Awareness of stool after takedown

It would help to know how old your daughter is. In any case, she should develop control soon, but she has nine years of unused sphincter muscles to recover from. Has she been doing kegels? Did anyone recommend fiber supplements, like psyllium, to bulk up the stool?

Thank you, she’s 11, she has been trying to do some exercises that they gave her prior to surgery. The Dr’s said they will give it a couple of days to see how it goes before they give her anything but I thought she would have some sensation there even if it’s not solid?

Since many here have had issues in the early days after takedown, I would say not to panic.
it does take time (lots) for things to normalize. The anal muscles have not been used in 9 years, maybe they need to wake up.  You didn’t say where they cut huge, so it’s a guess whether the trauma from surgery plays a part here.  If the pelvic floor nerves are not functioning well at the moment, then you can have leakage and not feel anything.

I assume she is the hospital and under the care of the surgeon.

This is a long term process with slow progress at times. I remember being in a panic in the beginning, but things over 6-9 months greatly improved.

We are still in the hospital and will stay until the surgeon can see she has some control, I know it’s a long process it’s just that we waited sick a long time and it’s not gone easy, this was supposed to be a quick surgery to remove the loop ileostomy and instead they found lots of adhesions so cut from the stoma across her stomach to unstick some bowel which I’m really disappointed about.
I know it will take months to properly regain control but I’m worried that she doesn’t seem to feel any kind of urgency even though I know it’s early days. I guess I’m just looking for some re assurance that this has been a good idea.

An ideally functioning J-pouch never causes urgency. A sensation of fullness is more like it. That won’t come until the pouch fills up a bit, which only happens when contents are retained instead of expelled. The anal sphincter is key to all of this. Did they do manometry before surgery to measure her sphincter tone? In any case things may well improve considerably on their own over the next few days.

Let me assure that this was a good idea.

I can’t imagine having a bag for 9 years.

13 weeks was even too much for me.

you have given your daughter her life back and she has a full long life ahead of her.

Your family and daughter have been through a lot.  The good news, young people very often do the best with JPouches, their bodies adapt better than older people.  I would try not to stress out about control so early in the game.  The first week I was liquid pooping just siting around and I did not feel much either.  Just came out.  I had an ileostomy for about a year before my takedown.  Also, she is only one night post operation!  If I read that correctly. It’s a pretty big operation.  She will get control before she leaves, but even then when she sleeps she will leak.  That will get better quickly.  9 years with an ileostomy is a super long time also. It would seem understandable that it may take long to get control, but it really will and should get better soon.  Please stay in touch with us.  Give things more time. It’s slow process.  

Thank you everyone for you kind messages and advice.
I think I’m just wondering if it’s going to get better at this point, she is 6 days post op and still in a lot of pain and still not even feeling any sensations in her bottom.
I’m also worried what these these sudden adhesions they told me about mean for the future and I’m sad that she’s been left with a huge ugly scar that she hasn’t even seen yet.

The immediate post-operative period is terrifying. Everything is a mess, pain clouds judgment, and nothing seems to work right. It’s natural to imagine that things will always be messed up - I sure did. Healing is very powerful, but time and patience are essential. Try to take one day at a time, and try to notice the small improvements instead of the remaining problems.