Hey All (CatHair and Cathy) - Thanks for your concerns/comments - very encouraging and very useful. Been home a little over a week now, not going quite as swimmingly as the first day or so had gone. Tons of bathroom time with very little output, lot of discomfort, burning, and what feels almost like...
Hi CatHair - So here's my update. Surgery on Thursday; home yesterday afternoon. Except for wound pain (and there is some), I feel pretty good - I'm overweight, so my wound is pretty deep (looks like I was run through with a broadsword). Had a wound vac in the hospital and expect to have one here by...
JDMNYC, I had the same deep apprehensions before my takedown. It truly has been nowhere near as awful as I had imagined. Hope all goes well and smoothly for you tomorrow. Oh, here's a helpful hint: bring prune juice with you to the hospital. It won't be on the low-residue diet menu, but you may nee...
Adding my two cents' worth here. Today marks two weeks out from reversal after three months with ileostomy following LAR . . . I've been gradually returning to my pre-Dx diet, though holding off on the really rough stuff like seeds and tougher greens. No apparent problems with that, so far. With th...
Thanks for this - very useful. I hadn't really considered the wound care aspect of things at all (I'm more concerned about the bowel function), but that is reassuring. Surgery is on Friday, so we will know soon enough, I suppose :) This is a quick summary of some of my experience with the reversal, ...
Thanks Rob - I think we have tentatively decided to go that way, although I have reserved the right to change my mind :) Surgery is scheduled for Friday, so keep your fingers crossed. Best regards. Jim While you won't be fully recovered, I think having close friends/family over for Christmas and/or ...
It took me about six weeks to recover from my LAR. I was back to work after about three weeks, but wasn't really feeling good until about Week Six, when I climbed back on my bike and never looked back. I got reversed at Week Ten. Just gauge your progress week-to-week. You'l have plenty of ups and d...
You may want to have a look at some of the hospital leaflets on stoma reversal to see if there is anything additional there that would be of help to you: Reversal of your Ileostomy or Colostomy Regaining Bowel Control Stoma Reversal Returning Home After Surgery Also, you may want to have a look at ...
No pain after my reversal. As far as bowel function, I stayed close to home...or at least close to a bathroom....for a while. Things were pretty unpredictable for me for a while. Good luck! Thanks! Good to know. Trying to decide whether I'll be in shape to have family (close family) around on Chris...
I am one of the people that does the daily enema,,,it works and is no big deal to do. About 3 - 5 minutes for the water to go in (totally painless.....can't even tell its happening,) then 10 -15 minutes on the toilet emptying out "normal". Done for 24 hours....almost NEVER go in between. ...
Hi all - Am scheduled for a reversal on 12/11 (after LAR and diverting ileostomy on 9/17 (got about 1" rectum remaining)). I'm trying to get some sense of just how good/bad I will be feeling for Christmas/New Years, both in terms of surgical/incision pain, and then (and probably more importantl...
Can't tell you how glad I was to find this thread. Just finished LAR on 9/17 (now with a temporary ileostomy), and have been dreading the reversal. I'm told I have about an inch of rectum left, and was in despair about my ability to regain control over my bowels. This is really encouraging. Thank yo...