VSL works best at preventing pouchitis. The work that way it needs to be taken all the time. OTOH some people get pouchitis so rarely that "preventing" it is unnecessary. Since VSL is expensive, it might be reasonable to hold off (or take a modest, less expensive dose) until you find out that you are prone to pouchitis.

Branchy

I do not have pouchitis (or did not think that I did) but I usually take  about 1 month of probiotic every year (I buy them in a paraphramacy or a large grocery store with a pharmacy inside)...I find that my digestion slows down quite a bit and that I have a lot less gas afterwards.

I do not take them all year or all of the time. If I am sick for some reason and need to take antibiotics for more than a week I will go back on the probiotics afterwards for at least a month.

If you do not need it or feel bloaty and gassy or very crampy then you really do not have to take them.

Sharon