Update on Yesterday’s Colonoscopy

[Lupiknits]

The prep was most definitely the worst part: not really the effects of it because I don’t think, after a bad bout of diarrhoea during the early hours of Sunday, there was much to get flushed out; but the prep drink tasted like the winning brew in a demon’s competition.

I found it impossible to drink the volume of prep + extra fluid in the time given, but gagged on as best I could.

Yesterday morning my friend was due to take me to a smaller hospital some miles outside Leeds. I missed an NHS call and prayed that it wasn’t to tell me the snow meant it was cancelled. Fortunately it was just to desperately ask if I could come to a much closer city centre hospital instead. It suited me fine, and helped them with staffing problems. I was treated like the golden patient when I arrived!

I decided to take the gas and air route for pain relief and it was good enough. The whole procedure was not as bad as I feared, and I quite enjoyed watching a journey through my innards. I apologised for what I thought were watermelon seeds ( I ate a whole one on Sunday - perfect for a dry mouth) but the nurse specialist explained the brown bits on my bowel lining were diverticula and a couple of the floaters were seeds.

I explained my mother had a colostomy as a result of diverticulitis so the nurse showed me small reddened parts which were beginning to develop into diverticula.

No polyps, some biopsies taken “because of weight loss” and I was given a copy of the report with a bonus four photos of my innards.

The only problem was being forced to wait longer in recovery until my blood pressure went up. I did a lot of whining about it always being low. Two large cups of water, and a small cuff brought me up to 99/58 at which they relented.

I expected to feel very hungry - I certainly had the day before when I wasn’t allowed to eat after 9am, but spent the rest of yesterday half sleeping and dry heaving after eating half an egg sandwich. In hindsight this might have been the after effects of the entonox.

That’s all folks! x

[EOLHPC]

🤩💐💐💐💐 WELL DONE LK 👍👍👍👍

Thanks for updating us...you’ve been in my mind

GREAT to end up @ a close hosp, being given 🌟 treatment, 😯 inc a pleasant, knowledgeable medic who is a good communicator! Now you & your medics know more than you did about whassup in there: a GIANT step in the right direction, more to follow 👣👣👣...

❤️🍀❤️🍀 Coco

[PMRpro]

Good - done and dusted for now! My daughter is hoping to do all the stuff to be a 'scope nurse specialist.

[Lupiknits in reply to PMRpro]

I was just thinking what a good specialty it seemed to be. I admired the nurses very much and they were all very involved.

[PMRpro in reply to Lupiknits]

The best thing is it is 9-5 (ish) and Mon-Fri!!!!

[honeybug]

Xx

[eekt]

So glad for you...hope you have the photos framed! Here's to a swift return to the semblance of an appetite ! 🤩 xxx

[Lupiknits in reply to eekt]

I’m already threatening sons that if they misbehave I’ll send them a photo of the inside of my bowels. For the moment, that’s working wonderfully 😈

[suzannah16]

sounds better than any I had done I didn't get photos either. It is fascinating to watch on the screen especially the first time I saw my appendix.

[Hidden]

So glad you made it through the endoscopy process and out the other side LK - well done you and please keep threatening the photos to keep all behaving as they should!! X

[maggielee]

Hopefully by now you can reintroduce some lovely food back into your day...maybe go easy with a light soup to start with 🍜.... Love the threats to family should keep them very agreeable 😉.....ml

[SLEepyhead123]

Well done for coping so well. No gas and air offered with mine. I must admit it might have helped with the puffs of gas! Glad that's over band yes the prep is the worst bit. ,❤❤❤

[panda2]

Hip hip! Sounded almost pleasant for you... : )

P x

[Krazykat26]

I'm so glad that all went well Lupiknits..u were definitely on my mind all day!! Rest up n take good care of yourself 🤗💐xx

[Lupiknits in reply to Krazykat26]

Thank you 😊 I need more rest than I anticipated x

[DRunnerchick]

Glad it went well for you Lupiknits! Like you, I was hungry afterwards. I had fentynl and dilaudid for mine so I was still circling the moon when it was done but they got all the way up to my ileolcecal junction. (I made the error of checking ‘yes’ to are you a chronic pain patient on the pre-procedure questionnaire so I think they gave me extra and I was already on my regular meds 🤔)

I was a funny sight. There is a burger place a block away and I was starving afterwards so I figured we could just walk there. Well. apparently I wasn’t really keen on reality because I stepped off the curb and my daughter had to grab me by my shirt to not be run over. I thought I was invincible. We made it to the place. I acquired my cheeseburger🍔 and fries 🍟 . I took two bites and almost lost it. I too needed more rest. I went home and slept it off. That’s probably why I had such an uneventful procedure. I have the pictures to prove it😏.

D🏃🏽‍♀️

[Lupiknits]

I had to google ileolcecal junction(sp?) and yes, we got there, too!

I forgot to mention that at one point there was a rattling at the handle to the room’s door. One nurse flung an extra sheet over my bottom half, and another went to remind the carpenters outside that procedures were taking place. Fortunately the back of my head was towards the door. When they wheeled me out I pretended to have my eyes shut, while the workmen carefully ignored me !

It’s strange that in spite of going without food so long, and feeling so very hungry on Monday, it’s hard to manage more than a tiny amount without feeling like vomiting, even now. As long as I prop myself up on the sofa and drift along, listening to an audiobook, after eating, it’s getting better. Too cold to do much else anyway. 🥶