I had my ileostomy performed on 10/30/11. A few days prior to my perforation, I had a lot of yellow oil in my stool. Over the past month, I have encountered this 3 times, so much so that it loosens the wafer. It's always preceded by pain above the stoma and bloating and discomfort below the stoma. Today it is relentless! I have gone through two wafers and am sitting with a paper towel over the stoma to catch the stool and oil. Since yesterday, output hasn't been as watery and is very small and narrow (mushy consistency). I have used a warm heating pad, increased water intake, and massaged my abdomen. Just now, a huge amount of black loose odorous oily stool is coming out. As insurance only pays for ten a month, I am afraid to waste yet another wafer. I saw a specialist a few days ago and told him about the oil; he said that it's very odd and to keep my eye on it. My next surgery isn't until April, and it's gonna be a doozy, about ten hours, as everything is a mess in there. Does anyone have any input on this? I am afraid to eat, afraid to go to sleep, afraid of this whole situation. Hoping someone has insight. Thanks!
Laura59
Jan 28, 2012 2:26 am
tess45
Jan 28, 2012 12:29 pm
If I were you, I would go to the ER at the nearest hospital or contact your ET nurse - that's if you can afford it. I'm from Canada, so we have socialized medicine here, and I would not have to pay out of pocket. Did you eat something that you should not have? Maybe try a hot drink like tea. I have heard that after an increase in fluids, sometimes you should lay down and roll from side to side to help move things around. There was a post I read on here the other day that talked about blockages. Perhaps you can use the search feature and try to find it. I hope that whatever the problem is, it clears up for you ASAP. Let me know how it works out for you.
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Posted by: freedancer
In both of my cases, I had no choice. It was surgery or be put 6 feet under! I thank God that He has been with me all these times. Without Him, I never would have known what to do and might not have gone to the hospital when I did. I don't know if you have had your surgery or not yet but I hope you will hang out on this website when you are done. I have learned a great deal through the people here and it is so great having others who have had the same thing done and been through what you are about to or have gone through. The only thing I have turned down is a reversal of the ileostomy. When the doctors did the emergency rebuilding of my original ileostomy this last February, I told them I did not want to go through this again. My doctor told me at that time that I was no longer a candidate for the reversal. In a way, I was very relieved. The last three years of my life have been a nightmare for me. I do not want to go through any of it again. If you wish to be rehooked up and they say you are a good choice for that, research it carefully. Every surgery I have ever had except for Old and New Maxine and the emergency surgery on my broken foot, I have spent weeks researching. I recently had my C5 C6 disk in my neck replaced with an artificial one. I went to my pre-op with 2 pages of questions for the doctor. I knew everything that they were going to do and could talk intelligently with them. I always try to research my adversaries! Don't cancel your surgery. It is nice not to have to suffer any longer with horrible pain. We all had to change a few things around when we had our surgeries but in the long run, most of us are glad we did it. I know I am. Good luck to you!
LilacFaerie
Jan 28, 2012 12:32 pm
Go to the hospital! I do not like the sound of that at all. Black oily stool is not good.
If you can collect a sample of that stool - just in case it clears up overnight - do so and take it with you. There could be blood in the stool. It could be normal due to healing, but I do not like the sound of it.
I think you need to get that looked at ASAP.
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tess45
Jan 28, 2012 12:35 pm
I really agree with Lilac - I just didn't want to sound alarmist but the black could indicate blood.
Bethbabe
Jan 31, 2012 3:02 pm
I don't know if you have visited the hospital yet or not, I do know, however, that oil in the stool is often caused by the pancreas, or rather the pancreas not working properly. If that is the problem, it is very serious and worth the money to make sure you are okay! Good luck.
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Counting My Blessings
Feb 01, 2012 12:38 am
Please write back and tell us if you went to the hospital with a sample of what you were seeing. Do not feel like you are being too much of a worrier. Medical personnel need to check you out with a vengeance, not just say, "keep an eye on it." Black tarry stool can be a sign of bleeding somewhere.
One question: Did you ever have these symptoms prior to your surgery? It's been 4-5 months. Everything should be rolling along nicely by now from your surgery. They might be thinking it's due to whatever you are going to have done next, but I wouldn't wait.
Good luck.
Counting My Blessings
Feb 01, 2012 12:39 am
Please write back and tell us if you went to the hospital with a sample of what you were seeing. Do not feel like you are being too much of a worrier. Medical personnel need to check you out with a vengeance, not just say, "keep an eye on it." Black tarry stool can be a sign of bleeding somewhere.
One question: Did you ever have these symptoms prior to your surgery? It's been 4-5 months. Everything should be rolling along nicely by now from your surgery. They might be thinking it's due to whatever you are going to have done next, but I wouldn't wait.
Good luck.
Theresa
Feb 01, 2012 9:09 pm
Hi.. I have been reading all, I hope you follow the advice and visit your hospital. Good luck. Will be watching to hear how things went............
Laura59
Feb 05, 2012 3:09 am
Hi all..... Thank you for your follow up. I saw MD, he said I had experienced a blockage. The huge black output was due to bacteria forming in stool that could not come out. He also mentioned since this did happen previously we need to look at pancreas issues. His concern is that since the case is so complicated, he does not want to add new meds, although, he now has me taking Miralax every day. No oil since then"........ And it did appear prior to my peroration. I am still feeling generally wiped out, and swelling has almost gone down. It just seems like when I start to feel more normal, something weird always happens leaving me exhausted. I'm going to persevere and get through the next surgery with a good outcome though. Thank you all again. I never thought I would have been in that situation without being able to wear an appliance, and reduced to staying awake and using paper towel to catch output. Life is funny at times, that's for sure! I am loving this forum.