On a Sunnier Note

Next time you are antsy waiting for your colonoscopy because your doctor takes her time doing them...keep in mind...faster colonoscopies miss problems...which means down the line...you could be spending MORE time in the doctor's office...or the morgue.

After Surgery

I am home after surgery. I actually got home yesterday afternoon. The surgery went well. Gi doc was able to grab the mystery bump with the colonoscopy. Surgeon cleaned up scar tissue (from appendectomy 12 years ago? from Crohns? From some sort of girl part source? no idea) through the lap. They thought I would be able to go home the same day but it quickly became apparent this was not happening.

Pain control was a big issue as shaking everything up down there made the crohn's unhappy as well as all the jiggled parts screaming at everyone that they didn't deserve that sort of invasion, not to mention the parts that got sliced and diced. Oddly enough, you can't go home if you pass out from pain.

Then my blood pressure dropped way low. So, then I had to stay until it stabilized into something more normal but still lower than normal.

The mystery bump is still a mystery. G.I. Doc wouldn't say without pathology report coming back, which will be mid-week some time. So, for right now, it is a "cecal mass" still.

I haven't eaten yet really. Jello, broth, a graham cracker that made me most unhappy and a roll that mostly came up almost immediately. My hands and feet are swollen. My left hand is very swollen but looking better. The i.v. infiltrated. I told them to do something about it when it started to hurt, but they flushed it and claimed it was fine. Two hours later when it was all swollen and gross they acted like I had not ever mentioned this to them. Arg. It really just looks awful, not hurt, though typing is making it a bit owie in a stiff sort of way. Lovely bruises on my arms from failed iv attempts.

Biggest annoyance (other than never imagining this would hurt like the dickens) has been having trouble peeing. It is better now but at first, getting the muscles to work right to pee was not happening at all.

Biggest hospital annoyance: LOUD people. My roommates had loud visitors. The hallways were full of loud visitors. I was massively annoyed by the 12 or so yo boy hanging out in the hall when they wanted to transfer me from the gurney to the room. Uh...I know my butt is hanging out and I don't really want to flash that kid. He needs to go into a room or proceed quickly to a non patient part of the hospital.

Another annoyance: nurse arguing with us about my daily meds because they weren't on the order. I definitely need the imuran or I will be back here with more serious issues than this really soon. That nurse also had a hard time understanding what I was saying, a propensity for not answering questions about meds (sorry but I am going to ask what you are giving me and why) and 3 days into this fun still thought my partner was my mother.

What was interesting about the one roommate with the loud visitors was that she complained that she wasn't in a private room because I had to go to her side of the room to use the bathroom and the toilet flushing was loud.

The hospital kitchen is being remodeled so the meals seem to have taken a turn for the worse for visitors as well as patients. It was just as well that I couldn't eat because the boiled cauliflower and fried, mayonaise and gravy doused items that appeared on people's trays made my powdered broth look inviting. I don't know how they expect people to make healthy dietary choices when they can't offer them on a hospital tray.

Good things: nurse in surgery recovery was very good even though she had this thing for kissing my forehead. TLC in the hospital room. (even though I never stayed awake for a whole show and frequently had no idea at all about it) Finding out that the OR prep nurse had a colostomy and used to like ginger ale but gags when she sees it in the grocery store now too.

Below is the picture of the lap incisions. There are three. You can't actually see the one in my belly button. The small red line toward the middle at the top is the first. The third is the red line in the middle of the brownish (betadine) area at the bottom. They each were covered by a band-aid, with very little blood. (They traced the outline of the blood on the bandaid so they could tell if they were bleeding, and they definitely didn't bleed much.) The bottom bruise is pretty nasty but the incisions seem to be healing well.

Diagram of Mystery Bump

and possible cut.

The red x is vague and now that I am looking at it probably on the wrong side of where the appendix is shown. I had my appendix out right before my son turned 1 and so that isn't there...unless the mystery bump is actually crohns inflamed appendectomy leftovers. (could be) Red line is also approximately where they will lop off intestine if they can't just lasso the mystery bump with the colonoscopy. I wish I knew where the doctor's funny little sketch was, I could scan that in.

And...just in case you weren't sure what the cecum did...

The cecum, the first part of the large intestine, is a sac with a closed end. It occupies the right iliac fossa, the hollow of the inner side of the ilium (the upper part of the hipbone). The cecum, also spelled caecum, is a pouch or large tubelike structure in the lower abdominal cavity that receives undigested food material from the small intestine and is considered the first region of the large intestine. It is separated from the ileum (the final portion of the small intestine) by the ileocecal valve (also called Bauhin's valve), which limits the rate of food passage into the cecum and may help prevent material from returning to the small intestine.

