Did the aroma of your gas change after resection?

[Raleigh]

A bit off topic... Sort of... One thing I recently noticed..... I've been on antibiotics for almost two months straight... Amoxicillian... I'm finally off them... I figured my natual gut floria was dead so started eating yogourt, and took Acidophilus... Suddenly my ileostomy goo smells real funky! Not pleasent at all... I actually think this is a good thing though... My small bowel must be working better as a guess. While I was on the antibiotics, the stuff had no smell at all?! Except that antibiotic smell... Like blue cheese kinda?

[Nik Colon]

I have not had my surgery yet but do feel they are stinkier. I keep getting constipated tho and it sucks!

[John212]

A bit off topic... Sort of... One thing I recently noticed..... I've been on antibiotics for almost two months straight... Amoxicillian... I'm finally off them... I figured my natual gut floria was dead so started eating yogourt, and took Acidophilus... Suddenly my ileostomy goo smells real funky! Not pleasent at all... I actually think this is a good thing though... My small bowel must be working better as a guess. While I was on the antibiotics, the stuff had no smell at all?! Except that antibiotic smell... Like blue cheese kinda?

I asked my gastroenterologist about the effect of the colonoscopy cleanse on gut flora and he said that it would eliminate almost all the flora, but that the flora would return pretty quickly. He said that using a colonoscopy cleanse is the usual treatment when people get certain kinds of infections in their guts. He also said that antibiotics will have the same effect, so it's no surprise that you noticed a difference after a course of Amoxicillin.

[rehab1]

...I was dx the same as you, had resection, and 6 months on xeloda. Was 62 years old then. This was back in 2011. It is now 2015 and things have got somewhat better but gas is a huge issue as yet. I posted about 6 months ago re: major farting and what to do about it. There is no answer as far as I am concerned. I to have to run to a spot where no one is affected with the smell, and gotta say it is at times a real challenge as I work around people continually. As today I had to lead a get together in a public area. I just do not have lunch then...don't eat until after the get together is over. As all others, who woulda thought this would be a topic of 'interest'. Not long ago I was visiting with a senior citizen, in her room as she is confined to bed. Suddenly the urge to fart was ON !! what to do ?? where to go ?? but as others here have said it comes suddenly w/o any warning...I could not hold it together....the room was filled my 'presence' (presents)..I left quietly...BUT a nurse walked in as I was leaving...she looked at the resident, sniffed the air, and she says to the resident " ah, you go poopy eh ? " ....smiling a bit I continued my walk. Well as someone said not to long ago...I am still above the grass....well that might be true but not 'above the gas'. pete

[teri3]

Not only my gas butt my poo no longer is the same smell. I've been blaming it on the chemo but sounds like it might be a more permanent thing. And yes it's more often especially at night , sometimes wake myself up darting lol.

[fldoghouse]

I am a lurker, and you'll see by my signature that I am happy to report that I've been NED for over 5 years.
HOWEVER, the "aroma" has been a constant battle. I was on 2 rounds of antibiotics for a sinus infection earlier this year, and was stinky-fart free. I cut dairy and most bread out of my diet years ago. My onc just calls it the "new normal".
I bought the charcoal liners a few years ago, and then found that the Dr. Scholl's foot inserts made of charcoal are much cheaper and can be secured with tape. I sing in a chorus and we rehearse on risers for 3 hours straight! Talk about embarrassing! There's no where to hide and everyone knows it's me. So that's when I've had to use my homemade "liners".
For your laughing pleasure, I go to nursing homes a couple of times a week with my therapy dog. I shamelessly either blame it on the dog, or wrinkle my nose when out of eyesight of the residents, and shake my head like some poor soul had pooped their diaper

[rehab1]

yea the 'new normal'....I had to get use to that line cause I did not want to accept that with the ongoing massive gas/ ongoing neuropathy / eye issues but no choice since my last chemo was April of 2012.....WOW what a great idea on the Dr Scholl foot inserts...I am gonna try that. Does it work well for you ? I to work in nursing homes but unfortunately not with a dog. But yea residents have been known to take some blame w/o them knowing...just can't leave the area fast enough.
Just the 3 of us...me, myself and I when I do my work there. As well have to know there are washrooms close by as still on the go at least 4-7 times a day...as well told the 'new normal'.....tried everything for that but nope...as well the new normal is sleeping in another room....no longer with wife....just got to complicated with the aroma gas issue....now I feel free....well sorta. pete

[Jachut]

I knew I was all better when my poo smelled like poo again.

