Post - Op Reversal Week 2.5 ...."Can you say "Cindy Who Loo?"

Oh, I'm sorry.....that's Cindy Lou Who! (from the beloved "How The Grinch Stole Christmas!")


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I definitely feel like Cindy Who LOO.....spending sooooo much time in the LOO the past 2.5 weeks!

Here's the latest updates as we approach the 3-week mark since my reversal surgery!

1. And the Dr. says......

I went to my colorectal surgeon today for my first post-op appointment this afternoon. Overall, he is pleased with my progress. The wounds on my abdomen continue to heal nicely......the stoma site is now completely scabbed over and I am changing the bandage every other day. I am placing a little colloidal silver on it, with my doc's permission, to aid in the healing process. I predict that I'll be able to go without a bandage altogether in a couple of weeks. We'll see if my prediction holds true. :) When I got back to my room following surgery, I had a less than tactful nurse exclaim to me, "Your stomach looks like a road map!" the first time she checked my bandages. I was still pretty out of it from the pain meds, so I thought about saying something like, "No way! That's just a reflection of your face!" or something even more catty and impolite......but I settled for, "Well, I guess I'll be canceling my Sports Illustrated swimsuit shoot next week!" Wouldn't want to do too much traveling so soon after my surgery! She kind of chuckled and slinked away. As my mom always says, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all!" Geez!

We are trying to come up with a combination of things to help cut down on the number of bathroom trips. Right now they are still averaging 13-16 per day. Now any of you reversal candidates that may be reading this and thinking, "No freakin' way I'll ever have a reversal".....don't let this scare you away. If you have a large intestine/rectum left, you won't have nearly as many BMs as I am having.......my situation stems from my small intestine being attached to my shortened rectum. I have no large intestine, so everything comes out at about the same time it goes in......and the rest picks the middle of the night to evacuate! ;) My doc is adding Imodium to the Lomotil and Codeine regimen, plus fiber in the form of Metamucil capsules. If this doesn't slow things down enough, we have another plan that involves a stronger narcotic. Hopefully, it won't come down to the narcotic route......

2. Diet

I'm still taking it pretty slowly with adding things that were previously on the "no no" list to my diet. I've added a few strawberries and bananas to my fruit intake, and a few blueberries. Tonight I had tomato basil pasta with a small amount of chicken breast. Breakfasts are toast or a muffin or oatmeal; lunch is light with yogurt or half a sandwich or soup; dinner is seafood or pasta or chicken, wild rice, carrots, or something else on a "softer" menu. Still no red meat, to speak. I'll probably continue to follow the soft course for another month or so, and then start adding a new food or two per week to see how they digest.

3. Exercise

I've been walking on the treadmill for over a week and a half now....about 40 minutes a day. It helps keep me limber and helps my mood, too. No running......just a brisk walking pace and a moderate incline.

4. Challenges

Still having problems with the waterlogging left over from my ordeal at the hospital, but it is slowly getting better. My PCP placed me on Lasix last week, but I haven't taken them every day since they make me go so much and I am already going out the other end so much.....sometimes I think I should just set up a desk in the bathroom with my tablet and be done with it! ;)

5. Progress

I have been able to get out of the house a bit.....I went out to eat on Friday night, and then out for some shopping for a couple of hours on Saturday! I've had to take potty breaks everywhere I've been, but it's a small price to pay for some outside stimulation and freedom! I am doing pretty darn great for someone who is less than 3 weeks post-op! :):) Still, no leaks or nighttime accidents! I have stopped sleeping with a pad under me at night, mainly because I can sense when I have to go and can get up and to the bathroom in time.

Thank you, friends, for all your encouragement and support as I continue my journey towards recovery. I appreciate you all so much.

I'll update again soon. My surgeon wants to see me again in 2 weeks.



