Reversal Log: Experience,Problems, Q & A's

[Badass]

Ok, so at what point intervention? I haven't really pooped since yesterday morning and that was just mostly liquid. I am having lots of gas and had a few solid pebbles last night. I am very uncomfortable now and feel constipated-- lots of tension and fullness in my abdomen with a lot of gas and some urgency once in a while but no output. I want to follow my surgeon's orders strictly these first couple of weeks. I am allowed milk of magnesia or miralax for constipation but want to give my system time to go on its own. Conisdering Milk of M. if I don't go tonight or by tomorrow morning. Is this premature in terms of your own experience? This is day 4 after surgery.

Thanks,
Jane

[Coppercent]

Sorry you have having issues. Wish I could offer you some help but my surgeon recommended different follow up then yours has to you. I was advised to eat a regular diet the day of surgery and each day forward. Plus I was not allowed any medication for two weeks. I hope you find relief soon.

[Badass]

Well, relief came, almost instantaneously, in the form of strong cramps and sudden let-go of stool (oatmeal-like), very stinging to the rear. First accident on the way to bathroom.
Feels the same as when I have an intestinal bug. Waves of cramping followed by loose poop occur every few minutes.

Hope this is just early stage blues and not my "new normal" or a problem.

[CRguy]

OK so now you ARE truly one of us...

The waxing / waning.....Butt starts flaming
rush to flush.... missed ....then blush !!!!

YUP. BTDT.
New normal ?...... nope, it gets better.

Just FYI the body will "go" with diarrhea ( water loss ) only so long , then tries to compensate with "constipate",
which is just the way to preserve fluids which are lost thru diarrhea. Stay hydrated, use Immodium if Doc says OK when you are
"Band on the Runs" ..... use MILD BM movers if Doc says OK .. when you need to if plugged. ( I only used Immodium a few times and have used Lax-A-Day/Restorlax/Miralax with LOTSA water intake for 2-3 days at a time whenever the plumbing goes on slow down...TMI... I know )

Oh and just so you now know.......... NEVER trust a fart.....ever. You have been warned

Otherwise sounds about normal for where you are right now, but remember :

pain is not an option,
doctors and nurses not taking your complaints seriously ... is not an option,
losing your sense of humour...is NEVER an option.
Just so you know !

Many Cheers and best wishes
CRguy

[Badass]

Hi CRGuy,

Feel so, so fortunate to have you by my side here!
Doc did approve imodium on the one hand and milk of magnesia or miralax on the other.
Just popped an imodium- had resisted because I wanted my system to right itself but this discomfort is for the birds.

*So here's a question- was feeling constipated since yesterday and almost took a dose of milk of magnesia this evening-- wouldn't that have exacerbated the diarrhea episode when it eventually came? I am confused about this back and forth bit and how to manage it.*

Thanks-- and no worries, my sense of humor may take a recess once in a while but its all I've got sometimes to humanize this experience and lighten the load (no pun!). I was only just saying I can't wait to get over this last "turdle."

Thanks!

[justin case]

I hope you will be able to avoid jumping turdles, very soon
Warm regards,
Michael

[Badass]

Thanks, Michael - the pun fun never gets old!

Fellow reversal-mates, please weigh in. I am having hell night here. Two hours straight of non stop diarrhea. I don't mean clustering and little bits. I mean explosive and uncontrollable nonstop output. Is this unusual for the early days? Did this happen to anyone else? I think two Imodium and half a dilaudid later things are finally quieting down.

[tammylayne]

My first couple of weeks sounded very much like yours...one extreme to the other. My doc said that once I started eating more regular meals, things would balance out, and by about week 3 things were much much better. I was also instructed to take immodium, so my rule was once I had 5 bms in an hour or so, I would take 2 immodium. Now, I am one of these people that can take 8 - 10 a day (my doc said it was ok) and not get constipated. I know some people that if they take 1 they can't go for days, so it really does become a matter of getting to know what works for you and what doesn't. It is also important to remember that what is happening now, is NOT an indication of how things will be in another week. I found by week 4, things were greatly improved, and by week 8 I had settled into something that was reasonably predictable and while not perfect,,,was doable. It has continued to get better a little more each week, each month. I still have not so great days, but the good ones far out number the bad ones, and those early days....are pretty much a distant memory.

