For my fellow J-Pouchers who have had thrown in the towel (pouchitis).....what was your experience with recovery & adaption. I am planning a trip to Grand Canyon and wondering if 2 months is enough recover time.
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I was back to work full time in two months.
No complications. Weak but very functional.
Richard.
I opted to get a BCIR rather than an end ileostomy when my J pouch had to be removed. Three weeks after surgery, I returned home and the following weekend I attended an all-day outdoor estate auction that involved lots of walking. My wife was kind enough to carry what we bought at the auction back to the car since I still had a lifting restriction. Although I felt some fatigue, I was fully functional during the event. At that time, I was on a schedule where I had to empty my BCIR every 2 hours, but I had no problem using the porta potty available at the auction. At two months, I was back to doing many of the activities I did before surgery and would probably have been able to do the Grand Canyon but with somewhat limited activity. If you do visit the Grand Canyon at 2 months post op, be sure to drink plenty of liquids and do not over exert yourself. I am thankful that I opted to get a BCIR since my quality of life is now very close to what it was before I had any surgery.
Thank you for the input!
Bill - if I have chronic pouchitis now.....wouldn't I expect to have chronic pouchitis with a BCIR? Can I ask why you had to have your pouch removed?
Thanks
Joe
Joe, I can’t give you an answer about chronic pouchitis with the BCIR, but either Susan Kay or Gail with the BCIR program in Florida, (800) 336-0789, could better answer your question. I never had pouchitis with my J pouch, but did have it for several months post op while my BCIR pouch was expanding to its full size. I have not had a recurrence of it in the 3.5 years since. My J pouch had to be removed due to recurrent high grade dysplasia and a malignant polyp in the rectal cuff. Please feel to contact me with a PM.
Bill
I had a problem sitting on hard surfaces for longer than 2 months but took a cushion with me everywhere I thought I'd need it. That is because of the removal of the rectal stump and not the j-pouch. I think they remove the rectal stump with the BCIR but Bill would know about that. If you can push your trip back a month I think it would give you more time to get use to everything. By everything I mean the perm ileo and rectal stump removal.