Blessings! :)

Darla

Wonderful post, Darla, and so helpful. You sound like you are an amazing lady, and I admire you. Keep up the good work. Still sending prayers your way. I take my son to see the surgeon a week from today, so hopefully, we will get a reversal date for March; the sooner, the better. Dianne

Hi Darla, wow factor your doing great, and taking strides, well done. My prayers are still with you in your journey to health. Keep us updated. tc ambies...x

Hi Darla, As Biddydi said, what a wonderful post! Very well done! As you know, I'm following in your shadow right now and so appreciate your commentary as to what to expect. I didn't really think about how important these diary-style blogs were until now. I know we'll all have different experiences, but the importance of knowing that you're not alone is so, so comforting. For this, I'll ever be grateful. Thank you, friend! And Ambies, I just reread your wonderful poem about Alfie, and it brought me to tears knowing I've lost my own little buddy. But I know I'll never be afraid like I was this time last year when I first got my own buddy! So thank you again... this poem has pride of place on my bathroom wall! :-) So keep up the good work, Colm

Awwwww....shucks, guys and gals ;) Thank you so much for those kind words. I'm trying to take those who will follow along on my journey with me; to inform and to help ease the fears of ostomies and reversals. I know that when I was doing my research on what to expect with an ileostomy and, later, what to expect with a reversal, the information I found was often sparse, scattered, and sometimes overly negative and biased. And when I did find someone who would share both the good and the bad, I had the tendency to ask so many tedious questions I'm sure I became a hemorrhoid to them, annoying them all the time! ;) As Colm said, it is comforting to know that you aren't alone, and that other people share the same ups and downs, fears and hopes that you do. Dianne, I hope your son's appointment with the surgeon proves productive next week and he gets a firm date for reversal. Ambies, you are one of my forum angels and I do so appreciate your prayers and support! You are the best! Colm, I will be looking so forward to you starting your own diary-style blog, all about your journey without your little buddy and how your reversal will affect both your physical and emotional realms from here on out. It will be great for others who will be here in the future to hear so many different perspectives on ostomies, from those living with them and without them. Working together to help one another.....that's what it's all about! Darla

My Ostomy Journey: Kimberly | Hollister

All true, Darla. I have been there three times, and I used to wonder if it was worth it! Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I actually took some pics of my abdo getting better, lol. Road map mines like a long road with a big dot on one side; the other, well, stoma back, but reminds me of eyes, lol. But one eye looks like a cherry. Well done! Have you tried Gastro Stop or codeine? Just a thought. XXX Again, great job! You will get there, Darla. XXXXXX Mooza XXX

Yes, girls, I know what you mean about road maps now! I just had the first batch of staples removed this morning by my sister-in-law, who happens to be a stoma nurse. She removed every second one and will take the rest tomorrow. But afterwards, I was looking in the mirror and got quite a shock as to how things were looking. Just over a year ago, I had what I consider a good, healthy physique, and now it looks like I've been attacked by the Texas Chainsaw Maniac!!! :-( But then I think to myself... I'm alive and well and shouldn't complain. So, here's wishing us all better days ahead!! :-) Take good care, Colm

Road maps here too! I'm mapped with scars and lumps :) Hi everyone! Hope all are doing well on their roads to recovery. I have been in the hospital for 20 days now. I had a second surgery to repair a partial blockage and remove lots of adhesions about 10 days ago. I had an NG tube for 5 days post-surgery. On day 8, I finally passed gas. On day 9, I had my first bowel movement in almost 2 years from my rectum. It was fabulous!!! No pain, no diarrhea, no urgency. I can hold it as long as I need to get to the bathroom. I've had TPN feeding for the past two weeks, and tonight is the last night. Hurray! I am eating soft foods and lots of liquids. I get up to walk about 3 or 4 times a day as well. They're saying I can go home by Tuesday. I am so happy we are all doing so well. I wish everyone the best!!!

Fable-Boy, are you a sight for sore eyes! I was starting to get reaaaaaaaaally worried about you after so many days without an update! I am so thankful to see that you are okay and are on the road to a long overdue recovery! :):):) So, the blockage is gone now... the adhesions cleaned up... you are getting used to the new plumbing; everything's working... wonderful! It's really great that you have no pain, no diarrhea, and no sense of urgency! I am still going about 16-18 times per day; no leaks or accidents, but I am still up for most of the night every night going poo in the loo! It's wearing me down... I am trying to grab sleep between times and in the mornings between about 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. It will be absolutely fantastic if you are able to go home by Tuesday... I'm sure you are climbing the walls after over 20 days in confinement! Please keep me posted... prayers and good thoughts continue! Congratulations on your awesome progress to date! You'll do just fine from here on out! :) Yaaaaaaaaaaaay! Darla

