Colonscopy soon
#11430 - 06/11/03 06:12 PM
|
|
|
|
|
BL
Reged: 06/01/03
Posts: 3522
|
|
|
I am having a colonscopy done Friday and I'm a little nervous about it. Although my stomach hurts so bad, I just want to get it over with so that the doctor will know why. My husband is out of town so a friend will be taking me so that she can drive me home. I hope I'm not too groggy when I get home, because it will be Friday night and I will be at home with 2 teenagers! I'm afraid they may ask for permission to do something insane and I'll say yes and not remember later. Tomorrow I go on the liquid diet and get to drink that nasty stuff in the evening. Please give me some encouragement. I'm really dreading this especially with my husband gone and no family in town. I'm 43 years old, but this is when I wish my mom was in town!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I just had this done in February, I was dreading it too but it's not so bad. The worst part is drinking that stuff! After that it's really no big deal. I slept a lot afterwards as the sedative wore off so you might want an extra set of eyes/ears on your kids!  Good luck!
--------------------
Take care,
Michelle
...the greatest of these is LOVE. (I Cor 13)
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
When you are drinking the preparation liquid, it might help you to have some lime wedges to suck on. Katie Couric gave this tip on the Today Show. Hope this helps you. Take care.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Hi,
I, too, was dreading my colonscopy, but the fear was far worse than the procedure. The nice thing about a colonoscopy rather than a flex sig, is the anesthetic they gave me caused me to remember NONE of the procedure! I've heard from other people that they remembered it but it wasn't bad. All I remember is talking to the nurse one minute, and the next minute the doctor saying he was finished!
However, the prep wasn't fun. What a great idea about sucking on lime wedges! Wish I had known that tip. I don't know what kind of stuff you have to drink, but I had a powder that I mixed with Crystal Lite pink lemonade powder and that made it more palatable.
One hint (sorry to be somewhat indelicate) that I wish I had known was to buy some wet wipes and use those rather than toilet paper. It gets a little raw down there!
Good luck to you. I'm sure you'll do great!
Barb
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
The actual Colonscopy is very easy, they give you some kind of sedative, the only pain I had was after it was over with, because they have to put air in the colon you can get some bad gas, but that comes out when you first sit up, loudly I might add. The gas part can be embarrassing , especially with the doctor, nurse and your mother in the room  The prep is the worst, the stuff I took tasted a little like plain milk. The doctor my tell you you can eat jello or Popsicles, DON'T. That keeps you going longer, also take the emima a little early, I got to the hospital and was still going.
Good Luck and I hope everything comes out okay 
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I had this done a year ago and wasn't too bad. The worst part was the prep, but with some good drugs you won't remember a thing. I still don't remember my car ride home. I agree with Michelle - make sure someone is with through the evening to help out.
Good Luck!!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Thanks for your suggestions and support for my colonscopy. You guys are great! It's so nice to be able to talk to someone who understands. It's not exactly the type of thing you want to discuss in detail with just anyone. I am not looking forward to drinking the yucky stuff tomorrow night, but I keep telling myself that it's just one night, that I can do it! I have already told my teenage boys that they will have to stay home Friday night since I may be out of it. They are not happy about that but their social lives will just have to suffer one night. Ha! I will have to try the lime wedges and wipes (not together----you know what I mean.) Thanks for the tips.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Hi beaglelover
I have heard that you can mix the nasty stuff with Gingerale You might want to check with a Pharmacist. It's a thought, hope that you can do this because this is the worst part. When I had mine I just about threw up the stuff my tasted like pure salt. I was fine after. Hope this helps.
Georgette
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Oh don't be scared, please. You'll do fine. I guess I'm the only one here so far that had a worse procedure than the prep. I actually was anticipating it the other way around. Did I ever prepare for the prep! This will make you laugh. I set up my bathroom like a mini-condo, complete with all the old magazines I'd been planning to go though, and strung a LONG cable wire in there so I could have a little TV, not to mention the ice chest to keep the "stuff" cold, bottled water, etc. Ok, didn't really have to make my bathroom my cell after all. Started at 5 PM and by 8 it was all over. What the pharmacist told me was that when what comes out is what went in you're over. One tip: I had to drink a cup full of the "stuff" every 15 minutes (watch your time on this one as time goes fast at that route). I knew I wanted to get the liquid down fast so I drank it with a straw and put the straw back in my mouth as was comfortable then quickly and continuously sucked until it was down with only a few gulps. I hardly had to taste the overly salty stuff.
