Tell me about your colonoscopy

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m a little worried about this. At first I thought it was going to be not much worse than a rectal exam. Now I’m hearing about the 4-day low fiber diet, the one day liquid diet, and the needing a friend to pick me up after I get out of the deep sleep.

My plan was to return to work when it was over, but they are saying to take the rest of the day off. The same thing was said the last time I had something like this done (urethra instead of rectum), but I was fine. I returned to work and was ready to be productive, that is until I found out my computer wouldn’t boot up.

And honestly, going back to work will be far easier if I can’t recruit a friend with a car to help me out.

So what was your experience like?

2

Take the rest of the day off. The sedative won’t be out of your system for a while, and the colon-blast from the day before takes a lot out of a person.

But I am a lazy bastard and I like excuses to sit back and rest.

3

I’m getting one right now inthis thread. LOL

Don’t be a hero. Take all the drugs they’re willing to give you.

Good luck.

4

I’ve got one next week which will be my fourth or fifth. You will probably be pretty groggy, so the hospital won’t let you drive yourself. I’ve never heard of a four day low fiber diet. The day before I always ate lightly, and once you start the prep you won’t be interested in food at all.

Otherwise it’s painless. Just like going to sleep!

5

That’s what I liked about the last thing I had done. I didn’t slowly nod off – I was suddenly in a different room. The only pain was when I had to pee, and ouch!

Which makes me wonder… In the last procedure, painful peeing was my number one concern. Should I be having a number two concern this time around?

6

The hospital will not let you drive yourself home, or even take a cab or a bus. A friend, relative or cow-orker must drive you home. Don’t be a martyr. You might think you are o.k. but you’ve been sedated and that needs time to leave your system. I did a one day prep. Drink some stuff, take a laxative. I think the 4 day prep is relatively new. It involves gradually cutting fiber and other foods out of your diet until you are just at clear liquids.

7

I know it’s not a good idea to leave alone, nor will they let me. I’m now finding out how many of my friends don’t have cars yet have day jobs.

8

You can ask to have it done w/o anesthesia (I’ve seen postings from other people here mentioning that) so you could go to work afterward but honestly, I wouldn’t.

I’ve had 4 of them.
#1 was a “while we’re at it” when they wanted to do an upper GI endo and since I’d just turned 50…
#2-4 were followups over the course of a couple of years because of precancerous polyps found during #1.
So while the upper GI turned out not to have been needed (misdiagnosed a drug side effect as suddenly-worsening GERD a few months earlier), I’m rather glad for the misdiagnosis.

On to the prep regimens which as everyone will tell you, are far worse than the procedure.

There are alternatives. The gallon-o-glurge variants are needlessly cruel from everything I’ve read. I asked my GI if I could do the pill-based prep instead (OsmoPrep). While that has its own risks (black box warning for kidney issues), he’s never had a patient have any kind of issue. If you have texture issues, it’s a massive improvement over the gallon-o-glurge preps.

The major downside (and deal-killer, here on out) for me has been that the prep can take 5+ hours start to finish the night before, and when you repeat it “the morning of”, well, it never does quite finish :(. Including a :eek::eek::eek: session when I have my first solid meal afterward.

And you have to drink it with Gatorade, and it must be a bad-tasting flavor as well (lemon-lime or lemonade) because all the others have forbidden food dyes.

I asked about the “gatorade + miralax” prep regimen I’ve heard so much about. Much cheaper than any of the prescription ones, and he sniffed and insisted that You Need Those Electrolytes. But I did my research and some number-crunching, and the electrolytes (sodium and potassium) from Gatorade are easily replicated by a very small quantity of regular salt and salt substitute. So I’ll probably insist on it the next time.

For the most part, you are highly unlikely to remember the procedure if they do sedation. This last time around I have a vague member of being aware of “something” going on just at the end, that’s the most awareness I’ve ever had.

And you will be very sleepy afterward. You may feel relatively alert for the drive home but then your brain will basically say “hahaha PSYCH - you’re going down now!!”.

I’ll sort through my email shortly and post again with more specific hints.

9

My preop regimen is Gatorade (or Crystal Light) and MiraLax. And Dulcolax, but I’m wondering if I can use Colace instead.

10

My first one was five years ago and I’m good for another five. I don’t recall a pre-diet, but the day before you’ll need to flush out your entire system. I’m my case this was done by drinking a gallon of a laxative drink and spending much of the day in the bathroom. You can’t really work the day before the procedure.

You really MUST do the purging correctly. (I did.) The nurses and doctor told me that some folks don’t follow the proper steps and when they arrive unprepared, as it were, the procedure cannot be done correctly so they’re sent off with another appointment date to do the whole thing over again.

I don’t remember how long I was in recovery, but it was long enough that when I was dropped off in the morning, Mrs. Frig was told she should go home and they’d call when I was ready to be taken home again.

The procedure itself was fine. No pain or discomfort afterward.

It is going to take a least a day and a half of your week, though.

11

My clearest memory of the whole thing is being in the recovery room after the procedure. There were 8 of 9 of us and everyone was farting loudly. :smiley:

You have to get the air out so you can be discharged.

12

I was reading that. I’m pretty sure it’s the only time I’ve been told that I can’t leave until I fart.

