Two weeks post take down. Help!

Hi Shannah,
what you are experiencing is very normal 2 weeks post takedown. Believe me it will get better but for now to help ride it out you need lots of rest, a good diet - nothing with high fibre just things that thicken the stool such as pumpkin, rice, potato, bananas etc. Use a good barrier cream such as cavilon to protect your skin and keep hydrated above all.

All the best!

Hi Shannah,
I have had my j pouch for 3 1/2 years now, I understand what you are going through, I was the same, but as georgiegirl says it will get better, I know it is hard to believe, took me a while but eventually got there. Diet is the secret, no fibre or very little, I found that drinking a glass of red wine helped me seems to slow the system down. Stick in there
Regards
Bob

Have you tried metamucil? It is the good fiber that helps form the stool but not bind you up. You can take other kinds like Citucil or Benefiber. I took gelcaps filled with metamucil as I hate drinking it mixed in fluids. I took 3 gelcaps before each meal. A dose is 5 so I took a little less than 2 doses as day. Some like to eat the metamucil wafers. Yogurt, bananas and baked chicken are good to add to the above list.

Trust us it will get better.

I think calmoseptine is the best ointment to use and if you don't have one already get a bidet sprayer or seat. I have the least expensive a sprayer attached to the water coming into the toilet. I bought a kit from a site called Diabetes and More for $50. It took my husband 10 minutes to install. I spray, think kitchen kind, clean my butt every time and use Charmin Ultra Soft to dab it dry. In the meantime sitz baths help as well. It is important to dab not wipe as there is more bile in our output now, we are going more and our butt got soft when we had our diverting ileo's.

The type of TP you use does matter. I didn't believe it in the beginning but was converted. Charmin Ultra Soft. You also need good wipes, I use baby wipes, when not at my bidet sprayer stool, and carry the purse size with when leaving the house.

Also I use to stand up, but over the stool and or move my leg around and wait for more poo to come out. Sometimes you just need to sit for a while or walk around for 5 minutes. The pouch is just learning it's job now but it does get better. I've read about some people going back to work at 6 weeks and think they all were nuts, lol. Just saying some recover faster than others, we are the same but all different.

Hi Shannah,

I'm 3 months post takedown and believe me, things will improve. The first few weeks are the worst. I had the same situation as you - I'd go to the bathroom and then a minute later I would have to go again. I suggest going in the shower after each visit and rinsing with warm water (sometimes cold water helped too). I noticed I felt worse if I skipped one rinse. Like others have said, keeping creams on is a good idea. I used Calmoseptine, Ihles Paste and Zincofax. You have to test multiple products to find the one right for you. Seeing your surgeon for a follow up is very important, because the surgeon is the best person to examine the skin to make sure you're on track. Good luck!!

Zee

The pressure and cramping when I had to go started improving 3 weeks after takedown and was much, much better by week 8. Measure your progress in weeks and months, not days. You might want to try a little fiber if you're stools are acidic (benefiber, konsyl and metamucil are popular brands). A barrier paste like calmoseptine or desitin can help protect your skin, but calmoseptine can burn a bit if your skin is raw. Good luck!

Warm soapy baths!

instant oatmeal was a god send for me...
low pressure coming out, steady, quiet and soothes the skin.

i wanted to die i was so miserable...
you will clear hurdles over chunks of time.
1 month better, then 3 months better again, then 6 months even better then about a year i plateaued.
once you find your fall back foods things will improve dramatically plus you're at the stage where the pouch is stretching out, that hurts.
my doctor told me not to let myself go for at least an hour. i would squat down to the floor cause the pain from the pouch stretching was so intense.

it is very emotional too...i cried several times. just do the best you can