Colonoscopy & CT scan

[Mah43]

Apologies in advance for the long post.

I have my colonoscopy this Sunday, I'm feeling very anxious & scared. Basically I’ve had diarrhoea on & off since October, some bouts have lasted a lot longer than others, my current bout is awful & I have no appetite, my appetite has been suppressed on & off for a couple of months & I feel nauseous most mornings, spend a few minutes urging but nothing comes up. I’ve lost over a stone in weight.

To make the situation a little more complicated I was diagnosed with a hyperthyroid, my antibodies come back confirming I have Graves disease. Diarrhoea, weight loss & anxiety are all symptoms of graves, suppressed appetite is not a symptom, it’s meant to be the opposite an increased appetite so this is worrying me a lots. Originally in October my doctor said the diarrhoea was probably to do with stress anxiety & the hyperthyroidism. I have had stress poo’s in my life I said this definitely does not like that. Fast forward to January I seen a different doctor, she said let’s just rule out anything else just to be on the safe side, so I did a fit test & that came back positive at 107. She referred me down the 2 week pathway on the 22nd January, we are now over the 2 weeks as there was an issue with the referral due to incorrect bloods, my colonoscopy is now booked for 8am this Sunday, I had a CT scan on Monday they said it will take a couple of weeks for the results to come back.

My mental health is currently not good, I’m totally thinking the worst even though I’m trying my hardest not to, I feel absolutely drained which probably has a lot to do with the diarrhoea & lack of nutrition. This time a year ago I was living my best life, I felt happy & healthy, now I’m the total opposite of the person I was which makes me so sad & upset. 😞

At least on Sunday I know I will get some answers from the colonoscopy. I absolutely dreading the prep.

[GCCA-Survivor Administrator]

Hi Mah43,

Thanks for posting with us. I’m sorry to hear all these things are happening with you. Having been diagnosed with Graves disease brings along a lot of side effects that can make life tough. Now you’re dealing with a positive FIT test. Please note that this can be caused by a lot of different things. And you are right that the colonoscopy should give you some good answers and you won’t have to speculate anymore. I am glad to see that your health team isn’t messing around and they’re getting you the colonoscopy right away. I also can’t understand why it takes the NHS so long to get CT scan results back to you. You mentioned in one of your other posts about a NHS app. Maybe the results will be posted there long before you can meet with a doctor and talk about them. So maybe you will know sooner than a couple of weeks🤔.

As a part of my surveillance for my cancer situation, I get a CT scan and a colonoscopy every year. Putting those two together can give a great deal of information. You should have a lot of information after your colonoscopy coupled with your CT scan results.

I know you’re going through a rough time physically with the diarrhea and lack of nutrition. One thing you should do is focus on staying hydrated. You should perhaps try a hydration supplement like Gatorade. My doctor’s always told me no matter how bad things get, focus on staying hydrated. As far as nutrition, maybe your meals could come in the form of smoothies. Trying smoothies in small quantities and even meals in small quantities more often during the day. This may help. I know when I would bombard my stomach with a lot of food, sometimes things would get worse. So eating some peanut butter crackers or breakfast bars 8 to 10 times a day seemed to help.

When I had cancer there were times that were pretty tough. But I would always focus on giving ground when I needed to but also taking that ground back when I was able. There will be times when you’re really down and nothing is going well. But then when you get a proper diagnosis and start heading down a path to being well, you can start taking that ground back and hopefully things get back to normal. Everyone has to deal with the ups and downs❤️. You'll get back to you best life and feel happy and healthy👏👍❤️😁.

I do wish you the best with getting your CT scan results early and preparing to have your colonoscopy Sunday. My main colonoscopy advice is to move the “prep” timeline up at least two hours. This way the "wave of terrible" will be over long before you have to go to sleep. You won’t have to get up in the middle of the night. And I see your procedure is at 8:00 AM. I like the early morning colonoscopy as well. It gets things over with by noon and you can have a meal. But it also means you must wake up extremely early to start the “day of prep” and have that completed long before you need to go to the procedure. This way you can focus on getting good results and the procedure itself and not worry about having to find the loo all the time. The colonoscopy is a very restful procedure and I actually look forward to my propofol nap. I'll also sleep more during the day after the procedure. My first colonoscopy was at a facility 7 miles away from me. I barely made it before I had to find a place to go. So moving things up two hours is a huge benefit.

Also, please let us know what you find out from your CT scan and your colonoscopy. We hope you get good answers and that’ll put you on a path to being well very soon. The type of information you will receive can also be beneficial to others on this site as well👍. So please keep us up to speed.

Thank you and good luck Sunday❤️,

~Tom, GCCA Survivor - Colon Cancer Connected Site Administrator.