In hindsight, it was the biggest warning sign, and I did not miss it, not by a long shot, but I did pass it off, ignore it, convince myself it was nothing. It smelled VERY obviously metallic, like blood. My hubby would comment if he came into the bathroom after me, it wasn't disgusting so much as just not right, really weird.

Nowadays it smells just normal, which is odd since I recently found out I've got massive (like 1000 times normal) overgrowth of strep in my colon and no detectable goodies at all. And I've often commented to DH who toots fifty times a day that I. just. don't. fart. ever. I truly don't. Its maybe once or twice a week.

[CatHair]

Oh, my. A little past 4 months after ileo reversal following removal of my rectum, and while the poops are now nicely formed, the farts don't stop. I do know that legumes are no longer my friends and that Bean-o is absolutely worthless as a prophylactic remedy. Effects of psyillium on this problem are indeterminate; I take the stuff most days to add bulk to the BM's, but the farts have their own agenda. Taking extra probiotics seems to have no effect, either. Dairy or no dairy, no matter. It's the ongoing feeling of gassy "looseness" and the farts that emanate throughout the day, that are now such a big part of my daily (and nightly) life. Thankfully I work in my own office, but I have to pop into the bathroom before meetings just to try to head off any lurking gas bombs. Ugh.

[Cowgirl918]

I am laughing so hard. Most of the laughter is because it is so true! I feel like Larry the Cable Guy with his "walking farts"! I was largely obstructed so I went from no gas to "oops, I did it again". Night and afternoon are the worse. I may be banned from several stores. At least when I am with my horse we have something in common. I have also noticed that with the increased methane I have less distension and discomfort so as they say in the military, "bombs away"!

[rehab1]

know what ??? I have partially solved this issue with.....drum rolllllllll.....dark chocolate.. some days are better then others however...I don't know why
this is partially solved, however less gas it seems. I buy lindt 70% cacao dark chocolate...and take 1 1/2 squares at lunch and the same in evening.
I take less bran now (which I believe gives me the issue in part in the first place). So the big question is ....why is this ? I have no answer as I mentioned ,
however some improvement is better then no improvement. Is dark chocolate good for you.....? yes, yes it is.... Cacao grows on trees...its the fruit of the tree... fruit is good for you...its healthy...problem solved.

[JudeD59]

My mother raised me not to talk about poop or gas and we were never, ever allowed to use the word fart. Boy oh boy, times have changed.

Yes, the odor of my gas has changed significantly and not for the better. It's not just that it's a worse smell, it's a really odd bad smell. The worst time is when I'm walking and little ones slip out with every step with no warning. That's when I'm glad I have cats and a dog and I blame them immediately. Luckily, my little dog is old and does pass gas and he is always about a foot away from me when I am at home, so he is an easy scapegoat. I don't have them every day, but often enough for it to be an issue.

Even worse, the smell seems to linger and won't dissipate like a normal fart. Seriously. I can pass gas in my home office, leave, and then come back later and still smell it. I noticed that my blankets smelled so I stripped the bed and washed all of them. Two days later and I could smell it again. I don't have nighttime accidents, but I must pass gas a lot in my sleep and it's absorbed into the fabric. I have never even passed gas in front of my husband in 33 years until now. But the Lord, in his infinite wisdom, gave me a husband with a very poor sense of smell so even when one slips out as he is sitting right next to me and it's so bad that my eyes are watering, he is clueless, the lucky soul. I am an unlucky soul who has a very strong sense of smell so sometimes I have to leave the room to get away from my own gas. I bought several of those flameless candle warmers with the timers and I flip them on to the maximum time every chance I get. I'm hoping the vanilla scent will mask any other lingering odors.

