- If you feel like you can live the rest of your life like the way you are today then don't go through with it. You've heard my story of woe, and I still recommend the surgery, and I would do it...
Sasha- Hair falls out due to malnutrition and with the complications of the small bowel obstruction/2nd surgery, I'm sure you had a bit of malnutrition, like I did. I'm just starting to grow new...
mom23- I did a 3 day prep to make sure I was cleaned out. Then after surgery, a couple of days without real food. By the time that I could start eating, my complications set in. I was on TPN for...
Hi Angel- It's been about 10 weeks since my reversal. I lost most of my weight loss after the subtotal colectomy- 27lbs. I've gained about 10 back and eat everything. A few things give me diarrhea...
Nonna- I lost 27lbs, and I have put about 10 back on. My last surgery was on Feb 6th, 06. I never feel bloated like before, but my belly makes lots of noises. I came back to work in the beginning of...
Somer, it's nice to hear from you. Life does get busy sometimes. We act like being sick is an on and off switch, but really there are varying stages. I think that I forget that sometimes. I know I...
Sasha- you know La La Land was a good place to be for a few days!!! Cathy...
Tammy- try drinking some extra fluids. Is it just your stomach that itches, because that would be odd. The fluids might give you diarrhea and clean you out, otherwise you might need a ct scan to make...
Hi everyone! Sasha- I'm doing well. Work has been very busy, tiz the season. I have no real complaints to speak of. I do have an area of adhesions that is bothering me underneath the incision scar...
FYI Deb- the eosinophils are elevated with allergies which go hand in hand with asthma, so don't base your diagnosis on just the eosinophils. Cathy...
Tweety- generally, I tell my patients that on a bland diet, if you like it- then you can't eat it. Try this link http://www.dietsite.com/dt/diets/gastrointestinaldisorders/blanddiet.asp it will give...