Info please from anyone!

I am one and 1/2 weeks out from emergent colostomy for rectal tear following a hyst. Sick and infected....developed a bladder fistula as well....ok, so a colostomy, catheter, depends....and I am a nurse. My question is have you ever had a stool or output from your rectum?? I had a tiny, watery/fecal stool and am freaking that something else has gone awry....please help.

I haven't had these things happen to me as my situation is different, but I want to support you in your recovery.    You are a recent patient and some of these things can be a result of the newness of your surgery.    But of course, call your doctor if you have concerns.    In the meantime, know that we care here about what is happening to you;    I think most of us have had medical concerns following our surgeries.    Best of luck in your recovery and WE CARE!

Hi Newby. I have a colostomy due to colorectal cancer. My rectum has been removed, but I do have a small opening. After my surgery, I did have a discharge, and sometimes it was a bit bloody, but my surgeon told me that was okay. If I exert myself, I will sometimes see a teeny bit of blood mixed in with a mucousy discharge that I have at times. But that is normal too. My thoughts are, if you have a colostomy and stool is coming from the rectum, where is it coming from? Best to have it checked out as soon as you can. Best to you, Debi

I can only speak for myself but from what I understand, what I have had, which is a small amount of stool and/or mucus type discharge is normal.
Now, that being said, if you feel you have an infection or something is not right, you as a nurse, know you need to call your doctor ASAP. Don't be afraid to call them even if it turns out to not be a big deal, who cares, that's what they are paid for right??
Good luck honey and don't worry, we are here for you!! Trust me on that....there are some super awesome people here.

I had an ileostomy done some time ago (my first) and they left the rectum in place. Every month or so, I would pass a whitish gooey mass that apparently is just the lubricant to help feces pass through the rectum easily. It's a natural thing, so I would not worry too much.

Hello
Welcome to the site. I was told that that is normal and when you walk around, you will still dump a little that was left inside. Then, after a couple of months, I would be discharging the mucus or, as I was told, it was poop lube. If you still have a colon, you will do this every once in a while and you never know when it comes. I have had my Whoopy cushion for almost a year and I was glad I found this site. Many people on here are full of help and understanding, and it's a place to vent if you need to. There is an online nurse when they make it also. JUST REMEMBER, THE ONLY STUPID QUESTION IS ONE NOT ASKED.

I have a fistula too, recto-vaginal, which means without my ileostomy, I would be incontinent. However, because I have a loop ileostomy, stool occasionally bypasses the loop and I get this through my anus and vagina - possibly your fistula may be leaking further down your colon or bypassing the stoma. Could this be a possibility too? There is bowel mucous anyway to be passed, and as you are recently post-op, there may be residual stuff left in there (did you have bowel prep before the surgery?) that is normal. I suggest you get it checked out though.... Hope things go well, Rachel x

When I first had my ostomy, my rectum was still in place. I used to get a whitish discharge - sometimes an alarming amount. I was told this was normal. However, for the next couple of years, it continued.

I think this is normal... lubrication for the rectum. Mine started to be a large amount. Turns out the Crohn's was in my rectum - which was removed a couple of years later.

Unless you are feeling fever, etc. - (signs of infection), I think this discharge is considered normal.

Hang in there... and hope you recover quickly.

Hi, I am a nurse also. My rectum was removed due to cancer, but I have taken care of patients who do have stool after a colostomy. Remember that the colon, due to emergency surgery, could still have some bowel movement that moved down even though you were probably prepped before surgery. I would think this is normal, but call your doctor and ask. And remember, it will get better.
Eddie

Welcome to the group... I had a colostomy first and then ended up with an ileostomy. That was in 2003 and I still pass solids from my rectum. No one has an answer for this so I just live with it. Your surgery is so recent that I would not panic yet. The doctor said as long as I have my rectum, certain mucus will pass through. My surgeries were so botched that I can never have a reversal either. So, give yourself time to heal and things will work out for you. I wish you all the best in your recovery.

Yes... I have had the same problem as well as other discharge from the rectum. I also have fistulas which I have been fighting for 3 years. I also have a J-pouch which had a tear 3 years ago and they repaired it. Now I have a temporary ileostomy. But now they are telling me that it might be permanent. I have infection coming out of my wound area from surgery 3 years ago and at times feces also comes out of this area... I was told this is normal????

But whenever in doubt, check with your doctor..

I had my surgery last May and have two bags. Two months ago, I stood up out of my bed and all this stool rushed out of my vagina onto the floor. It freaked me out. I had to go back to the hospital where they said I have a fistula in my intestine that leaks stool out of me that way as well as into my bag. I have three exits. They took me off food for 11 weeks, and I had a TPN every night for food. Several weeks ago, after the drainage had stopped, we felt the hole had healed. I started eating moderately. The hole opened back up again two weeks ago. So, I have three exits again. And I HATE it. My doctor wants to do a CT this week of the fistula to see what is happening. I may have to have surgery to fix it, and then it might still come back. I am really just sick of the whole thing. They tell you that you might have complications but don't really tell you what they are. I hope yours is not like mine. I don't have a rectum; they took it along with my vagina...I had a plastic surgeon rebuild one for me...didn't spend all that $$$ to just let it become another rectum! HA! I had cervical cancer, had chemo and radiation in January, then a hysterectomy, then a total pelvic eviceration (sp) in May. I still have cancer cells floating around in the fluid of my pelvis. So far, that is all they do. Good luck in your healing. Jeanie

Funny, they are saying the same thing to me now after trying 8 times to repair my fistula - but how can infection and feces coming out of a wound made 3 years ago be normal?????

Why is it these fistulae are so difficult to sort out, we can send men into space and can't sew up a hole? Absolute misery........ I am there with you and Jeanne x

Hi newbie in Dakota

I had emergency surgery about 10 years ago due to a ruptured bowel.

When I had a discharge from the rectum, I was devastated as I thought something had gone wrong with the surgery.

I was reassured by my stoma nurse that this is very common, as the rectum does not know it has been cut, so it will carry on discharging mucus from the rectum.

I see my stoma nurse every month, so if anyone has any questions please let me know, as I am sure she will be able to answer them.

I hope this will put your mind at ease, and your recovery is speedy.

Good luck

Jean

To everyone who was there to support me in the last few weeks....thank you. This forum was a great source of support and helped me feel less alone. For a nurse, I was reduced to sheer panic and worry. It really shook my faith, my courage, and my strength. On the positive side, I have grown immensely from the experience and look to my reversal sometime in the next 10 days. Since my tear was small, oversewn, and should be healed, I am able to have my reversal early. Now, yes, it is a scary thought to have surgery again now that my strength is back and my ureter fistula is healed (stent placed and it was able to heal), but due to the fact that my only bowel issues prior to this were chronic constipation (nurse bowel we call it!), I am optimistic. I do know that I will be a much more empathetic and informed nurse when I finally make it back to work! I am working toward my Master's Degree and am now thinking that Wound and Ostomy Nurse Practitioner may be a direction...Again, thanks for all of your info, support, and positive words. You are all in my thoughts and prayers for peace, hope, and healing.

Suz...not so "newby" in Dakota!

That is great news, Suz.... And I really do think it would be great for the 'osty' community in your area to have someone who has been through it all - the empathy would be there immediately with practical knowledge too of what can be done to ease the burden of 'the bag' - you go for it, girl. I wish I still had the strength and brain left to do the same.... Rachel xx