Ostomy reversal complications: Seeking advice on persistent diarrhea

Hope someone can help. Had a colostomy last May. Went in for reversal operation Oct. 5th. OP did not go well and required two emergency operations during the 6 weeks I was hospitalized. Last op was 7 weeks ago. I suffer from daily diarrhea and actually lose control about every other day. Dr. ordered stool tests for C. diff which I have had and know this is not C. diff. What is going on?

Thanks/Don

Hi Don, I am sorry for your experience.

The muscles in your bottom have wasted away as they have not been used. It will take time to get tone and control back. Until then, try to control using anti-diarrhea tablets.
I am suffering from the opposite problem of not being able to push a poo out, and when I do go, it just feels like it is falling through rather than being pushed.
They need to get whatever inflammation is in your colon sorted out as that causes diarrhea. Did you have active IBD prior to surgery? This may be the reason for the diarrhea.
Stay strong, you will get through this. x

I am sorry to hear you are going through so much. I will keep you in my prayers and
pray for your speedy recovery. I know that it does vary depending on the person, as to how long it takes to get control back in the backside. They say the kegel exercises are best for pre-op, to get the pelvic floor muscles in condition to bring the rear back online faster. I have been doing them 24/7 in hopes that it will help. What happened to cause the other 2 emergency surgeries? Was the section that was joined leaking?

Thank you Sunny and Stan for the replies. I have had a difficult time of it but must admit although disagreeable, it is manageable..... Sunny, Stan's suggestion about Kegels may work for you. I hope your condition improves quickly. Stan, how long since your reversal? Keep the faith. We will recover! I perforated twice after initial reversal surgery and damn near bought the farm. My heart goes out to those that a reversal is not an option. I feel a tremendous sense of guilt for complaining. Thank you for the support.

Stan, checked your profile and saw you have not had reversal surgery yet. Nothing to worry about. Far less traumatic than waking up after colostomy and having a bag and all that entails. If laparoscopic surgery is done, recovery should be quick. Open surgery presented no problems either and leaves you with a surgical "6-pack"...... Cool if I were 20 again! More than happy to help you through this. I live in Scottsdale, Arizona. Small world??

Don

Yea, I am just counting the days until I get it done, just the bloodwork to do and as long as that comes back good, then I am all set, plus this being right before Christmas makes it even tougher because I have to finish paying off the last 2 surgeries before I can have the reversal, and as I have had so much done this year already, I have already met my out of pocket deductible for insurance. If I wait until after the first of the year it will be 4 times more expensive, so just hope and pray I can scrape together the money to get her paid off and get it done!! Yes, if all goes well, it will stay as a scope surgery, and I have to order the high output bags for the night before, for the Moviprep "clean you out" treatment, and not looking forward to the enema for my rectal stump, that should be a joy, but if it is going to help ensure less risk for infection and make things easier, well I am glad to do it!! Surgical 6 pack would be cool, probably the only way I could get one!!! But after dropping 20 pounds from the previous 2 surgeries, pretty close to a 4 pack now! LOL Scottsdale huh? Your area get any rain last night? 12/01?? I pray for your continued better health!!

I know what you are saying about year-end and deductibles. If I need anything, I want it done in 2011..... High output bags are not necessary for clean out. I had the same concern and did just fine with regular Hollister bags. I lost 20 lbs also and need it back! Been a rough year. Lost 1/2 of my left lung in Jan. and had the right one radiated. Cancer free at this time, thanks to God. No rain here last night........ Good luck and don't worry. All will be fine.

Don

Well, that should be cool then, because I will have plenty of bags to get me through December. It has been nice with the deductible being met as I have had to pay pretty much nothing on my bags or appliances thus far, aside from one initial co-pay. Good old Aetna! Yeah, it was tough for me to gain weight pre-op, let alone trying to post-op. The way I have to eat, it is almost impossible. But since getting home on 08/13/2011, I went from 135 to 151 pounds right now. So I am only like 5-10 pounds pre-op weight. Praise God for that news, that is awesome for you to be cancer-free right now. Yeah, up in Peoria, we got a pretty good sprinkle off and on last night. It sure made for a cold morning, especially since I drive to work at 4 am! Since the surgeries, I can't seem to keep my body temperature regulated very well. I get cold easily, and hot as well. Ah well, that is why I love AZ winters! I am just putting my faith in God, and all will be as he planned.

