Third surgery coming up

You should be ok but speak with your surgeon 

I’m also new with my pouch only a yr in. When you feel up to it let me know how you are doing 

Thank you at least you have a year in. I'm anxious about my new j-pouch and packing the wound. I actually cried today. It's only 8 more days. I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep through once I'm reconnected. 

Trust me you will be fine. I was also very nervous and scared but once it was done I was glad. My insurance paid for a nurse for my wound care.

I already know they won't. I have to go to the hospital. 

Andrina posted:

I'm anxious about my new j-pouch and packing the wound.

After my takedown, my Surgeon said the wound (old stoma site) mustn't be packed (he was insistent on this)  but cleansed daily and covered with a dressing; so to prevent the risk of infection and allow the wound to heal from the inside.

 A District Nurse provided my wound care once I was back at home.

I suggest you enquire with your Surgeon in regard to wound care at home, as an infection could seriously jeopardise your recovery and cause further complications, especially, as there'll be no one medically trained to monitor your recovery; I at least had the Nurse visiting and dressing my wound daily during the first week.

Although I was relatively mobile, I wouldn't have been able to cleanse and dress the wound myself; also, I much prefer someone who knows what they are doing and knows what signs and symptoms to look out for.

Your Insurance appears to be jeopardising the whole procedure and risking your life for the sake of the cost of a home visit Nurse; so much for Medical Insurance.

This mustn't be taken lightly, after all, prevention is better than cure.

I did not have a home nurse for my last surgery.  My surgeon used steri strips to close the site and pads to cover it.  I replaced the surgical pads daily and had a bandaid over it.   I just had my follow up visits with my surgeon.  Of course, if I had any issues I would call the office.  It healed well.  No problems at all.

I did not have a wound care nurse after takedown.  My surgeon instructed me to remove the dressing and shower 2x a day , not touching the wound, but letting water rinse over it, then putting on a clean band-aid.  The wound was not 'closed'  or packed to prevent infection, but it healed well.  There was one spot that kept bleeding, but the doc just cauterized it in a second with a  silver nitrate stick.   The scar is less than I expected.  

Shower two times a day? Omg haha

There are lots of perfectly reasonable ways to manage wound care, grounded in medicine, culture, and individual patient circumstances. One successful approach does nothing to negate other approaches, though obviously there are also plenty of inadequate ways to manage wound care.

I already asked about a home nurse they said no. Even the ostomy and wound care is not a wound care for previous stoma sites I asked already. Looks like I'm going to be on my own with this 

Andrina, you will do fine. I did not have home health care after my last surgery either. I took care of it on my own. It heeled nicely. It was not packed. Don't stress much about what could happen. Odds are it probably won't. Good luck with your up and coming take down. Have good thoughts, and all will be fine.

Aimee

If I don't have to pack it but just cover it up that would be nice but I know this surgeon will want me to pack it 

Andrina, remember when you first got your stoma? I remember I didn't think I'd ever be able to take care of it properly. In about a week, I was changing my bags with little help. In no time I was doing it totally alone and with confidence. Everything has a learning curve. You can do it. Look how far you've come. The only thing stopping you, is you. Good luck. I know you will be fine.

Aimee

Thank you. I think this surgery is the most emotional for me. Taking out my colon was nothing. It was a relief in fact. This time my body will never be as it used to be. I'm scared of the future now. I will never be the same again. I'm just being emotional now.

Yes, you will do fine.  To be honest, at the time I was getting ready for my final surgery, I was more concerned then with my previous two.  It’s normal.  Now, it’s just a distant memory.  I have been hiking over the last week and can last at least five hours without any issues.  Of course, I take 2 Lomotil just before and make sure I empty my pouch.  More likely is the need to pee on these hikes.  I think I remember doing the same with the shower, but only once a day.  For me, it will be three years in August and I will be 65 in October.  Good luck with your final surgery and keep us updated.

Andrina, you're going to just fine with this third surgery.  Yes, it will take a while for your pouch to feel like normal. You will go through a time of adjustment where you think you are living in the bathroom, but it will get better.  Make sure you begin eating thickening foods to help with the adjustment like potatoes, oatmeal, peanut butter, etc. (You may also want to start taking psyllium husks to add fiber and slow down the pouch.)

I didn't have wound care after any of my three surgeries.  My surgeon just stitched it up and covered with paper strip tapes that fell off on their own.  I did have a drain tube in after the second surgery that was pulled a week later. 

The unknown is scarier than the actual procedure.  Take a deep breath, you got this!

Praying this all goes well for you

I can't drink the surgery drink they give me it contains milk and I'm lactose intolerant. Will I be OK if I skip it? 

Not sure what you should do.  I don’t recall what my prep. was.  It may have been clear fluids for the final surgery.  And nothing red.  

Check that again, I'd find it most unusual for a surgical prep to contain milk, since milk is a forbidden food in every pre-surgical diet I've ever seen.   What exactly is the name of the product? 

It says it contains milk ingredients it's the ensure surgery

I don't have to be on a clear liquid diet today only liquid 

That's not pre-surgical, it's just meant to up your nutrition prior to surgery prep.  You could just make some nutritious smoothies with nut butter , protein powder etc.  However, I did look it up and it does contain milk, but not lactose.  It is in fact specifically identified as suitable for lactose intolerance.  https://abbottnutrition.com/ensure-surgery

Yes it states suitable for lactose intolerant but I get very nauseous from it. 

I'm not fond of ensure myself.   But perhaps your doctor wants to you have extra calories today, so just sip at it a little at a time.  I found it easier to drink if I added crushed ice.  

I never liked Ensure or Boost.  It was tough to get down.  If I need it occasionally, I put it through a blender with a banana.  I didn’t have a pre-surgery drink at all.  Just whatever the instructions were the day before surgery.  

Drinking it slowly seems to make it better. Tomorrow around this time I'll be in my room already and be done with all the surgeries. I appreciate all your guy's support and advice. It has been most helpful and helped me stay sane through this process. I'm happy to share my experience as well so I can help others. Thank you again. 

Good Luck tomorrow.🙏

Good luck girl you got this! I’ll be right behind you in a month 

During recovery I had to both push myself and give myself a break.  I guess that means treat yourself well without giving in to frustration.  My Doc said recovery would take a full year!  I do see progress every month, and you will too. 

Good luck Andrina. 

Hi everything went well. I'm still on pain meds. I already pooped. They showed me how to do my ostomy wound. I'm sore. I still have no feeling down there. I just go when I pee. I relax and it comes out. Different. I was able to sleep however the nurses woke me at night and they wanted me to sit up. I suddenly couldn't sit up there was a pain I never felt before. I figured I go use the restroom and release everything and it did the trick and the pain went away. I guess my pelvic muscle needs to get used to everything. 

Glad you are doing well!  It is a long process to get used to the JP but you are off to a good start.

Sounds really good Andrina. So glad everything is going well for you

Aimee

I'm going home today. 

Hooray!  To cheer you up, here is a pic of me post-surgery:

Omg hahaha thank you! 

Hi Andrina 

glad everything went well .👍🏽

Second night home and I've been able to sleep through. Last night I didn't even need the restroom. I still have zero feeling there. I feel when I have to pee and I kinda rely on that as an indicator for now when I go poop. Emptying is definitely different as I have to replax my muscles instead of strain them. I'm also experimenting with my beloved squatty potty that I got a few years back. Not sure how it works best yet. I will actually put on real underwear as I'm confident I won't have an accident  

I stopped going about three hours ago. I think something is wrong