I have FAP and that is what every GI doc told me.

Oh I goofed I thought we were talking about immodium so here is my history of meta mucil.  After surgery in 1991, I started taking Metamucil 2 times a day.  I could author a book "A 101 ways to enjoy your Metamucil"  that is the sequel to "My 101 favorite, cleanest bathrooms in the USA"  I love Metamucil powder mixed in ice cream yogurt, mixed with chocolate milk, sprinkled on my oat meal.  Eat or drink it fast, It starts gelling real quick with liquids!!!  Now like the immodium I only use it when I feel the diarrhea is ramping up.   Life is Good!!!!  Better than having died from a chance of 100% getting colon cancer.

After surgery in 1991, I took immodium on a regular basis:  2 in the morning and one at night.   As you age your GI system changes, and now I just take it on an as needed basis.When the diarrhea starts up , that is when I take it now.  It might be one or two immodium every other day.  Pay attention to your body as you age and be willing to adjust your dose.

Likes others have noted, using Metamucil has been a great help.  My GI told me that the Metamucil cookies/wafers act much better than the powder.  Also, he mentioned that the benefit is that it binds everything up acting as a sponge so it helps reduce the number of times I go to the bathroom.  I have had a J-pouch for about 15 years.  I am on Remicade and other meds but if I miss my daily Metamucil wafers or just take it once a day I feel an immediate impact. 

23 years post surgery and I use Metamucil (original texture) twice a day.  I travel quite a bit overseas and always bring a jug of metamucil with me.  I occasionally use a product sold at GNC called Colon Cleanse, which is a coarse psyllium fiber product.  I sometimes buy a product in Asia call C-lium because it comes in individual packets which is very convenient.  Taking a fiber supplement is the single most important thing to do for j-pouch health, at least for me.

Oh, and ps...I do not have time to wait around to drink the stuff. I "eat" it. Quick and easy. I put a teaspoon in my mouth, drink some water, repeat. About three to four teaspoons after each meal. I carry it in my purse when I'm out. Get the orange flavor, tastes like the old school Tang.

Because of Metamucil, I no longer have butt burn, leaky butt, gas, watery stool, or constant bathroom trips. I get to sleep through the night. But I must add I take a tremendous amount throughout the day. It has saved me.

If you do use Metamucil rather than just plain psyllium, I would go for the "Original Coarse" rather than the "Orange Smoothe".  It is in the white bottle.  I find it "works" a lot better to bind everything together (the orange doesn't seem to have as much bulkiness to it).  Make sure to mix it "thick" and drink it fast before it coagulates.  When I use it after meals, it makes my stools look like regular poop rather than ice cream soup.  

I agree with GoJenGo. Won't do Metamucil anymore because of sugar, flavoring and cost. I get plain psyllium husk powder at my local co-op. My problem is remembering to take it.

I do have a supply of the Metamucil cookies that are easier to use when I'm not at home.

I have had my pouch over 20 years and still have 8 to 10 or more stools a day.  Over the years I have tried different fiber or bulking products and they make me uncomfortable and bloated and if anything cause the urge to go to worsen causing more straining and unproductive toilet time.  I would rather have the runny stools.  I have learned to live with it.

I drink two rounded teaspoons in about 6 ounces of water before breakfast and again before dinner.  It helps to bulk me up and slow me down.  It has really worked for me.

I use plain psyllium husk powder.  Konsyl is the brand name, but you can also get it in bulk at some health food stores by Now brand.  It doesn't have the sugar/sweetner that Metamucil has.  It works like a charm for bulking and I can really tell when I don't take it.

Yeah, that's what happens to me if I don't take it. Metamucil makes me only take maybe 5 minutes to go to the bathroom, as opposed to an hour. I feel like it acts like a squeegee or a broom inside the pouch. It scrapes everything down so it'll come out a lot quicker and more efficiently. As far as I can tell from this site, it seems a lot of people prefer a more liquid stool, which I don't understand. I like to make it as solid as I possibly can. 

I, too, have had good results with Metamucil 2-3 times per day. They have an "original, smooth" with no added sweeteners. Tough to find but I've been ordering from Walgreens.com.

I was told by my Surgeon that I would need to take Metamucil 3 times a day for the rest of my life to help regulate my stool. My Surgeon also was going to write me a lifetime of Lomotil prescriptions.

Used to take it every day but got of it after 20+ years and haven't used it since. It worked well for the j-pouch. Sometimes consume whole or ground chia seed. After 29 years I'm fortunate to have few issues. I AM sort of antibiotic dependent for due to chronic pouchitis that rarely manifests symptoms.

I have been taking metamucil for 25 years.  Not to keep things moving but to slow them down and to buffer irritating foods and digestive juices.  For me it has to be Original texture to work.  The smooth does little to help.

When I have been off food, like in the hospital I am a mess until I can back on the metamucil.  It works like magic.

If i eat an irritant and start to get the runs, a 1/2 glass of water with 2 TBL metamucil and things slow down again.

Last year there was a world-wide shortage of psyllium and it was hard to get.  I now keep many large bottles in the closet.

22 years post, I take Metamucil wafers every morning. Hardly ever have any issues. 

I had butt burn and itch all the time before a nurse told me about wet baby wipes.  They saved my butt!  Now I used them every time and I never have problems, unless I eat something spicy ... but then I don't.  

Like Rags & Melissa, I've had my pouch for decades (since 1985, when it was still called a "Parks Pouch") and I take psyllium religiously with each meal - generally 2-3 times a day. My life is pretty unpleasant when I don't - lots of explosive-but-incomplete trips to the bathroom, cramping, butt-burn, etc. 
At one point I started getting flaky little orange triangles at the corners of my mouth where the glass met my lips, which we deduced to be a reaction to the color additives in Metamucil. It was some combination of skin staining and irritation, and led me to seek out plain psyllium husk powder (no flavorings, sweeteners, etc), which I've used ever since. It took a while to get used to the taste (pretty inert... almost flavorless) but it has served me well. 
Every now and then I've experimented with putting psyllium in capsules (time consuming to do yourself, and costly to purchase), but the effect wasn't the same. I've also tried other fiber products, like methylcellulose (Citrucel) or inulin, but they don't work for me.

Sometimes I experience a mild panic, imagining my life in the event that a war or natural disaster made it impossible for me to procure psyllium... :-)

When I am blocked I drink grape juice and my stool become liquid.  When some piece of food is stuck in my lower passage I use my anal catheter to dislodge it.  I also use wet baby wipes or wash after every BM and use a topical cream to numb the area.

If it helps go for it but I would not take the orange flavoured stuff. Too much aspartame and chemicals. Go to the health food store and buy psyllium seed in bulk and mix with orange juice. It's cheaper that way too. 

Same comment as Rags - I've had my pouch for 23 years and I take metamucil twice a day. If I didn't, not only would my stools be runny, but they would irritate my rectal issues.

My surgeon told me 16 yrs ago to drink Metamucil 3 times a day.  A few months ago I started eating the wafers instead and those work much better for me.

I take Miralax at least once a day. Oddly, I get constipated very easily. As long as I drink copious amounts of water, everything works fine. 

26 years with the J-pouch - can't go a day without my Metamucil. If I don't use it, I have watery stools. Most people think of the fiber as being used to treat constipation however, it works both ways.

When I block I use an anal catheter.  It saved me on many occasions.  Or I drink grape juice, that makes my stool completely liquid.