Not sure what God has planned but I'm certain all will be well. What do the docs say about downtime to recover? I'm still having issues after 6 weeks but I am 60 and had 3 major surgeries in Oct. The weight has been an issue for me. Down 15 lbs. I am athletic and have weighed 172 since college. I do a lot of fly fishing and tennis to keep me busy. My tribe (3 boys) are your age and have flown the coop. 5 kiddies have got to wear you and the Mrs out! Regulating body temp has been a problem for me too. The cold bothers me the most. We watch TV 365 days a year outside in our AZ room. I now turn it on in the bedroom around 9:00! Yesterday I was Googling electric blankets........

4 AM travel time? Do you work in Tucson?

Don

Yea, if only we knew what God had planned! Huh?! LOL The surgeon is saying that I should be in the hospital anywhere from 3-5 days, and as far as after that anywhere from 3-8 weeks dependent on how well everything goes, and how fast my system gets back to "normal". But from what the surgeon was also saying is that with the amount of large intestine I have left..which I guess is still quite a bit, that it should be a pretty quick recovery, compared to the last one at least, after having the peritonitis and the back to back surgeries. I have been stuffing my face as much as my stomach will allow. I have been eating power bars for a snack and Ensure's in between plus regular meals and even more snacks on top of that, as much protein I can take without it clogging me up! When I was younger around thirteen I was 245 lbs. but ever since I hit my late 20's and on, my metabolism must have changed because I can eat whatever and not gain any weight. Which has been good for me up until the surgeries. The 8-10 inch incision that I had under my belly button is all weird because of no fat there from what the surgeon said, and when they sewed me up, it made my lower belly look like a second set of butt cheeks LOL. Yea, I have two from my ex, and my wife has two from her ex, and then we have one together, 3 boys and 2 girls, they are 11, 11, 10, 9 and 17 months. So yes they really do take it out of my wife and I. Yea, cold is the bane of my existence, that is why I am glad to be born and raised in Az. Live in Colorado for 2 years, and that WAS INSANE!! Way too cold! Well I work in the credit card fraud department for B of A, and it's located on 18th st, and Buckeye, and I live on 87th ave and Bell, and I have to be there really early so it's like a 30-40 minute drive dependent on traffic, which usually I luck out on that early in the morning.
Brandon

Hi Stan,
I also have noticed the front bottom effect! Two buttons for the price of one. You have to laugh.
Good luck with it, I had lots of bowel left but I do think 3-5 days is a bit optimistic for the hospital stay. Make sure you get a good shot of morphine before they pull your drains out. That is the worst bit!
Also, constipation post-op has been a worry. Sips of lactulose during the day have helped.
You will be fine.
X

Sunny, too funny! 3-5 is overly optimistic. I was told the same thing and stayed for 32 days......

More later.

OK, back. Brandon? I thought you were Stan. I'm so confused.... Sunny, you do have a great disposition! Brandon, take ammonia mix to the hospital and have your wife wipe down anything you could possibly contact. C. Diff runs rampant in hospitals, and trust me when I say that C. Diff is the last thing you want to take home to the family. I speak from experience. You can't possibly imagine your elation after surgery. Apparently, as I learned from this thread, recovery and return to "normal" is different for all of us. Good luck, Sunny. You will be able to push and feel a good ole poop again. Give it time....

Don

Yea, sorry StomaStan is just my username, Brandon is my real name. My stoma is named Stan, I like alliteration. And thank you for that tip, you can bet I am going to have my wife do just that, and wipe everything from stem to stern. I don't even want to think of risking C-diff. I like Thunderbird Hospital and all, but I don't like them that much to take that kind of chance! Well, call it wishful thinking, but I am hoping for 3-5 days like my first resection surgery, but without the intestines leaking is what I am hoping for!! Oh yeah, I am going to push for the morphine before they pull the drains. I was told I might even be sent home with one as well. From what the surgeon said though, is that if there are no additional complications or issues, it would be around 5 days max. GOD WILLING!! But like you said, I have no expectations, and I expect to stay much longer, and if not... well, it will be a pleasant surprise.

