Hi all, I made it through my reversal January 30. The surgeon said I had minimal adhesions and the connection looks great. The pain is much less than my first surgery and I’m doing ok. There is some urgency with the bathroom but he said it will work itself out.
will post more later. Thank you all!
I'm very happy for you - Well Done You and Your Team
Take it Easy and savour the moments you have Celebation to plan!
It is so encouraging to learn of the triumphs - Your Family Friends and your support TEam will be delighted - such a relief for you All.
BW
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ waves from the Hills ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Jayne
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Great news ! Onward an upward sez this 4foot 11 incher recover booster…. Wishing you a speedy and healthy recovery 👏 jb
🎵🎶looks like you made it!! ..oh yeah 🎶🎵cause u had feared and we were there, sending u care and chasing the fear ..🎵🎶 the best and only way to shake it.. Oh yea..🎵🎶.
Wonderful news Dex..!!🥂🤸♀️🤸🤸♂️💃🕺
Barry and I sending healing vibes. xox
Fantastic news, never had any doubt. Well done Dexie! Take it easy but keep updating us on your recovery.
Thanks everyone! I know I still have a long way to go but I have had your support so that has been a huge help (and Oxy helps too) 😂. I didn’t mind the ostomy as much as the hernia, and I have to say I am relieved to have that gone…it was a lot on my 5’2 frame. Now I have to be careful not to cough, sneeze or lift for quite a while! The stoma site is open and healing from the inside out, no staples or stitches. I have 4 small incisions , so a huge difference from the large incision I had during my emergency surgery. No stomach drain or NG tube this time either 👍 I do have a slight sore throat but it could be from the breathing tube. My 14 year old fur baby won’t leave my side, I’ll have to post a pic ❤️. Will update more later.
That Oxy is the best. Wish I could use it 24/7. U be careful on it. Makes ya loopy but no pain indeed.
And don't feel anxious to reply. We aren't going anywhere. U get your rest. Always tomorrow . :)
I am so happy that all went well for you, Rest up and take good care, And yes your bowels will back to normal before you know it. Im 6 months out now and starting to exersise pretty full on. Just remember slowly slowly, All the best Bill.
Excellent news. Like you, I don't mind the stoma, HATE the hernia. Take it extra easy. Keep us posted on your progress.
Congratulations 🎊 🥳👏💐 ...It's always great to hear things went smooth with any kind of sugery!!! Good luck with your recovery!!!
Congrats! I am so glad you are doing well and that all went well with the surgery! Wising you all the best!
So wonderful to hear your reversal went as well as could be, relief for you of course DexieB.
Wishing you all the very best for your future.
Glad to hear that your reversal surgery went well. I had emergency colon surgery on 12/25/23 and woke up with a ostomy & bag. I have been told by the surgeon that I can have reversal surgery around April.
How long did you have the ostomy before the reversal surgery?
Your story gives me hope that I can have my Ostomy reversed.
I had it 8 months. So far it has been wonderful…I will post more info later, but I was terrified….it went fine and I have no regrets!
So I am having a little set back, turns out I now have a virus…..just before my surgery, my husband got sick. Of course I tried to avoid him, even slept apart for many days but almost impossible not to get it living in the same house. He had gone to Urgent Care and all the tests for Covid, flu, strep etc turned up nothing. He hasn’t had his voice for about 10 days now. I thought I had escaped it but then my throat felt funny and the fever started Friday evening…of course I panicked thinking about my last hospitalization with the 104+ fevers constantly. I didn’t know if I had a leak and was getting sepsis, or if it was a virus. My fever was 100.2 and my doc had said call if over 101- I called anyway. Since I didn’t have any other symptoms of a leak, they decided it was probably a virus.
I’m trying not to cough and sneeze but the body does what it wants and all I can do is brace my abdomen. I am going to be very sad if my hernia comes right back….as the coughing is what caused the hernia last time. Decided if I have to have another hernia repair, I’m going to stay alone in a hotel room for one week before and after surgery so I don’t get sick !
Hoping this virus passes quickly, but my husband is on day 15 with it. Then again, I am little bit tougher than him, as I was lightly cleaning and cooking yesterday while he laid around looking like he was the one who just had surgery 😂.