In humans, the cecum's main functions are to absorb fluids and salts that remain after completion of intestinal digestion and absorption and to mix its contents with a lubricating substance, mucus. The cecum's internal wall is composed of a thick mucous membrane through which water and salts are absorbed. Beneath this lining is a deep layer of muscle tissue that produces churning and kneading motions.

The structure and function of the cecum varies in other animals. Vertebrates such as rabbits and horses, which live on a diet composed only of plant life, have a larger cecum that is an important organ of absorption and contains bacteria that help digest cellulose. Animals that eat only meat have a reduced or absent cecum.

In Honor of Prep...Bathroom Quiz

What Your Bathroom Habits Say About You

You are a giving soul. Way too giving in fact. You often get stuck doing the dirty work that no one else will do. Your idea of fashion is jeans and a t-shirt. Clean, if you're lucky. You have the perfect blend of confidence and class. You're proud of who you are - but you don't broadcast it. In relationships, you tend to be very romantic and demanding. You'll treat your partner like gold, but you expect a lot in return.

What Do Your Bathroom Habits Say About You?

What the Doctor Doesn't Tell You

about getting ready for a colonoscopy. Ok, about getting ready for bowel prep. About 18 hours before prep is to begin...depending on your appointment time and doc's rules...they leave out an important pre-prep step.

The doctor or actually the "scheduler" at your g.i. doc will probably give you a long list of do and do n't do instructions when you get your marching (to the bathroom) orders. These involve things like drinking lots of water, not eating red foods and not taking aspirin in the days leading up to your prep. Check your own instructions for your particular doctor's rules.

What they don't tell you to do is this: clean your bathroom. This may seem counterproductive, after all, you may get it a bit messy during prep. (especially if you vomit, some people do) However, cleaning the bathroom, the night before prep, is a very, very important step. You will spend a lot of time in there. You will feel wretched. When you feel wretched, bathroom crud will annoy. Important details: sit on the toilet and look around. Anything you actually see from the toilet should be wiped down or washed. This includes the wall, light switch, toilet paper roller thing, grout lines, door, etc. Nothing like focussing on odd dirt specks while hoping your guts settle down a bit. You will not feel like wiping them while in prep. You should do this important step yourself, do not foist it on some unsuspecting family member, friend, or cleaning lady. You do not want to growl about their housecleaning during prep or during those nice hours after anesthesia when you are not permitted to sign important documents. It isn't nice.

You may also wish to stock magazines for the bathroom at this time. Food magazines are not a good idea. Vegetarian Times=BAD colonoscopy/bowel surgery prep reading. Books likewise=bad colonoscopy prep reading, particularly if they are of the literary type or the sort you have to follow. I have heard that the Uncle John's Readers are good for colonoscopy prep, but have not tried this method. There are also some intriguing toilet seat shaped books at Barnes and Noble that I look at every so often that might be suited for prep. Magazines really do seem to work well for me. Reader's Digest, Entertainment, other sorts of light, non-food reading.

The up side to all of this is: prep is the worst part. Cleaning the bathroom means you will have a clean bathroom and a productive way to spend your time the night before you start prep!

Look! The Future is Here

Look what I am doing tomorrow! Well, actually, the surgeon involved likes to start things off with a bang, so tonight (despite going to the bathroom 7 or 8 times today) I get to take two of the laxative tablets. Then tomorrow...more laxative tablets (generic Dulcolax) and the bottle of wal-phosphate (generic phospho-soda).

Then on Thursday, I get to bathe with special soap. (ok Dial, but they gave me my very own hotel sized bar this morning at pre-admission.) Then, go to the hospital by 8 am, where I will commence waiting for at least 2 hours. (Surgery isn't scheduled until 10). Then, colonoscopy, guided by laparascopy...culminating most likely in a bowel resection followed by a couple days in the hospital followed by two/two and a half weeks at home before returning to work if all goes well...which it may not because of course this is Crohn's and well, Crohn's and resections don't go smoothly a significant part of the time. (as he hastily reassures us that he hopes it will this time)

Sigh. I will be out of sick leave by Monday afternoon. Hopefully, the rest can be worked out with vacation time (not much more of that than sick leave) and a dispensation to work from home. (cross your fingers).

Meeting today with the surgeon was in his office...not in an exam room. That was made up for by a four room extravaganza in admitting at the hospital, complete with bright red hospital bracelet I was worried I would have to wear until surgery. (I don't, they made a second one) The blood draw was the easiest in YEARS. I asked her if she could do the i.v. on Thu. LOL.

Worst part will be missing open house. I never miss school stuff, ever.

Advil! Yay! Boo!