And I thought you were Ruby?? LOL Yeah, I am hoping after they open my lengthy scar again that they will be able to sew it closed where it doesn't look like a bump on my belly! But if not, what the heck, I will wear my war wounds proudly! It stinks because when I was younger, I would never go swimming without a shirt or go without a shirt around the house, and within the last couple of years, I was finally comfortable with going without one, as I had thinned out quite a bit. Now, after the ostomy, it just seems weird going without a shirt even around the house, in fear that I am more susceptible to injuring the bag or stoma if I go without, and it is a little uncomfortable for me as well. So I will be looking forward to the reversal, GOD WILLING it goes without a hitch, and I can show my scars with pride. Just need to be careful with the sun! And Sunny, I remember all too well what it was like to have the Jackson Pratt drain pulled last time, it was excruciating. I used some colorful vocabulary in the hospital that day!!

I developed a lactose intolerance recently and when I looked it up on Wikipedia, it mentioned one of the causes to be damage to the intestines. Results - constant watery diarrhea on a daily basis. I now have to cut out milk, cheese, and other lactose products in order to have regular stools. Why don't doctors tell us about intestinal damage causing lactose intolerance? It's such an easy thing to diagnose, but having had all sorts of intestinal problems leading to my ostomy and reversal, I immediately thought I was having issues with my "innards" again.

MissDDO, you could be onto something. Thank you. I will cut out dairy for a few days and see what happens. Stool samples came back today and they are normal! I'm back to square one, complaining about diarrhea before any operations......

Brandon, no idea where Ruby came from. Probably too many rum and cokes. I was never conscious about wearing a shirt until the ostomy. The whole deal made me uncomfortable, so I kept it covered. I don't remember the drain removal as being that painful. I have a high tolerance for pain though, and after so many procedures in 2011, I just grinned and went with it! Have no fear. Get through it and look forward to getting back into your own warm bed surrounded by family.

Don

Yes, you should have heard me swear. I used the 'f' word several times as the nurse hauled that large drain out of my side. A little twiddle every day might have ensured my insides did not stick to it. I would have done it myself if I had known about the pain.
The nurse did it when it was visiting time and my mum was outside the curtain. In a way, it is worse for people listening.
Top tip for stitches removal: ask for 2 nurses. In my hospital, they use sterile tweezers but they are very clumsy. The nurse was lifting the stitches with one hand and using a blade with the other. I could see she was going to slice me and she did.
I told her to go and get help, and with one nurse holding up the stitches and the other cutting, it was a much more efficient job.
It's a matter of confidence. It is your body, and you should have a voice in your care.
On that note, I have very small veins, and unless the nurse is an expert in cannulation, they normally have 3-4 failed attempts before getting someone else. So I always ask if they are really good at it. There are some nurses that will get someone else, but some who give it a go with the predicted result.
One nurse filled my arm with half a bag of potassium solution as she did not even get in the vein. I was not happy about that. It blew up like a balloon and took 3 days to absorb.
All in all, my care was good.
3 weeks post-op now and getting a bit easier. Still relying on the lactulose for a poo and don't get any urge to go even when I must be filled to the brim!
Also getting through a massive amount of loo roll, as there is no sense of when I have finished.
Glad I got it done.
Good luck to all.
Thinking of making an art installation with the 400 poo bags left over, suspended from the ceiling. Some stuck on a board, some filled with Nutella... what do you think?

Sunny, your sunny disposition went south on your last posting. Poor StomaStan is probably hiding under his bed!

Don

Hi Don, I have been asked by several ostomates to post a frank account of my reversal. There is no point in sugar coating it. My experience is unique to me. A friend recently had her ileostomy reversed and was back to work in 3 weeks with no problems. Better to be prepared for the worst and be pleasantly surprised if it is a smooth operation.
I am still smiling despite it all and every day is a bit easier.

Hey SunnyD, you are absolutely correct in relaying your experience as it happened to you. Please accept my apologies if you were offended by my post. I agree in not "sugar coating" but believe certain negative aspects of the experience should be omitted if they cause undue concern to a party that is about to undergo similar procedures. I am so happy to hear you are doing better with each passing day. Hang in there SunnyD..........

Don