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Post takedown details

Kline84Kline84Member
Well I had my takedown yesterday morning and everything went smooth. I'll post everyday how I'm feeling and things I do so maybe new pouchers can get an idea of what to expect after takedown. I know I loved reading everyone's story and taking a little bit from each one to keep my hopes up.

Surgery- no catheter(yay!), I was asleep for about 2 hrs, I was a little sore and grouchy when I woke up but they got the pain meds working right away. For most of the day I jut relaxed and drank clear liquids. Finally around 8 pm I decided to get up and walk around the 8th floor. I was surprised at how easy it was and walked for about 30minutes with no pain. They were giving me dilaudid thru IV so that helped a lot. No bowel movements this day but that's expected.

Today(day after surgery) woke up a little sore this morning because I had not been pushing the pain killer button all night. I actually think I could go without the pain meds just fine. I'm going to quit using them and see how it goes. All in all I feel pretty good and energetic! Hungry for real food but still on the clear liquids as I have still not had a BM. It's only 9:30 AM so hopefully later today things will wake up. My dr. Warned me that things could come fast and furious at first especially with just taking liquids but he said that will get better with time. Gettin ready to order some more chicken broth and jello haha then I'm gonna get up and go for a walk. I can't believe how good I am feeling. I was prepared for the post surgery fatigue and pain but this is much better!
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C CeeeeCeeeeMember
I had no idea my body wanted to pass something through my back end! I had lived a year with the temp. ileostomy and wasn't sure what this new sensation was about. I had plenty of time to head for the bathroom. I ended up passing what looked like an oil slick! Really! It literally moved me to tears realizing everything was working as it should. Best wishes and keep walking!
Kline84Kline84Member
Hey everyone thanks for the replies!

Well so far I have been feeling awesome today. I had my first BM around 11 am and I was glad to say that I had complete control over it and no urgency at all! I even held it for a bit before I decided to go. It is 7:45 pm now and I have had 2 more BMs since the first one. I'm sure I could have held it comfortably for over an hour if I had wanted to! I am thrilled with how things are going so far. The only pain I feel is a dull ache around the incision site and I have not taken any pain meds since 10:15. I am still on a liquid diet but will get solid foods first thing in the morning! Yay I'm starving! So far I am feeling ALOT better than I expected to at this point. I have taken multiple naps and there is not even a hint of leakage or waking up with urgency. It has been about 32 hrs since surgery and I am hoping things keep going smoothly. I feel like I could get up and go home right now but the dr. Says I got to stay another day just to be sure lol. I'm so excited and for anyone that is considering a pouch.... It was well WORTH IT! I love feeling this good! I'll keep updating everyday and noting any changes or how each day improves! Take care Keith
Kline84Kline84Member
Well I got released from the hospital Thursday (yesterday) and drove myself 6hrs back home to Wyoming. I was a little worried because I only had one BM all day Thursday and I was pretty sore after the pain killers from the hospital wore off. I thought maybe I had allready gotten a blockage or something. After going to bed I had to get up once to have a BM so I was relieved I was not blocked up! Today I have had one BM after breakfast and it is now 4:00 pm and I have yet to have another. It seems I am averaging about 2 BMs a day right now. Still no urgency and things are fairly thick not liquid so no but burn. I still use Huggies wipes when I go though just to be safe. My question is am I just lucky that I am only going 2 times a day or is there something wrong? I feel pretty good just really sore at the old ostomy site. So sore that I take little steps cause it hurts to walk.
mgmt10mgmt10Member
It's actually kind of weird you are only having 2 bm's a day immediately after takedown. But if you are feeling well and eating and all is okay then you can consider yourself really fortunate! I would just mention this to your surgeon just because it is so out of the norm.

Keep an eye on your ostomy site for infection if it's that sore. I give you credit for driving home 6 hours! You're a trooper!
Kline84Kline84Member
Thank you Marianne....i have been eating but probably not as much as I should. My meal plan today was a bowl of cereal for breakfast, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch and chicken noodle soup for dinner. Tea and water to drink. Yes the ostomy site is still really sore but there is no redness around the staples and I haven't had a fever. I have been keeping an eye on it for infection but I'm not sure I would know what to look for anyway. Lol..... There is also no drainage coming from the incision, it is really dry. I have been putting eucalyptus oil (spelling?) around the stapled area and it has really been helping numb the pain. I learned about the oil from my girlfriend who sells all natural essential oils and in her book it says eucalyptus has morphine like properties. I was skeptical but tried it anyway and to my surprise it numbed the area completely!!! I guess I can't make fun of her "hippie" oils more. Haha I still haven't had much of a variety in my diet because I'm scared of blockage after experiencing one with the temp ostomy but after a few weeks I'm gonna start experimenting. I have been staying on the soft safe foods for now. Rice, bread, soup broth etc. I'm hoping the number of BMs stays low since my biggest fear before takedown was incontinence and living in the bathroom. If it stays like this I won't have any problem going back to my construction job and all of the hunting and fishing trips I like to take. Well I better go eat a snack! Take care all!
Kline84Kline84Member
Well it's day five since my takedown and I am still pretty sore but the pain seems to get better the more I get up and move around. In the morning when I wake up I am pretty sore and if I sit for a long period it seems like things stiffen up and hurt. I am still only having 2-3 BMs a day and none at night. My stools are paste like in consistency and there is no urgency when I need to go. I have been sticking to light low residue meals. The old ostomy site is tender to the touch around the area that was stapled but there has been no drainage from the incision. It's hard to explain but the pain almost feels like it is caused from the tight feeling in my gut around the ostomy site. I am happy that I am having so few bowel movements but I am also worried that it could mean a partial obstruction? What would be the signs of this? I am still passing gas and stool just not very frequently and the pain is not unbearable or has not gotten worse. Is it possible that I have just gotten lucky or is this an indication of blockage? I am not taking pain meds anymore. I guess the main thing that worries me is I have read that 10 BMs a day is the norm after takedown and I am not even close to that. If I did have an obstruction would it be obvious or would I be feeling a lot worse than I am?
Kline84Kline84Member
Ok thank you Marianne! After all the hospital visits and problems over the last year I get a little worried if things aren't textbook or considered the norm haha. I guess I start thinking this is to good to be true so there must be something wrong! Lol thank u for your input, this site has been a gold mine of knowledge.

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