Health News Article | Reuters.com: "Regular colonoscopy with follow-up treatment if needed can help prevent colon cancer in patients with ulcerative colitis, new research suggests. Likewise, the use of anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin and ibuprofen, seems to reduce the risk as well."

Ha! Well, what they don't mention is that aspirin and ibuprofen rank as no-nos of high order for the tummy troubled. Hmmm maybe I should say "Bring on the Advil! Less pain! More Blood! No colon cancer!"

Interesting Things about Today's Colonoscopy

Ok, well I thought they were interesting:
1. Being asked if I had been on a poultry farm or handled live birds recently. (bird flu questions)
2. Had I been out of the country in the past 10 days
3. New colonoscopy/endoscopy center at North Florida-new large waiting room and admission area, new prep waiting rooms that are rooms with bathrooms/tvs/etc.
4. Truly awful wallpaper borders and art, though the art and borders are a nice touch
5. Being told I am tiny all over. Hmmm...
6. The sedation wore off very quick, much quicker than at my usual endo/colonoscopy haunt.
7. The doctor blowing me up like a balloon and leaving me to deflate on my own. Geez, she doesn't normally do that or if she does she deflates me.
8. The doctor talking to my partner while ostensibly telling me all her thoughts
9. The doctor getting mushy with my partner.
10. The complete humorlessness of the staff in the colonoscopy room itself. Usually folks in that field tend to be quick with humor.

Colonoscopy Update

I am here. Not dead. No new holes in my colon.(well except for I suppose all sorts of scrapes and whatevers from multiple biopsies.) Surgery looms big time now though. Sigh. Don't they know I have no sick leave, need a zillion dollars in dental work, AND want to take a real vacation with my babies. :-(

Mystery bump no less mysterious and growing. Doc also wants to up the imuran.

Is Colonoscopy Prep Really That Difficult?

Editorials - Is Colonoscopy Prep Really That Difficult?: "Try it. You might like it."

Truly bizarre line in a prep article.

There's Always Room for Jell-O!

There's Always Room for Jell-O!
The title of this article made me giggle. What was I doing there? Well, ummm I HATE PREP and was hoping that searching for colonoscopy prep would spill some unknown secret to less horrid prep. Nope.

Then, I saw the title of this article, had to click. Certainly, with a great title like that, they would have a suggestion for clear liquids that I had not considered. (like I feel like eating ANYTHING with this headache, nausea and camping out in the bathroom with a bottle of gingerale and phospho soda waiting for the final "omg I hate this" drink). Nope, no dice there either, but a great title and info on the clear liquid diet if you haven't got a handle on it.

I am glad this is early in the morning though. I feel almost as death-like as I did with my first prep and wandering the hospital much later in the day feeling like this might be not such a good thing.

colonoscopy, prep, clear liquids

I don't want to do this colonoscopy

At all. The "lets do it in the hospital this time" is completely troubling. And! Didn't I just HAVE one? Bleah.

Bad Tummy Trouble Blogger

I haven't had much to say lately. The tummy troubles seem to have hit a nothing new point. Most days they are not too bad. More and more weeks go by where I don't go for a couple of days then make up for it all in one night. I really won't complain about that, since as we all know, it is easier to deal with tummy troubles at home than at work.

I am scheduled to have another colonoscopy on May 17. This time at the hospital so I imagine they are going to lasso the mystery bump at that time. I am not thrilled about it but maybe once that is done, doc will chill a bit.

tummy troubles, crohns, colitis, IBD, colonoscopy

Appointment Update

Yesterday was the CT scan update appt. No real news from the ct scan. Dr was confused as to why I hadn't already done the capsule endoscopy. Uh hello, you said to wait until you got the ct stuff back. I got to see the color pictures of the mystery bump.

Capsule endoscopy has to get approved by insurance which make take a month and the office folk said they are scheduling them a month out right now. So probably two months before that.

She in her intense gi doctor way said she was concerned the mystery bump was an encapsulated carcinoid tumor but that was rare. Sort of her way of saying she is alarmed but I shouldn't be I think. Surgery chat was interesting in a vague analytical way. As stated earlier, the world famous G.I. doc says it can be done with colonoscopy without perforation. She isn't so sure. In any case it would take both. If I do perforate or we go surgically with this in the first place, it may be able to be done laparascopically butttttt appendectomy scarring may prove to make that impossible as well. So rather than answer all the work questions like how long do you need off for this surgery, I have no answers for them. "Could be just a day for the colonoscopy. Could be a week for the laparascopy. Could be much longer for full abdominal surgery.

I forgot to ask for pain med refills. I also didn't cancel the appt scheduled for the 11th. I need to do both today.

