Yet again I'm in hospital with another episode of severe dehydration and Acute Kidney Failure caused by either Gastroenteritis or a partial blockage of the loop ileostomy due to adhesions.
After a course IV fluids, whilst laying on my hospital bed I feel full of energy.
When not in hospital and without the IV fluids, I never seem to have this level of energy.
I drink Cordial/Squash; a concentrated fruit juice made with water and also, many cups of Tea throughout the day, fizzy Pop and glasses of milk.
Aafter consuming such a varied array of fluids, why do I not feel the same level of energy as I do when receiving IV fluids ?
Does anyone know of an additional condition, after colon removal and or J pouch creation, where the body does not absorbs fluids ?
If I could feel like I do now every day; this time next year, we could be millionaires (Rodney).
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This is serious stuff if you are going into kidney failure from dehydration! Obviously, you are either not absorbing your fluids well enough, or your kidneys are not conserving fluids well enough.
Do you still have a loop ileostomy? I see from your profile you had an ileostomy in 2005. The loop may be your problem if that is the case. Loops are notorious for bypassing too much small bowel. Not with everyone, but with many. It is possible that some of the fluids you drink are too concentrated with fruit sugars or salts, causing more fluid loss than gain. Sort of like drinking a week bowel purge on a regular basis. Fine if you have a colon. Not so much if you tend to be dehydrated.
If you don't still have a loop and now have an end ileostomy, it could still be short bowel syndrome (in which case you would also have difficulty maintaining weight).
Otherwise, you need to look at your endocrine functions and maybe see a renal specialist. Have they checked your aldosterone levels and pituitary hormones?
Jan
Do you still have a loop ileostomy? I see from your profile you had an ileostomy in 2005. The loop may be your problem if that is the case. Loops are notorious for bypassing too much small bowel. Not with everyone, but with many. It is possible that some of the fluids you drink are too concentrated with fruit sugars or salts, causing more fluid loss than gain. Sort of like drinking a week bowel purge on a regular basis. Fine if you have a colon. Not so much if you tend to be dehydrated.
If you don't still have a loop and now have an end ileostomy, it could still be short bowel syndrome (in which case you would also have difficulty maintaining weight).
Otherwise, you need to look at your endocrine functions and maybe see a renal specialist. Have they checked your aldosterone levels and pituitary hormones?
Jan
Thanks for the prompt reply Jan.
Yes, I still have loop ileostomy and I'm awaiting takedown.
I had the end ileostomy created as you say and I've endured the same lack of engery ever since.
I had the J pouch and loop ileostomy created this year (2014).
After 20hrs of IV fluids I feel full of energy and I'm due for another IV bag when the current bag finishes.
I've not been eating since last Weds, I only got my appetite back today
On most occassion my loop ileostomy performs as it should and is output normal but every month since, I've been admitted to hospital due to dehydration.
I had a CT Scan, which revealled minor adhesions, which could be the cause of my reoccurring issues and I'm due to discuss the scan with my surgeon.
I only dehydrate when I develop stomach spasms and within hours of such feelings, I lose my appetite and the output of the ileostomy becomes pure liquid, it's the diarrhoea output which creates the dehydration and leads to the Kidney failure.
Do they have you on *any* medications beyond IV fluids. "Energized" isn't the most common perception of good hydration.
You might try regular (daily) use of an oral rehydration solution, since those recipess seem to maximize absorption of fluid. As Jan suggests, you might be getting the concentrations wrong, at least for your fragile circumstances.
You might try regular (daily) use of an oral rehydration solution, since those recipess seem to maximize absorption of fluid. As Jan suggests, you might be getting the concentrations wrong, at least for your fragile circumstances.
why dont you drink the St Marks hydration solution? you can make it yourself and add a bit of cordial for flavour
Hi Shainy, hope all is well ?
I used to drink the St Marks hydration solution often but since j Pouch Surgey I've not been well or active enough to feel I need it.
I must admit, during excertion and when consuming at least 1 or 2 litres of the hydration solution, I often felt full of energy but I never connected that to the fluid intake.
I was advised, that if not participating in strenuous exercise to only consume a litre of the hydration solution once per week, which I normally do.
It's only after receiving IV fluids when I can compare to how I feel now and that of my normal energy levels when I notice the difference.
Shainy, I'll take your theory on board, thanks.
Scott, I've just asked my Doctor and I'm not receiving any additional medication, only the IV fluids.
I'm little confused; what is meant by "the concentration being wrong" ?
Most of the time, I don't feel fragile, it's only when the severe, near death dehydration hits do I become fragile, which I'm becoming quite accustomed to, I can recognise the symptoms but it's so difficult to pin point and when to seek medical intervention.
At present I've completed 24hrs of IV fluids and I feel good, full of energy and hopefully I'll be discharged soon.