It's hard when I'm out in public and even worse when I am shut in a car with people. I'm constantly nervous that I am going to have to fart so I try very hard to hold them in because some are so bad, I'm afraid they might cause the driver to veer into the oncoming traffic, either because his/her vision is compromised from the fumes or intentionally just to find sweet release from the putrid prison of the car. By the time we reach our destination, my stomach is bloated and so full of unpleasant pressure from holding them in. Then I have to find a private place where no one will come in for awhile to let it all out. Preferably a room with sound-proof walls.

I used to have an occasional discreet ladylike passage of air. A couple of months before I was diagnosed, I started having epic farts, really long and loud but not very smelly. They usually happened when I got laughing really hard, which of course just made me laugh harder and pass more gas. That should have been my first clue that something was rotten inside. But those tumor farts are child's play compared to what I'm dealing out now. I thought it was just a temporary thing that would stop as my body adjusted to the reversal. Reading this, I now know that it's not temporary and I have to find a solution. People expect older men to fart and make "pull my finger" jokes, but I don't want to be the older woman who walks around with a cloud of stench surrounding her like the dirt circling Pigpen in the Charlie Brown cartoons!

I never felt that my fart was my "signature" but I do understand what you mean. So many things have changed about me throughout this cancer journey that sometimes I do feel like I'm in a stranger's body. In fact, I wrote this last year in the midst of all my treatments-

Where did the "me" go
The one that we all know
The obvious answer
I got lost in my cancer
And the new "me" I don't even know

It's all a huge adjustment, a new normal in so many ways. I guess farts that smell like they came out of someone else are just another thing we have to adjust to with this disease. My advice--buy yourself a dog and keep him close by at all times so you can blame him.

Seriously, there are supposed to be drops you can take that make your gas smell less offensive. I'll see if i can do some research and find out anything that might help.

Judy

[Nik Colon]

Yes, the horrible farts that smell like something crawled up inside you and died farts, (or the something ate a dead something first, just aweful!) I have been having alot of gas lately since my last colonoscopy and have been more vigilant on taking meds to make sure I don't get constipation which seems to produce more gas which is beyond stinky! Ugh, luckily my hub don't care

[kellywin]

I'm laughing my ass off. I don't know how I missed this post when it was started last year. Add me to the "something crawled up inside me and died" as well as "never know when one will hit". My issue is not only the smell, but they can't be contained, they creep out when I'm walking, bending over, kneeling down, sitting at my desk, whenever. It's so embarassing when I'm talking to one of my employees or worse, my CEO. I take a shit-ton of Metamucil because otherwise I have no control over when I'll need to use the bathroom, I don't know if this causes more gas or it's just part of another thing I have to deal with. And don't get me started on the odor of my poo either. OMG. Thank god for poo-pourri. I just bought a little "to-go" spray for my purse. I wish they made that in an air freshener. I'd have that at my office. It's all the shits.

[CLD]

I did not read all of the responses but I feel like I had to add my experience with DH. In the months leading up to his dx his farts were soooooooooo bad that my then 12 tear old son walked around lighting candles and spraying air freshener all day Honest to God there were days I wondered honestly and truthfully if I could remain married to this man due to the foul stench. He even said it "smelled like something died in there." Some days I would be in tears. Honest to God. After 1st colonoscopy was done and dr was hem hawing around dx, I said "Dr. D, can I tell you my DH's other symptoms... He has GOD FEARING farts, like so bad it makes me want to move to China. I am not being a wuss, I have changed diapers for the last 12 years... I am NOT afraid of poop!" Well the dr expression didn't change and of course the dx was colon cancer or I wouldn't be here. Happy ending to this story... he is NED 15 months now and I LOVE his new odorless colon (although I hate the way he arrived at It!!!!!)