Colm - Yes, methinks we have both been cast to appear in the upcoming sequel to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This one will be called The Texas/Ireland Roadmap Revolution. Last Bag Standing! ;) Hey, we may not be on the cover of the latest Bodacious Bod magazine, but we ARE alive and well and getting better every day! So eat your hearts out, Playboys/girls! We ROCK! ;) So how did getting all the rest of those staples out today go? Smoothly, I hope. I know that's a painful process, so hopefully it went quickly and not too painfully. Nice to have family connections in nursing! Have a super duper day! :) Darla

Fable - Oh, what wonderful news! Like Darla here, I was starting to worry too about what had gone wrong. I know it took me a little longer than normal for any activity—6 days—and I was getting worried if everything was where it should be. But thank God, little by little, everything is beginning to settle. Oh, and I know what it must be like to get rid of that TPN and finally go it alone... been there and got the T-shirt, as they say! So here's hoping all continues to go well for you today and you can think of coming home once again tomorrow! Please do keep us posted and take good care of yourself, Colm

Darla - Thank heavens for having a sister-in-law like this. Yes, I had the last of my staples out yesterday afternoon, and all seems to be holding fine. I've just got a little oozing from the wound, which I'm told is normal, and I have a surgical strip covering it to stop my T-shirt from rubbing against it. The stoma site itself has healed up just fine, which is great... it just looks like someone threw a hand grenade on my new road map!! LOL So yes, I've canceled my next photo shoot with Bodacious Bod Magazine indefinitely!! LOL So, here's wishing you a great day ahead too, my dear! Take good care, Colm

Speaking of lumps and scars, I did a first aid recertification course last weekend, and on the practical part, when my partner did the secondary survey on me, she just about fell over when she saw all the lumps and scars on my tummy.

Yes, I have that roadmap also! I have a crater where my stoma was. When I went to my PCP and showed him my battlefield, I just told him it's part of my life story. My recovery is going very well. Because I have more large intestine, I only go about four times a day, and I enjoy every one of them!!!

Hi Jean! I have a small crater, too, where Old Faithful used to be! The area has scabbed over completely... funny I never had to pack the area at all; I've just been wearing a 3x5 Medipore bandage on it... changing the bandage every other day and applying a little colloidal silver on it. I am so glad your recovery is going very well! And yes, our roadmaps are a part of our life stories... and they point to everything from sufferings to superhighways of recovery and healing. Ah, I long for the day that I will only go 4-7 times per day... things will slow down for me, in time. Glad you are enjoying the go! :):) Take care. God bless! Darla

When I was healing inside out at the stoma site, I went to the surgeon for a checkup, and he put silver nitrate on the site, and then it started to scab over. I wonder if that's the same stuff... I have my final follow-up this Friday. At least I think it will be the last visit. I am hoping he says I can get into a little more exercise. I know they want us to be super careful so we don't develop a hernia....

Thank you, film, for your well wishes. In fact, my gratitude goes to all who have wished me well on this long road to recovery. I am sitting in the hospital waiting for my discharge papers. It takes forever. My diet is nonexistent today as I am just so nervous and anxious to get home. I have been here almost a month and just cannot take it anymore! I am having regular bowel movements now, although I have massive butt burn from a few days of diarrhea. I am using cream and wipes, but it still hurts!

Meant to say thank you to Colm. Not film. Sorry!

Such great news! You will feel so much better just being in your own surroundings. You will get a huge smile on your face as soon as you open the door! Relax and eat well!

Oh Fable, what wonderful news!!! I'm thrilled for you, and may that burning subside ASAP. As Beaner says here, you'll do far better at home when you can relax. So, here's wishing you quieter days ahead, and may your appetite improve day by day. So, please do keep us up to date with your progress. Take good care, Colm (aka film) LOL!

Fable - Yaaay! You will now be able to let one rip right in the privacy of your own home! ;) I am so glad that things have turned the corner for you! I do know about the butt burn all too well... mine is very bad all the time, going 16 times per day! The doc gave me a couple more new samples of bottom burn cream... one has an antifungal in it and seems to help a little bit; so I ordered some from Coloplast. Anyways, Happy Homebody Day! There's no place like home... no place like home... :) Darla

The nurses here gave me some zinc-based diaper rash ointment, and it seems to be working for me. Mind you, I was only inactive for four months, but it would not hurt to try it. On Sunday, I made fresh buns and ate some of them while hot, and I had gas really bad. I was cutting them loose until midnight last night. Funny how you miss the little things in life that used to embarrass us.

