Gut Pain and Phantom Rectum: Seeking Advice

I had a total proctolectomy less than a month ago, so my body is indeed still healing.

However, every night when I lay down, I get stabbing pains in my gut. The pains move, and hours later I wake with either a bag full of gas or liquid output. The pains are no fun. If I massage my belly, gas is let out into my bag. Therefore, I am quite sure they're gas pains...But why? And why did I never have pains like this before I lost my colon? Also, does anyone else have this feeling in their rectum like there is a fart stuck there? Is that phantom rectum? If so, it is no fun. Thanks all for your help.

Hi

Yes, I used to have phantom fart pains in my rectum for a long time. Hopefully, you will feel better soon.

Take care

Me too! However, the more extreme pains eventually subsided. My guess was that it was the gut settling down to a new routine (and objecting to it!).

I tried all sorts of things like change of diet etc. but few things worked except time to heal and the occasional dose of Metamucil, which seemed to push everything through more effectively.  

Best wishes

Bill

So I remember having a similar experience, my surgery was only about 5 months ago, but I had weird pains at random for very brief moments at a time, and they would subside and I could rest.

However, it was more the shooting nerve pains I was getting along where they must have cut the rectum out that threw me for a loop. Similarly, though, I had an odd amount of gas post-op and I couldn't figure out why. I figured part of it was to do with after any surgery you get antibiotics and that, for the most part, will flush all the good digestive bacteria out of your system. So with time, or help from a professional, that flora builds up again to where it should be, and the gas subsides. Plus, everything heals up in time as well so the movement of everything is less uncomfortable. All that funny business normalized with me at about the 3-4 month mark.

I had a bit of the phantom fart feelings too. All sounds very similar to what I went through. Doing just dandy now, so keep on plugging away.

I had the same surgery, tomorrow makes one month. There are still random pains, mystery phantom feelings, and my muscles and nerves have started to heal and have random impulses from time to time. Night time brings some of the interesting ones.

I found that eating the low residue diet recommended by my doctor to allow my gut to heal and taking a good health food probiotic helps keep the gas down. One of the things that can mess with your output is if you're taking meds, pain killers can alter your digestion and antibiotics can kill the good bacteria in your gut.

I had similar nights and found I ate something that was having an issue moving through and would cause pain and for some reason raised my output to be mostly liquid and gas, normally would pass with time.

Talking with my doctor and a family friend in the same situation, when you have your surgery, your stoma starts out bigger and over time will reduce in size. This is because your small intestines are swelling/inflamed from being operated on. This means the opening is smaller, not normal, but as it heals the stoma will reduce in size and your intestine will heal and go back to a normal size where food can pass through easier.

The phantom fart or pressure was explained to me that your gut is still wired to your muscles in your pelvis area, so even though there is no exit down there, the nerves still give a feeling when the gut is full. I understand that it gets less with time.

I wish you the best, fellow Texan, on your healing process.

Thanks all for your answers. I have my follow-up appointment this week and meet my one-month post-op date. Aside from phantom farts, stabbing night pains, tiredness, and dreaming of my old diet (which was like 80% legumes/pulses, peppers, greens, nuts, and seeds)...I am doing well.

I had pains similar to yours after my first surgery for 7 months. There were times I hurt so bad that I stayed awake for 2 days straight! I couldn't eat hardly anything and the output was very little. Turns out my first emergency surgery for ileostomy strictured to pinhole size and all the waste was backing up into all of my intestines! I had my second surgery in February 2018. It saved my life a second time. Now I rarely have pain and feel so much better. The doctor said it was the worst stricture he had ever seen and I was filled with adhesions. So if you continue to have a lot of pain, get it checked out just to make sure you are okay. Good luck!

Take heart in that eventually you can go back to your pre-operation diet, but it will take time. As others suggested, a low-residue diet and a good probiotic (I use American Health brand - good quality and they work!) for the first few months helps your intestine heal to the point where you can SLOWLY start adding back beans, peas, grains, salads and other healthy foods for a better balanced diet. The other thing seldom mentioned is exercise. This can be difficult, as you need to exercise in such a way that you don't cause a hernia at your stoma site (don't even ask how I know; you don't want to go through that!) and, as with the diet, you need to start slowly. Exercise, in and of itself, can strengthen your immune system along with your muscles, and has been proven to help you heal faster. My exercise of choice is bicycling - no impact, no effect on my peristomal hernia, I could start slow and short distance, and work my way up. I am very proud of the fact I can now go 5 miles at 10.5-11 miles an hour - but it took nearly 5 years to get there! When I said take it slow, I meant it! As far as muscle strengthening other than legs, I do a modified 7 exercise routine daily. Modified, because many of the basic exercises are core exercises that I guarantee will give you that hernia, like push-ups. Instead I do wall-pushes, which transfers the focus from abdominal muscles to arm muscles and rebuilds upper-body strength.

Keep at it, go slowly, and never give up! Your life will get better, your body will heal. Best of luck to you!

I had phantom feelings as well for a few months after my full colon removal in November 2016. It went away and all was fine on that front until about July-August of this year when I had two separate bouts of phantom feelings like I food/gas was moving internally. Lasted about 5 minutes each time, about a week apart and that was that. I spoke to a gent I know who is an amputee and he says phantom feelings can come and go for years. He knows some guys who still have them 20 plus years on.

As for the gas problem I can do the same: Massage my abdomen, cough or exert effort via my abdomen muscles and I can fill my dam bag with gas in seconds. Full as in full like a balloon ready to pop! Very uncomfortable, when it does fill up I have to excuse myself to go release the gas. I worry about the gas causing failure and leaks or blowouts. No solution, I've tried different diets, asked docs, friends with stomas for 40 plus years, no answers. I guess it's just the changes in our bodies.

Bryan