Hang in there...this too shall pass

[Badass]

Thank you, Tammy, I really needed that reassurance. I will reread your post over the next couple of weeks, I'm sure. For now, will try to relax and take things as they come.


jane

[SammyJ]

Hi Jane

A few days ahead of you and also lurching from one extreme to the other. Constipated for a couple of days then hours and hours of clustering pebbles, mostly starting in the early evening and keeping me up for most of the night! chugged down a bi of prune juice an drinking plenty of water......staying away from Imodium and psyllium as I assume they will just clog me up more. I have a light laxative I can take so will try that tomorrow. Like you have been trying to see what my body does without intervention but am afraid I have run ot of patience!

Any magical cures for death by a thousand pebbles gratefully appreciated!

Sam x

[Badass]

Thanks, Sammy. It is great to have someone else going through this at the same time. For what it is worth, your experience sounds exactly right from all I have read about this stage. I think over time things get a lot better. Let me know how the prune juice works for you but it sounds like you are able to go, it just takes a while and a lot of pellets! What frightened me was the intensity of the diarrhea I had and the total lack of control as it didn't match what I had been reading. Prior to that, my experience had seemed more usual. Let's keep each other posted!

Jane

[nicola smith]

http://www2.mdanderson.org/app/pe/index.cfm?pageName=opendoc&docid=34

Ask your oncologist if you can start taking psyllium per the MD Anderson program. It made all the difference for me.

Also try a bowl of porridge (oatmeal) or cream of wheat in the morning.

What you are going through is pretty normal.

[Badass]

What you are going through is pretty normal.

Hi NIcola,
Were you referring to Sammy or to me? We are having quite different experiences.
As for me, I am planning to do the Anderson program and have printed off instructions for management after surgery. Just not ready to add psyllium yet-- want to wait another week or so. I am doing oatmeal every morning-- although with last night's experience I stuck to toast and rice today. Innards still feel tender!

Thanks so much for all of your advice and responses to my posts- it really helps to know you are out there. I feel I have a couple of really solid "takedown mentors" coaching me here!

Jane

[tammylayne]

Jane and Sammy

What I tried to remind myself was that I hadn't used those "push" and "STOP" muscles in a long time...for me 15 months! Therefore, I had to be patient and concentrate on getting them back into shape. Kegels are a great way to do that. When you can't push, you cant evacuate everything, hence the multiple trips. Your colon also needs time to remember what to do, and how to "form" a "normal" stool. At week 2...there just hasn't been enough time for this to happen. I really did find that week 4 was a huge milestone, small improvement the next couple of weeks, with week 8 being another huge milestone.

Are you food journaling? There could be foods that trigger episodes as well. For me, cooked mushrooms were a big no no. For others, anything with sugar. Greens,,,another trigger. Try to only introduce one of these types of food at a time. And just becasue it doesn't work for you now, doesn't mean that you can't have it a couple of weeks from now.

For constipation, consider massage. I found this out the hardway. Was having a massage and 10 minutes in,,,yup. I was told that massage quite often will trigger a BM. The massage action triggers the colon to become active. So if I am sitting on the toilet struggling, I will massage my tummy and try to breath and relax all those muscles, and most times,,,it does the trick. I also do stretches when I feel like I cannot totally evacuate. I lean side to side and back to front, and this really helps me.

Another hint I got from these boards was to try and hold it when I could, as this encourages the colon to expand and hold more stool before I felt the need to go, to try and be more productive - less often.

I don't know if any of these tips will help...but I am thinking of you both!

[lauragb]

I think psyllium is recommended for both conditions. Figuring out how much and how much water to use is another learning curve. With diarrhea though, you use the smaller amount of water like the MD Anderson protocol.

With the Milk of Magnesia, I'd suggest if either of you use it, to start with a smaller dosage, I think it says 1 to 2 tablespoons. I started with just one and still had a major blowout.

Sammy, the prune juice made it easier to go but it was still in clusters, just easier to get it out. Your experience sounds similar to mine. The constant urge to go is trying....

I wish you both good luck. That first month is something.

Laura