I am at a loss. In 1989, I was 19 and had emergency surgery. They removed my colon, part of my small intestine and rectum. The doctor explained that they were going to create a pouch out of my small intestine. I was 6 months pregnant at the time of the first surgery. I wore an iliostomy for a year and had a few surgeries....anyways that was 25 years ago and I never went for follow up or I am not asked about it when I go to a regular doctor. I have never heard of all these medicines and inflamed pouches and obstructions. I have always just had runny bowls and a lot of gas and went on my merry way....is there a way to have less bowls and less gas? I haven't finished reading the posts, so I might learn these things later. But I'm not sure if I am lucky for not having these problems or if I am ignorant to the fact that I have had them unknowingly.
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Lenora, most people don't have problems with their J-pouches. You're reading posts mostly from folks who do have problems. If you are uncomfortable enough that it's worth trying to change things, that's a reasonable step. A key question is whether you have any urgency to get to the bathroom quickly - that can be very difficult to live with. Someone with a well-functioning J-pouch should expect to use the toilet 4-6 times per day, with no urgency. The stool will generally be runny, and there will be some gas. Is that how your pouch is working?
I have a lot of gas and I probably go 6 times in the day and 2 at night. I'm used to that though and it has not stopped me from doing anything I want to do. I was surprised to hear about so much about the after care. But i went online and found that I had the surgery when it was pretty new. I remember a doctor flew in to do it. I was also pregnant and after the surgery i went straight to the maternity section of the hospital and the attention changed to my child surviving (he is 25 now) So i think I missed a lot of information. I am very late on this, but I think I will try some of the diet suggestions. I was interested in the Metamucil....does that work in the bulking up?
You might find any of the soluble fibers (Metamucil, Konsyl, Citrucel, Benefiber) useful for bulking up your stool. It's certainly worth a try, to see if you find it preferable. Some people get gas with one or another of these, or don't care about bulking up the stool. Why not experiment a bit?
I use Beano with gassy vegetables to keep gas down. I use Lomotil at bedtime so I don't have to get up to use the toilet (other folks prefer Imodium).
I tried the beano when I went on a week long trip and had to share a hotel room. It cut it down a bit. But I went from a nuclear bomb to perhaps a smaller bomb, so not sure it was worth it. I did get the fiber pills today. I am going to try them, thanks.
I found the fiber capsules didn't mix with stool as well as the powders, so I gave up on them.