I really regretted the pain med ommission yesterday as I had serious, serious gut wrenching (giggle, nice pun) pain all day that progressively got worse. Still owie today.

colitis, ulcerative colitis, tummy troubles, imuran, Crohn's Disease, remicade

Drank the Yummy Stuff

Barium. Here is your Barium Fun Fact:Barium, the name for the element of atomic number 56 on the Periodic Table of the Elements, comes from the Greek word "barys," meaning "heavy." Barium is a relatively heavy element because it has 56 protons in its nucleus (compared to chlorine, for example, which has only 17). The same number of electrons balance the electrical charge.

Tasted sort of like a vanilla like milk shake. Actually more like the pre-fiber and artificial sweetner days of Slim-fast. But they aren't kidding when they say heavy.

colitis
ulcerative colitis
colonoscopy
tummy troubles
Crohn's

Doctor's Appointment

Mystery thing in my colon has grown since my last colonoscopy. They want to do surgery to remove.

Biopsies of disease area are consistent with trohnd, crohts, ckohbs, glotns (my personal favorite) ok, those are reconstructed words that mean, yes, I have not Ulcerative Colitis but Crohn's colitis.

CT scan Thursday with what sounds like close to the prep from hell. Anything they start by telling you "Buy hawaiian punch or kool aid and make it as sweet as you can" can not possibly be good. And that is STEP 2 after the appetizing looking brown white stuff I have to drink 7:30 the night before.(Which brought me to wonder if that is what they use to make the "money shots" in those movies...you know the sort). They were kind enough to give me a special souvenier sippy cup for the prep though. Insulated and everything. Woo hoo. My first Crohn's souvenier.

Then another doctor appointment next Thursday. Followed by the capsule endoscopy. Followed by the surgery. Followed by remicade infusions. At least that is the preliminary plan.

Tummy Trouble Update

Tummy troubles haven't been too bad. This is a good thing. However, I have been running a fever off and on for almost a week. Mostly I feel ok. A bit like a cold or flu but nothing notable enough to make me think it is ulcerative colitis related. I do wonder if it is azathioprine/imuran related. But I feel like I need something notable other than fever to bug the doctor. I have an appointment for the colonoscopy follow up tomorrow. Maybe I will mention it then.

colitis, ulcerative colitis, tummy troubles,
imuran, azathioprine

Colonoscopy

I survived. I hurt now but hopefully not for too long. Nothing exciting found yet. A biopsy of something that might be a polyp, might be scar tissue, might be some sort of appendectomy leftover. They think they want me to do a camera study? Anyone do this where you swallow a tiny camera for 8 hours? But for now, wait for the biopsy and take my imuran.
colitis
ulcerative colitis
colonoscopy
tummy troubles
imuran
azathioprine

Step One: Colonoscopy Prep

After a lovely day of clear liquids. (which really isn't that bad except missing my caramel macchiatto and really wishing I could have a piece of bread or cheese to settle my stomach this morning) Butttttttttt I just drank the 1.5 oz of phospho soda mixed with canada dry ginger ale. I stuck them both in the freezer for a half hour to help the taste. (ha ha) Measured my dose of phospho soda carefully with a leftover med cup from some kids cold medicine. Stuck a straw in. (surely a straw helps right?)

BUTTTTTTTTT my stomach didn't feel great before...been queasy for two days. And now it is nice and bloated and GROSS feeling and it has been 10 minutes. Follow quickly with 3 glasses of cold water????????????????????? ARGH!

colitis, ulcerative colitis, colonoscopy, tummy troubles
phospho soda

Countdown to Prep

I got all pre registered tonight for the Colonoscopy Friday. Visited our not so friendly neighborhood CVS and bought the yummy phospho soda. Then to publix for the ginger ale to mix with it.

Then...off to a weird hoity toity burger and fries place for a last meal. Grilled veggie sandwich and fries both with excessive amounts of mayo. Oh wait...aioli. Why don't they just call it mayo? Then a few bites of a very melty ice cream cone. Would have been better had I not had to rush home to the bathroom. sigh. Couldn't just wait for the prep could it?

So tomorrow...clear liquids all day. Thank goodness my doctor considers coke a clear liquid. By 6 I have to consume the first 1/2 of the phospho soda. Then finish up in the early morning. Makes my work day better tomorrow since I can work right? (except I already turned in leave, hope I can un-turn it in?) But it means I definitely miss open house tomorrow at school and I never miss those things. :*-( But as I told my boy child, he really doesn't want to be the kid with the mom who needed to spend open house in the bathroom.

Anyone got a favorite colonoscopy clear liquid "food" or tips?

colitis
ulcerative colitis
colonoscopy
tummy troubles
imuran
azathioprine