Post bowel surgery pain

[MyStar86]

Hi, I am currently only on day 2 after my surgery which all went well and it was ok the first day still having pain meds in me and not needing to go to the loo due to the prep before op and not eating however now I am in agony and I’m so scared. Going to the toilet is horrific I feel like I’m going to be sick during and after having to push makes it feel like my insides are being ripped apart. I’m struggling to lay down, sitting is q nightmare standing is better but can’t do it long due to my back but the toilet side is what destroys me. I had this evil upper right side pain before and I knew the endo wasn’t there but I was hoping it was linked so the surgery would heal that but all it’s done is made it 100x worse. I can’t stop crying I am in agony and strong pain relief isn’t an option because I don’t want to make the toilet side worse. I keep going into shock every time I go to the loo!! I can’t do anything I’m so scared and upset I know it takes time to heal but this upper right pain has been ruining my life and I prayed it was the endo however feeling it so much worse is a massive worry. I knew doing the prep was destroying me but needs must for the op however now I feel so lost like I don’t want to go on with this pain 😭. I know I don’t have q choice but I am so upset just a few days left of my pill too so my hormones are raging making me even more all over the place. I don’t want to feel anymore. I just needed to write to take my mind off things and try to force myself to remember I’m not alone others go through this so I just need to be stronger however I am struggling so much and I hate seeing it upset my family with me collapsing and going into shock every time I go to the loo xx

[Jmiller623]

You need to soften your stool so it just flows out like near diarrhea. No straining at all. Start taking miralax 17 GM daily. It’ll take 2 days to get moving. You could take 2 and it’d probably get you going the day of. I also take magnesium oxide/citrate capsules at night to keep me regular. Bisacodyl works well to get bowels moving. I don’t like senna. Makes me cramp.

The pain will subside with time. You’re feeling exactly where excisions were made right now. It’ll take at least 3 months before your body completely heals inside and a year for things to be completely “normal” again. Pain was almost gone for me by 2/3 weeks. I’m coming up on week 4 and feel like I’m doing better each day.

Give yourself love, grace and more pain meds. Keep on them around the clock. I did ibuprofen 800 3x a day and Tylenol 1000 3x a day and staggered the doses to keep something in me at all times. I did not use opiates at all but if you need em, take them. Don’t suffer if you don’t have to.

Sending healing vibes and hugs. ❤️xx

[MyStar86 in reply to Jmiller623]

Thank you so much that has made me feel a lot better as I worried about forcing it to go with medication as I didn’t want to do more harm after the prep but you are so right I should be taking the pain relief otherwise I will go insane!! Plus trying to go even though it’s not constipated it’s right there every time I go to the loo but if I push it just causes massive trauma.

My head just feels all over the place in shock with it all as I thought the surgery would help my bowel pain but it’s exasperated it to the extreme. Hopefully some of them will ease once the healing takes place inside but I don’t think it’s changed the pain I’ve been suffering with for so long 😭 which is really worrying me.

I am still waiting for a hysterectomy as they said it was too dangerous to do both at once however after this surgery I’m just scared of going through more physical and mental torcher but still having my same problems. It’s very confusing but I did want the hysterectomy more than the endo surgery so I will still be having that however I just feel lost.

I will try what you said and hopefully it won’t be quite as traumatic because I wouldn’t be able to survive like this it’s breaking me mentally.

Thank you so much for your reply I really needed to hear from someone who understands. Hope your recovery is going well and thank you again xx

[Lucie44]

I had endo surgery to my bowel too and so i truly feel for you. I can rell you day 2 and 3 seemed to be the worst in terms of pain. I ate very light easy to digest food like soup and jelly. If you qre really struggling to go id definitely take laxatives as you really dont want to push right now. I had to use an enema day 4 as it just wasnt moving but dont really advise this unless you really are stuck as it can make you feel unwell. The pain meds can contribute to constipation so taking lactulose and drinking prune juice may ease it a little. I found peppermint tea to really help. Chamomile tea is very healing and antiseptic naturally which i think helped calm things too. I used teapigs loose chamomile flowers as they seem to work well. Still using them now as they seem to help my endo pain. You can get them online at holland and barrett or amazon. If you can tolerate going for a little walk around the house each day as moving about will help heal you too as this oxygenates the tissues and moves your bowel. I found building up to walking up and down street really helped my recovery. I hope your pain settles soon. Definitely use opiates these early days if needed as they will help you sleep through the pain. I really hope you start to feel better very soon.

[MyStar86 in reply to Lucie44]

Thank you so much for your help in advice as I was worried about what to do and scared of making things worse. However I started taking 1 cap full of milk of magnesia at bedtime and that certainly got everything moving and I was so thankful for it as I was starting to get really sick from all the nasty toxins backing up inside me. I guess I won’t know what I’m left with till I’ve healed more inside then I can stop the meds and push for myself etc but right now it doesn’t feel like it’s helped at all 😭.

I’m trying gabapentin and paracetamol at the moment as I do get nerve pain triggered by my hormones but need the paracetamol for the post op side. Trying to avoid opioids as they gave me loads of morphine but not keen on touching it qs it messes with my head. I don’t find ibuprofen meds help as they just make my tummy worse so I’ve given up on those.

I already have the tea pigs camomile tea and I’ve been drinking it since you said and mint tea to try and help things internally. What do you find is best for the gas?? I don’t mean the post op swelling as that went down after I started going to the toilet again. I just get lots of gas and bowel pain all the time and diet doesn’t make a difference mine is super clean no wheat gluten or dairy makes zero difference my body just doesn’t seem to like food. Obviously I can’t judge if that’s changed post op at the moment however just wondered if you found anything helps.

Just wish I had the hysterectomy at the same time as now it’s my bleed time it’s made everything 100x worse but I knew the endo had to be removed and hoping the hysterectomy will solve more or my pain than the bowel surgery!!!

Thank you again it meant a lot……how have you recovered do you feel your bowels are normal again after the surgery?xx