Just a reminder - this group is here to offer support, share experiences, and offer our thoughts - but this is not medical advice, and you should always consult your medical professional(s). Additionally, for all emergencies, seek urgent medical care, never delay.

[Mah43 in reply to GCCA-Survivor]

Thank you for such a positive response. I will take your advice on moving the prep forward a little, I am worried about how I’m going to consume 2 litres in total in the required timeframe.

I have just logged in to my NHS app & the results of the CT scan are in there & have come back as normal, this is a big relief. I have attached the results.

I will update again after my colonoscopy.

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[GCCA-Survivor Administrator in reply to Mah43]

More colonoscopy prep advice ... you can add flavor to the mix to make it more "enjoyable🤔😂" ... Since you do have to drink so much of it, I usually add lime Gatorade but there are many flavors of Propel and Gatorade packets. Just don't use anything that would be red in color. Glacier Freeze, Raspberry Lemonade, Kiwi Strawberry, etc.👍These are actually clear. Also, split up the 2 liters in different flavors🤔😁 Whatever it takes.

[Mah43]

Thank you. I’m definitely going to go for sedation, the last thing I want to stress about is any discomfort or pain. Sorry to hear your colitis might be back. I really hope you manage to get clear of it again.

I have a family history on my paternal side of bowel cancer, I only found this out a few years ago by accident as I’ve never had any contact with that side of the family since birth. I think this has made my health anxiety worse.

[PinkBubblez1]

Sorry to hear that you’re going through all this. I’ve recently had a colonoscopy & a CT scan on NHS and I am awaiting results. I really struggled with the 2L of prep for the colonoscopy, it took me ages & lots of gagging to get it down. The CT prep was much easier.

Definitely have sedation for the procedure, I barely remember a thing about it.

Wishing you good luck and a good outcome

[Mah43 in reply to PinkBubblez1]

I’ve had my CT scan back & that’s all clear. I think my CT was not the same as yours (I’ve just read your post) mine was thorax & abdomen with contrast. I’m hoping to be told there & then what they find if anything at the colonoscopy. I understand things have to go off for biopsies so can take a bit of time to know what it is for definite. I’m going to request sedation. I hope when you get your results it’s good news for you.

[Xmas23]

Hi, I’m so sorry for your health issues . If it helps, I too had poo anxiety which got so bad they sent me for a CT colonoscopy . This showed up 1 large polyp in my Caecum, the most difficult place to get to in the colon. I was then booked in for a proper colonoscopy and I was extremely anxious having had one before. I prepared myself for the prep, the drink was ok to start but pineapple flavour which I hate anyway, so drank half then water etc. sat on the loo this time for an hour with my phone to keep me occupied . It wasn’t half as bad as the CT prep so felt proud of myself for getting through it . Wipes, incontinence knickers and bleach to the ready. On the day I prepared myself thinking that Due to the size of the polyp I had cancer . I read up about my gastro consultant first to make sure he had a lot of experience etc . I met him on the day and he said to be prepared for all the usual things that. An go wrong and being in a difficult place I could end up with a bowel resection. I asked to be sedated . The procedure was nowhere near as bad as my first one . They found 3 large polyps and a small one . I didn’t feel anything and the gastro was experiencing enough to remove them without damaging my colon . He was wonderful. So, worrying got me nowhere . Look up your gastro and speak to your hospital about his experience . It matters . My symptoms are so much better . Polyps can cause bleeding and what I thought was “urgency” poo. I’m so pleased I had it as polyps all pre cancers . Best of luck, be prepared and know it’s really necessary. Keep us all posted . ❤️

[Hidden]

The fit test needs explaining so your doctors seem on the path to finding out. I can only say that i did and still do have red flags for the disease, bowel cancer for several Years now and still dont have definitive reasons. However, my fears were not confirmed after endoscopic investigations. The big surprise was outside the bowels, one of which needs neurologist. Best wishes.

[ninaa24]

my niece which is very young was also diagnosed with graves. She had all your symptoms even the decreased appetite.

She is on medication for graves now and she’s is now eating more. I want to say this has to do with your Graves’ disease.

[Schnoodle2017]

thankfully you don’t have long to wait. Hang in there, Saturday’s almost here. It’s horrible the eating for rests/scans etc. I’ve been there.

Have been able to distract yourself by doing things whilst you wait? I say this as I don’t know if you’re really ill with this health condition. It’s very hard to do things and concentrate if you’re quite ill with this.

You are getting answers. You’re having something done about. You’ll what’s going soon. They start you off on a path being back to your old self. Hang in there. I hope for a good outcome. 🙏🏻