As far as the reversal, it is going very well- my bathroom habits are almost back to normal, no accidents. I’ve only taken 2 oxy pills since my release last Thursday, and find myself not having to take ibuprofen or acetaminophen as much as I was. I don’t have an addictive personality so wasn’t too worried about addiction with Oxy…my problem is that I suddenly think I can do whatever I want because I have no pain, then I do too much. So….my fever has been gone since Saturday at least. Just waiting for the cough to go away! I have to say that honestly my bowel prep for this surgery was worse than the actual surgery, and idk why because I’ve done 4 of them before and never got this sick- but that is a story for next time 😊
I love Barry! I was obsessed in grade school and my parents took me to his concert. What a great memory! 🎶🎵
Plenty of rest, plenty of fluids. Are you wearing a support belt? I think they really help, I wore one from the time i got home a medium support at first then as i healed a maximum support belt, They seem to work, for me anyway, definately feels safer when you cough, or sneeze. Just a thought. Bill.
I hope you and your husband get over the virus very soon. I sneeze at least 5 times a day. I have to brace my stomach. I have a very big one so always hope it doesn't cause a hernia.
Yes I have it on during the day just in case, but find it hard to sleep in and sometimes I cough at night…thank you
Oh Dexie, that’s all you don’t need while recovering from surgery! I’m amazed how quickly they let you out of hospital…….. is that standard in the US? Why was the bowel prep so hard, do you mind giving some info on that and any tips or advice? I’m still anxiously waiting for a date for my reversal. Wishing you all the best and a take it slowly x
Hello! My surgeon said all along I should be out in 2 days….i think it depends on how quickly you can eat and keep it down, pass gas, and poop, with no signs of infection in the wounds etc….for me it all happened quickly. I had my first small Pooh the day of my surgery. The next day I was eating cream of wheat for breakfast and roasted turkey and mashed potatoes for supper….so I think because I didn’t seem to be having any issues, I was good to go. Surgery was Tuesday and I was released Thursday afternoon. My last hospital stay was 21 days, so I was happy to go home sooner than later.
the bowel prep the day before….yikes. For some reason I started getting nauseous about an hour after I took the 4 laxatives which was noon. My doc had prescribed Zofran for nausea which helped a little. This prep was different from others in the way that I had to take 4 laxatives at once instead of 2 at one time and 2 at a later time, so maybe that was why. Thank goodness my wound nurse had ordered me a high output capacity bag with a drain on it, because a regular bag wouldn’t have cut it. I also had to take a bunch of antibiotics at scheduled times, huge pills which didn’t help my nausea!
i got a migraine and started throwing up at about 5 pm when I started to drink the Miralax and Gatorade….it took me 5 hours to drink what I was supposed to drink in 2 hours. I called my doctor and they just said keep trying to drink it slowly. I had taken Tylenol but it didn’t help …only ibuprofen seems to help my migraine but you can’t take that before surgery. Pretty much all night I alternated puking with draining my bag, then had to shower with special soap before bed and also in the morning. I felt soooo sick. I think my migraine was causing the puking, so maybe you won’t have that problem if you’re not prone to migraines.
At the hospital they gave me an IV for dehydration right away and I started to feel a little more alive. I was at that point ready for a giant nap and pain control…I honestly felt better after surgery than before! They used some numbing meds in my abdomen during surgery which helped immensely, I couldn’t even feel when they packed and unpacked my stoma wound the next day. They also used several different types of injections and medications to target pain. of course there is still pain, but compared to my previous surgery it was much better .
Things I recommend:
High capacity bag with drain, and tubing to connect to a bigger bag for sleeping. Anti nausea meds if your doc will prescribe. Drink water in between Gatorade drinks….i think part of my problem was I didn’t. And a barrier cream so you don’t get a sore bottom when you start pooping in the hospital!
now if only this darn virus would go away!
I hope you get a reversal date soon 😊
That’s really useful info Dexie. Yes the prep sounds pretty gross but it obviously did the job. With my original op I was also in hospital for 3 weeks so it’s super encouraging to know you were home so soon. How does it feel to be bag free…….Do you need to do multiple bathroom dashes? I hope that is not too much of a problem. Keep healing, all the best and WELL DONE! Jane 👏