I've been ripping for six weeks now and enjoying every single one of them! It makes me chuckle like a little kid!

When I don't come around for a while, I miss all the action. Colm, I'm glad you finally had your surgery and even happier to hear you're doing so well. Darla, I didn't even know you were having it done. I'm sure having your terrific hubby has helped a lot in your recovery. Thanks for the wonderful layout of what to expect. I'm so very happy for you. Gizmo previously sent me some info along those lines which, now that I live alone, is even more important for me to have. While I don't know Beaner or Fable3, you can both count me among your cheering section. It's so nice to hear about four surgeries that have gone so well. I hope you all continue to recover so beautifully. My first two resections were done with the same bikini cut and the doctors who treated me since then couldn't even see the scar without me pointing it out. When I had my ileo, it was done after two failed resections and the surgeon left me with a maze on my abdomen. Even my beautiful little innie rebelled and grew back as a big fat ugly outie, so if I ever have a reversal, it can't look any worse. Congrats to all of you on your wonderful news. Lalu.

Hi Lalu, it's wonderful to see you back once again.......you're sorely missed. Yes, it all happened quite quickly in the end. I got a new surgeon, and after my first meeting with him, I decided to go for it. I was a little apprehensive at first, but now when I look back at it, I wonder why. As you've already read here, we all seem to have our up and down days, but all in all, we all seem to be coping quite well. Like your good self, I live alone but thought I could manage coming straight from the hospital. I'm glad I let my sister talk me into staying with her and her family for a few weeks, at least until I began to settle down. I'm just looking forward to being able to do a little more exercise and get back on my bicycle once more. So, don't worry........when you're good and ready, we'll be here to cheer you on with a prayer or two and give as much help as possible. In the meantime, don't be afraid to ask any questions. And thanks once more for the encouragement! Take good care, Colm

Laurie-Hi! So glad to see you back amongst us! :) Yes, I had my reversal on 2-1 after a few setbacks and subsequent postponements. So far, so good... the healing process is progressing nicely, and the new plumbing sure works; I am going 16 times per day! And yes, having my terrific hubby has really helped me throughout this whole experience... the ileostomy and recovery process, and now the reversal and my ongoing recovery experiences. It has been a real blessing, too, to have several of us going through the reversal process within a few weeks of one another... we've cheered each other on, learned from one another on what to expect and what our similarities and differences are in the actual reversal procedures... and how the differences affect our recovery times and methods/ways. Very interesting stuff! I know that having these great friends around me has helped me to fare much better than I could have ever hoped for, both physically and emotionally. And, as Colm said, we're all here for you, too, in any capacity that you may need us! I'm glad that Colm is staying with his sister and family right now during these early recovery days... with his added hernia repairs, I am certain that he needs some careful downtime for a few weeks to keep everything in place and on target! ;) Thanks again so much for your kind words, positive thoughts, and prayers for the lot of us! A few of us even drew smiley faces and/or wrote and signed our final bags right before surgery so that our surgical teams could get a final, good laugh as they removed them one last time before our reversals! Perhaps we can add your signed bag to our list of reversal rebels here in the near future! Sending lots of positive energy, love, and prayers your way, dear lady! Please keep in touch! :):) Darla

Quick update.....Hey everyone, Dave Canada is back and is posting some of his reversal observations for us; so if you get a sec, please stop by his corner and say hello! Fable is also out of the hospital and home now after almost a month in....YAAAY that she has finally returned home and is doing much better now. Colm is back with us, too, recovering nicely as far as I know....and Beaner (Jean) also seems to be doing very, very well with her continued recovery as is Yukon Steve! We are all so blessed to be doing well and to have one another here....don't know what I would do without each of you and the unique ways that you touch my heart and my life!! Keep on keepin' on....and welcome home, Dave! Prayers and Pos-i-tive-ity! :) Darla

I will check his blog. I am also so glad to hear all these wonderful endings, so to speak... I have what will probably be my last visit with the surgeon today, but I am also seeing a urologist, as I am having some difficulties. Hope they didn't miss anything down there... Have a wonderful day! Jean