Hello,
I had my rectum removedin 2012 and have a permanent colostomy on the left side. I am still getting a lot of discharge..sometimes mucos, sometimes blood mixed in. I feel like I am passing stool...I get that sensation. For the last 2 days, I have been getting a lot of pressure from down below and the color of discharge is brown...I am totally freaking out right now...left my surgeon messages....someone please help!!!
Is this normal???
Hello amitg. When you say you've had your recum removed do you mean you've now got what is amusingly called a 'Barbie-bum'? If so I wouldn't think you should be having this sort of discharge and maybe you ought to be seeing someone about it. However, if you still have what they call a rectal stump (basically a small bit of rectal tube still attachedto the anus where they have severed the colon) then it is quite normal to have a mucus discharge long after the operation. I'm still getting it years later! The blood is a different matter altogether and should be brought to the attention of someone who can investigate it further. I hope your surgeon contacts you sooner rather than later as these sorts of things are very worrying until someone comes up with a plausible explanation and then sometimes the retrospective view makes you feel embarrassed at having worried so much in the first place. But first you need to get to the point of hindsight before the relief kicks into play. Best wishes Bill
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If your surgeon or someone in his office has not returned your call by now, you need to call and schedule an appointment immediately - don't wait for further call-back. If your insurance requires a referral first (and some do) then immediately schedule an appointment with your GP, and request a referral to your surgeon. Your GP's office will then arrange the appointment with your surgeon.
Like Bill said, the mucous discharge is normal, even the feeling of passing a little stool (sometimes mucous will harden and turn brownish - I looked that up). The blood is a different matter and should be checked immediately, even if it turns out to be nothing important in the logn run. Your peace of mind demands it.
Hi amitg: If I didn't know better I'd say I wrote your comments myself, right up to the occasional drops of red blood and having the surgery in 2012. If you do see a doctor and he shows concern or has a remedy, please reply. I'd be very interested in hearing from you. In the meantime, ....isnt that discharge a pain in the neck? My daughter had fits because I choose not to have the situation reversed. My thinking was, and still is, I occasionally, unespectidly get diahera and what's easier, having it in a bagthat I can throw away and gon on about my business, or maybe being out in public and having it in your clothes. I have friends and neighbors that have had this thing for 20 years or more and they live happy normal lives, some have had it since they were children and are now married with children of their own. Keep the faith, and God Bless! there are things a whole lot worse.
Cabbage