13

Some hints (and, well, some TMI):

  • If they sedate you with Propofol (“milk of amnesia”), that stuff burns like hell going in. Really spoils the enjoyment of the nice room-tilting sensation as you go lights-out. They will sometimes inject a bit of lidocaine just beforehand - then inject the Propofol without giving the lido time to work. Egad. I’ve found dentists doing the same boneheaded move (not letting the stuff have enough time to take effect). The last time, I asked the anesthesiologist to give it a few seconds to work- and he did. Much better!!

  • If you are sharing the bathroom with anyone, make it quite clear that he/she can NOT use the bathroom for any reason. My first time around, my husband wanted to shower (just after I took the pills in the morning). I told him he was out of his fucking mind, and he had 30 seconds to grab his stuff and go use the basement bathroom.

  • Pants with zippers / buttons: No. Husband was wearing regular clothes when he did his prep. I realized what he was wearing, and told him to put on some elastic-waist shorts. He was very grateful!

  • For the liquid-only day(s): Get some good broth to have on hand. You will be sick of juice and jello (and remember, can’t have a flavor you like because of the food dye. Lemon jello is unpleasant and lime is worse) and the prep can leave you chilled. Canned broth isn’t very good. I’ve taken to eating at the pho restaurant nearby the day before the liquid diet, and I get 2 quarts of plain broth to take out. I also make “finger jello” with juice and Knox packets.

  • Don’t schedule an early morning appointment; the split prep regimen works better than taking it all the night before but you don’t want to have to get up at 4 AM!!!

  • You’re usually on a low-fiber diet for several days beforehand. Depending on your own digestive system, you may find a small dose of Miralax once or twice a day (not even a normal dose, just a teaspoon or so) to be helpful.

  • Gatorade now has some versions without dye, though it’s hard to tell from their website (I stumbled across some in the store and never found it online). Much nicer flavors than lemon-lime. You can also make your own electrolyte-replacement drinks with a bit of regular table salt and some salt substitute. Propel fitness water with a pinch of salt/salt substitute is a fair substitute though I will admit the salt substitute gave it an unpleasant metallic taste.

Get a padded toilet seat.

If you have a bathroom carpet:

  1. The 70s called and they want their decor back
  2. Put a rug or towels down around the toilet.
    You see, sometimes your reflexes may not be fast enough. And if you’re like me, you can sit on that damn pot for a half hour and the gut will say “nuh-uh, ain’t gonna play” until you get up and walk at least 15 feet away.

Have entertainment within reach. Some paperback books, magazines, a TV (last time around I had my laptop propped on the bathtub and watched a movie. If you’re squicked out at the thought of a book in the bathroom, get a secondhand paperback that you can toss afterward.

14

I’m not any kind of a doctor but I would say no to that last: Dulcolax and Colace work quite differently. Colace softens things up, Dulcolax helps shove it out the door.

While you might be adequately prepared if you do the switch, check with the doctor.

15

This is all great stuff, Mamma Zappa. OK, I’ll get Dulcolax.

16

Dave Barry has a great columnon this subject. The highlight: You’re going to want to install seat belts on your toilet. Think of the space shuttle taking off.

Seriously, it’s a great column, and very reassuring to the first-timer.

17

My gastroenterologist permitted liquid Ensure, which isn’t clear but apparently it didn’t matter. It was a lifesaver, because it prevented me from feeling starving and headachey. I know it didn’t cloud anything up, because I saw the insides of my insides on the screen and everything was clear as a bell. I had Versed, which made me forget about 90% of the procedure. I do remember seeing the inside of my colon on the screen, and I do remember feeling some cramping, upon which they upped something in my IV to keep me from feeling it.

His prep: Half-Lytely and a couple of laxative pills. There was no low-fiber diet for days ahead of time. If you have to drink the icky stuff, refrigerate it good and cold and drink it with a straw with the opening kept at the back of your throat to bypass your taste buds.

Yes, wear elastic-waisted shorts and keep some reading material in a bathroom reserved for your use alone. Invest in a box of wet buttwipes because you’re going to get sore due to wiping all day long. Maybe rent a couple of movies to watch as you will be indoors all day and will get sick of daytime television.

18

Great, now I have Dancing Queen in my head! :smiley:

19

I had mine without any drugs - it’s really not that bad. I had the flex sig first, and the colonoscopy wasn’t any worse, it just lasted longer. It wasn’t fun, by any means, and it was completely undignified, but it was far from unbearable.

Survival tips for the prep -

Elastic pants

Dab, not wipe

To choke down the gallon of ‘go juice’, I found that if you take a large sip of a strong tasting liquid, swish it around, spit (you don’t want more liquid than you’re going to get) chug the 8 oz portion, then another sip/spit, it goes easier. Not easy, but easier.

Do not take a laxative and a sleeping pill at the same time.

For the procedure, I was allowed to have my iPod. Crank up the rock and roll, and think of something else.

I agree with Mama Zappa - you can go back to work if you skip the anesthesia, but, hey, you deserve a bit of relaxation after what you will have just been thru.

You will fart in front of doctors, nurses and others. You won’t be alone.

20

A documentary thread on my experience here. The bottom (heh) line is that the procedure itself is nothing, but the prep is interesting. And when I say “interesting”, I mean “I had no idea my colon could even process that much”. Those laxatives are not to be denied.

My anesthetics were Fentanyl and Versed, IIRC. Rather powerful, but short-acting. I was fine by evening, albeit very hungry.

It’s not that bad. But do take the rest of the day off if you can.

Regards,
Shodan