My experienced stoma nurse said that you can't really drink too much solution. you can dehydrate yourself by drinking too much water or other drinks.
i think it just depends on the individual. i drank at least 1 litre of the solution every day after surgery for a few weeks to avoid dehydration. now im fine but if you are still suffering from dehydration i would suggest drikning litre a day. there is no harm in it.
are we talking about the same solution?
you make it yourself
you mix 1 litre of water with 20g glucose, 2.5g sodium bicarbonate and 3.5g sodium chloride
my surgeon even urged me to carry on drinking it but I can do intense exercise now without it
i think it just depends on the individual. i drank at least 1 litre of the solution every day after surgery for a few weeks to avoid dehydration. now im fine but if you are still suffering from dehydration i would suggest drikning litre a day. there is no harm in it.
are we talking about the same solution?
you make it yourself
you mix 1 litre of water with 20g glucose, 2.5g sodium bicarbonate and 3.5g sodium chloride
my surgeon even urged me to carry on drinking it but I can do intense exercise now without it
I believe the "wrong concentration" Scott was referring to is too concentrated drinks, similar to what I was saying. Flooding the system with heavily sugared drinks (like juices or sodas) pull water from the gut and dehydrate you.
When you become ill, even with a poor appetite, you still need to hydrate, and this means hydration solutions, not plain water or sugary drinks. Milk is actually pretty good, because it is a food, but it is often not tolerated when ill. When you have serious diarrhea, you need to replace your output plus a liter or so, or you dehydrate. Sipping all day is better than slamming down a big drink.
Jan
When you become ill, even with a poor appetite, you still need to hydrate, and this means hydration solutions, not plain water or sugary drinks. Milk is actually pretty good, because it is a food, but it is often not tolerated when ill. When you have serious diarrhea, you need to replace your output plus a liter or so, or you dehydrate. Sipping all day is better than slamming down a big drink.
Jan
Yes Shainy the very same solution, although I've be making it for at least 6 or 7 years, before I ever attended St Marks, I did however find the recipe via the St Marks Red Lion Group: http://www.redliongroup.org/j/index.php
I need to clarify my question a predicament.
Under normal circumstances and since I had the end ileostomy, I've always endured a lack of energy, not to the extent that I want to sit around and do nothing or sleep, just never feeling as refreshed after a good nights sleep as I would expect.
Since my late teens, I've always been fit and active, that is, when not tormented or prevented by UC.
I've only noticed since rehydrated by IV fluids that I have the energy I wish I could achieve on a daily basis and Shainy maybe your hypothesis is correct.
My current hospital admission, it's only since the j pouch and loop ileostomy that I've been experiencing these severe bouts of dehydration which leads to Hospital admission due to kidney failure.
Loop ileostomies often are prone to high output, and if this continues, you may want to push for ileostomy take-down as soon as possible. You definitely have passed the typical 2-3 month wait between steps, and your serious and repeated dehydrations should be ample for getting you closer to the front of the waiting line.
Jan
Jan
Yes Jan I was hoping to have takedown brought forward too, this all depends on the outcome of my follow up appointment with my surgeon.
The output of my loop ileostomy is quite thick, which is unusual, it's not as thick as the output of the end ileostomy but is definately much thicker than I was advised.
Even without the Loperamide the output has was remained the same.
I only experience the watery output when something inside of me occurs and I eventually dehydrate.
Jan explained very nicely what I meant by "wrong concentration".
What I meant by "fragile" is "extremely prone to severe dehydration." I'd recommend taking aggressive steps to prevent that, as others are describing here. If the cause of your lethargy all this time has been that you're running too dry, all the more reason to get (and keep) yourself better hydrated.
What I meant by "fragile" is "extremely prone to severe dehydration." I'd recommend taking aggressive steps to prevent that, as others are describing here. If the cause of your lethargy all this time has been that you're running too dry, all the more reason to get (and keep) yourself better hydrated.
Thanks for all the positive replies.
I totally understand the differences now.
I wasn't aware of the effects of fruit juices and fizzy drinks, I believed as long as I was consuming fluids, it was good.
I was aware that our system can be flooded by too much fluid which can cause equally severe problems.
I thank everyone for taking the time to thoroughly explain their replies.
It looks to me like you are consuming a lot of sugar. Cordial is basically a simple syrup with fruit flavouring. Tea is a diuretic and fizzy pop is loaded with sugar which only pulls water into the bowel contributing to dehydration. There are lots of recipes on line for oral rehydrating fluids that don't contain sugar.
It turns out that a small amount of sugar is something of a "magic ingredient" in rehydrating solutions. It dramatically increases water absorption, and saves many lives in cholera outbreaks. Cordials, not so much. Just follow the recipe.