Turned 50 and my health insurance deductible has been hit so I volunteered for a colonoscopy.
I’d like to make the most of the short fast and bowel cleanse that is required by fasting/cleansing longer.
Any suggestions?
Umm, Fasting really has no medical benefits, nor does “cleansing”. Yes, regular bowel movements are Good and so is just plain eating less.
Fasting may have spiritual benefits, but the only reason a medical doc will prescribe it is for things like you’re about to have surgery. Even then, the fast is prescribed because They do not want you to vomit while you’re unconcious, or recovering from anesthesia.
And believe me, you will feel plenty “cleansed” if you take all of the cleansing medicine. You will feel that you have purged all the food you’ve ever eaten, PLUS all the food you have yet to eat. You will have a squeaky clean colon.
I believe he is fasting specifically to prepare for the colonoscopy. Clean out the lower half and making sure nothing is waiting to “drop” right before the procedure.
Or maybe he just has a weird idea of how to kick his heels up on a Friday night…
As far as making the most out of it - may i suggest sparklers and ribbons?
Is it weird that I kind of like that feeling? It’s… freeing.
“I’d like to make the most of the short fast and bowel cleanse that is required by fasting/cleansing longer”. Yes, he is doing the basic fast for medical reasons. But what he’s asking about is an extended fast and seems to be thinking that there’s some health benefit here- other than what is required for your procedure.
Yes- those Jujubes you ate while watching that kiddie matinee in 5th grade? They will finally leave.
Ah, I was not experiencing reading comprehension.
Well, your jeans will fit better. That’s about all I got. You can use it as mental preparation - a kind of “reset” for your way of thinking of eating. As far as physical benefits - those diamonds that you shove up your ass to get across the border are *way *cleaner.
An opportunity to enjoy your favorite clear, non-alcoholic liquids and hard candies? (Not sure this is really the current protocol, it’s what I heard from the last person I knew who had one).
Great thread title and user name combo! It was my exact reaction when I read ‘making the most of a forced bowel cleanse’.
Not too weird. I’d say it’s that feeling that fuels most bulimics (not that I’m implying anything). I remember watching some program, probably crap reality, where one woman had a bad flu and couldn’t eat for a few days and was ecstatic about how light she felt after she was better. Another woman got nervous, saying that’s what had kickstarted her ED.
I agree with the ‘reset’ thing. Like people who need a specific day to start their diet (Monday, invariably), being forced to ‘empty out’ is a good way to start with a somewhat clean plate. When you can eat again, start with raw veggies and healthy shakes. Try researching what people eat after cleansing for non-medical purposes, to ease themselves out of ‘detoxing.’
I found the thread title and OP username to be an amusing combination, for some reason.
Two points of disagreement - first, fasting is not a good way to start or continue a diet.
Secondly, “detoxing” is a meaningful term only when one has ingested an actual toxic substance in amounts sufficient to cause problems (i.e. significant exposure to heavy metals, or in the case of alcohol or drug abusers). “Detoxing” has been fantastically abused to suggest that we need to “cleanse” ourselves of minute traces of chemicals in our environment, which are not harmful in the quantities present and are not removed by “cleanses”, not to mention the possibility of harming ourselves with the various purges that are recommended.
A squeaky clean colon is overrated anyway (beyond what’s necessary for a good endoscopy). Nobody likes a squeaky organ*. :dubious:
*which reminds me of the line in Dave Barry’s “Bad Songs” book, from the person ragging on Olivia Newton-John’s Let’s Get Physical, specifically the line “Let me hear your body talk”. Her comment was that she didn’t *want *to hear anybody’s body talk.
I’ll pass.
Hey, you think someone can last at the Dope this long and not know this? I meant that, if one is forced to starve (for science, of course), while it may actually slow down the metabolism, it may aid them psychologically in setting themselves up for a new diet. That’s ‘diet’ as in ‘way of eating,’ not ‘losing 10 lbs in a week.’
Once you’ve got the system cleaned out, might I recomend keeping it clean with some added fiber to your diet?
Is this a normal thing to think when going in for a colonoscopy? I’m doing a nursing rotation in endoscopy in a month or so, and as long as I’m there, I may as well impart some wisdom to the patients, if this is what they so desire.
The bowel clean out will do the job required for your procedure. Extending the cleanse or fast MAY make you think it’s beneficial because you can lose a drastic amount of weight during the process. Now the bad news, you will be very uncomfortable from the aching and cramping caused by fluid & electrolyte imbalances which could be fatal if prolonged.
In short, do your bowel prep then follow your doctor’s instructions.
Make the most out of it huh? Take your preparation and then dress up like a ninja while running around the neighborhood doing a series of spin kicks and cart wheels.
Ya - don’t extend the fast. You’ll feel like your bowel has been roto-rootered anyhow. You’ll think you crapped out food from a past life.
If you MUST engage in dietary modification use it as an excuse to refill the lower regions with fresh, healthy foods rather than crap. In other words, “fast” from junk food, fried food, etc.
That’s kind of what I was thinking.
Seems like much of the argument against cleansing is that it will do more harm than good. I thought that if the harm was already done, a few more days of just juice or whatever might increase the good.