I didn't use wet wipes as suggested here, but a swip of neosporin once clean after a "go". It helped.
Now MY procedure I won't go into, since I think I was unique and it was not pleasant. Let's just say I was way to awake, saw to much and felt even more---but then it turns out I developed some sever hypersensitivity to pain issues with the onset of IBS.
Hope this helps....Kandee
--------------------
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I just had mine in January. The prep was the worst part, the procedure I don't really remember. I was knocked out, but I remember having some pains, almost like gas pains, that seemed like they would start to wake me up, then I'd just fall back asleep.
After, I was pretty out of it. My boyfried brought me home, and got me all situated, got me something light to eat. Then when I was okay, he went back to work, and I took a nap. When I woke up, and I was fine.
Good luck to you! Don't worry, you'll be just fine, because if I can do it, anyone can--I'm a big chicken when it comes to doc stuff.
Oh, and don't worry about "letting the air out" (as they put it at the doc's). They won't let you leave until you do, and you're so drugged up, you shouldn't care anyway...just let it go! The sooner you do, the sooner you can get outta there!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Kandee, I had to laugh at the thought of you sitting on the toilet with your reading material, tv, and ice chest. Sounds more like a tailgaiting (no pun intended) party than a preparation for surgery! I think I will try drinking the yucky stuff with a straw. That's a great idea! Also, I hope I don't feel as much as you did during the procedure. That must have been bad. I remember feeling something at the beginning of one of my C-sections and telling the doc, "Whoah! I don't think I'm supposed to be feeling that."
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Thanks for the suggestion. I asked the pharmacist and he said I could mix it with gingerale or Sprite so I may try that.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Maybe it's a good thing my husband is out of town and a good friend is taking me in for the procedure. My husband would probably leave me on the table if I f***ed that loud!
Glad you mentioned that I might need to take the enema a little earlier. The sheet the nures gave me says take it 30 minutes before you leave home, but I think I will do it a little sooner. I have a pretty good drive there in heavy traffic and it would be bad if I wasn't finished yet!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Thank God there are doctors and nurses that don't mind putting up with all this hot air. I can't imagine having their job, can you? I guess they get used to it and it doesn't phase them.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
That's what I forgot---the lime. Back to the grocery store I go. What a good tip! I'm starving already and I have almost 24 hours before my procedure. The Sprite and chicken broth is just not doing it for me. Guess the jello is next.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
Tailgating? LOL
#11631 - 06/13/03 03:28 PM
|
|
|
|
Kandee
Reged: 05/22/03
Posts: 3206
Loc: USA, Southern California
|
|
|
Hi Donna,
Glad I could bring a giggle to you. It got better, believe me.........with the addition of my husbands walker from when he broke his hip. What for? Well, just in case I had to take a little nap and really COULDN'T leave the commode. I could just put it in front of me and adjust the height so that I could drap my arms over and lay my head down on them. Then there was the foldable foam matt (you know, the kind you have on hand for extra kids or camping) thrown in the bath tub with a blanket and pillow of course. What for? Just in case I wanted to sleep there that night but only be within inches from the toilet. Not to anal, ey? (Yes, PUN intended). I'd heard so many horror stories I was going to be totally prepared. Heck, I could have just taken up residency in that bathroom for weeks!!!
Sometimes I wonder myself if I'm living on the right planet. I must be the epitome of pre-colonoscopy prep preparedness!
By now your colonoscopy is over, and hope all went fine....please post your experience, ok? I know there were a lot of us wishing you well through all the phases.
--------------------
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Kandee,
And my husband thought I always wanted to be prepared. I wonder what you did when the nation went on High Alert? Did you duct tape your windows and doors? I bet your pantry is lined with bottled water. Don't tell me you have a portable generator too. (I could've used you as a neighbor in December when we lost our electricity during a bad ice storm.) Forget Tom Ridge. Our nation could use you to prepare us for a terrorist attack!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
i too am due in hospital on fri 20th for tests but doctor hasnt really told me what they are - i dont where the telescope things going in or what they are dong so i am frightened! my boyf also leaves home that mornign to go away for six months so cant come with me - i have also a 3 year old to look after and im so so scared can anyone tell me what happens ??
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
Posts
