Suggestions-major digestive issues-both "ends"

[PJBinMI]

My GI tract is a mess! Blocked bowel 14 months ago landed me in the hospital and led to removal of a bit of the first part of the small intestine and the valve between it and stomach. It's been rough, but improved for awhile. My stools have not been normal in consistency, and are really out of control right now, which makes the hour to hour and a half drives for medical appts hard!

Experience, suggestions? I have an appt tomorrow and could really use suggestions! Thanks in advance!

Monday 3:12 pm All went well! No major bowel activity until we got home a bit ago. Such a relief! I had nothing to eat yesterday after dinner. Took no stool softeners the last two days. Took Kaopectate (sp?) this morning after small breakfast. You know how wordy I can be, lol. I'm going to write a new note with more med info but wanted to reach out to alll of you who were so helpful.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[Adele_Julia]

I am plagued with constipation. Order Dr Tobias Colon cleanse on Amazon (over 60+ thousand reviews) or Ducacel gel tabs and take 2 a night also on Amazon 🥰

[awesome4ever]

Oh PJBinMi I'm so sorry that you are having such issues. I will give you a few suggestions but I'm not sure they will help with tomorrow being so close. However when I at one point was experiencing horrible digestive issues...mostly loose stools and some sense of urgency which was never my norm at all and thankfully only lasted for several months after I got a medication adjusted. For my own comfort I wore a type of Always disposable discreet underwear in case of accidents if I went out for appointments etc. As well I always carried Aleva Naturals Bamboo disposable Fem Wipes for Woman which I got off Amazon but you can find other ones at any pharmacy I'm sure. I started myself on a regular dose of Imodium 1 tablet twice a day regularly each day.

For you after your surgery I would look at following a low residue diet which is generally easier for your bowel to digest after surgery. There are numerous sites that give nutritional guidelines for people who have short bowel syndrome. I'll link the Mskcc Clinic one below.

mskcc.org/cancer-care/patie...

You might also find some inspiration at sites that provide nutrition information around patients that have the Roux-en-Y gastric procedure.

Have you seen a Registered Dietician for advise? It takes awhile to change bowel habits unfortunately. Not sure if I helped but I want to wish you the very best as you attend your appointments. Take care.

[PJBinMI in reply to awesome4ever]

Thanks! I'll check out the MSK website. And yes, I saw a dietician at the hospital, plus got recommendations from the GI doc and the surgeon before discharge. I've had problems whatever I've tried.

[PJBinMI in reply to awesome4ever]

I forgot to mention that I ware Depends at night and during the day when I need to. I have a bag in the car with clean jeans, underpants, pads, wash cloth......maybe something else I've forgotten. Sigh!

[BluHydrangea]

Imodium has helped me with “the runs” you may need to take it several times to get it under control. I now take it daily and it’s helped me become “regular”.

I wish you good luck with this. It’s so difficult when you need to leave the house!

[PJBinMI]

Thanks! I'll give Imodium a try.

[Rbeth in reply to PJBinMI]

My nutrition must suggested one Imodium before bedtime and one in the morning.

[Lilywallytootsie]

Hope the Imodium works. Loose stools are a mess and exhausting to clean up. Glad your Christmas dinner turned out so nice. Blessings, Hannah

[RedAzalea]

My dear, what drugs are you on that caused the initial nightmare? I am truly so sorry. How horrible. I am only a Professor in diarrhea….

For extreme diarrhea caused by Verzenio, I was given prescription Diphenoxylate. You have to eat a strict BRAt diet also when symptoms are acute.

Ultimately, Imodium and Diphenoxylate stopped being effective and I had to come off the verzenio. Imodium is the first line of diarrhea treatment, then Diphenoxylate.

From the bottom of my heart, I wish you to have normal bowel movements. My empathy is bottomless.

[genealogy74 in reply to RedAzalea]

I had my large intestine removed (total colectomy). I had a terrible time on Verzenio. I had to have multiple IV fluid appts because I was so dehydrated and fatigued. We switched to 100 mg of Ibrance. I didn't think it would work, but it did. As my doctor once said, they don't give us a manual on how to treat people with no colon. Best to you.

[Godbeforme]

I have a friend who loses her bowels ... through reading and trying to help her, I found out they actually have plugs you can insert ... of course she did not buy one but just throwing it out there because if it was me you can bet I would try it! Hope this is not offensive but there is no nice way to tell about it that I can think of ... they are expensive, I do remember that much. I found it doing a google search. God bless you and heal us all in Jesus name, amen! Sorry I'm just now seeing this .... oh one more thing, I buy a 4 lb bag of frozen broccolli florets at walmart every week and try to eat some every day or every other day which is no big deal because I love broccoli but after 3 yrs of doing this I am a bit sick of it, but it keeps my bathroom routine right on target, I call it a broccoliostomy LOL <3

[Godbeforme]

with the broccoli, I microwave 2 lbs at a time for 12 minutes in a big plastic bowl ... easy peasy and it's always "ready" when I want some.

[PJBinMI in reply to Godbeforme]

I love broccoli and we have some in the freezer. I enjoyed reading your reply--thanks!

[Totheriver]

I also had bowel issues at the most inconvenient times and I have learned that if I take Imodium every couple of days it keeps things a bit normal.

[ba5083]

Unfortunately with all the medication it takes a toll on the gut and microbiome Have you tried drinking pomegranate juice. I have read 8 oz of pomegranate juice a day does wonders for gut health.