Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | It's over! (sort of) [long]

The test is over, thank goodness. The appointment was at 9:30 this morning and I didn't get out until 11:30.

The rest of my evening wasn't horrible. After 10:00 or so I started falling asleep and was out by 11:00. Woke up once to use the bathroom, but otherwise a quiet night. The morning was unpleasant as the bisocodyl tablets (read: heavy laxative) that I took the night before kicked in shortly after I woke up. Then I had to have a warm water enema before I left, leading to further discomfort.

The test itself was uncomfortable. To illustrate, the doctor came in after the tube was inserted up my behind and asked me how I was doing. I replied "As good as can be expected with a tube up my butt." After a few x-rays (and bathroom visits) they started putting in the barium and I had to roll around in various positions as they scanned me. The process also involved pumping air up my colon, so that added more discomfort.

After about 15 minutes of rolling and repositioning, they took another 10+ x-rays where I tried desperately to not have a BM on the exam table. They were prepared for it though, because they blew up an enema ring, or, as they call it "Barbie pool" (it looks like an inflatable bedpan). Then finally they sucked all the barium they could out of my colon, took a few more x-rays, then let me go to the bathroom to get it out of my body.

Bathrooming was painful because I just had a tube pulled out of my butt! There was also some bleeding which threw me off a bit. But I got cleaned up and went home where I ate SOLID FOOD!! Hooray! But now I'm still expelling the barium, which is unpleasant, but at least it's over.

Now it's just an afteroon of relaxing and drinking liquids. Whew.

Avidan

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Why'd you have to go and make me so constipated?
--'Weird' Al Yankovic, "A Complicated Song"

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