True, and I apologize for the snark.
I have a colonoscopy tomorrow morning and there was nothing about alcohol in the instructions. So, there is another datum.
Yeah, I have nothing like that in my instructions either, which is why I asked. I’ll clarify with the doc today.
Thanks. I may be a bit touchy right now as well.
I assumed it wasn’t listed, or the question wouldn’t be here. I mean, my colonoscopy instructions didn’t say whether it was okay to play bridge the week before the exam, but I assumed it was okay. It’s not as if the prep tells you exactly what you will be doing every minute.
If I were nervous and wanted something to relax me the night before the procedure, I’d talk to the doctor explicitly about my goals, and about what would be okay. I advise you not just to say, “can I smoke weed?”, but to say what you are looking to accomplish.
Oh, c’mon. This is the dictionary definition of being willfully obtuse. Colonoscopy instructions have to do with WHAT YOU PUT INTO YOUR BODY - alcohol consumption would be within that realm.
In my experience, sitting on the toilet hasn’t been a stressful situation. The constant pooping/squirting actually gets the stress out of your system. It’s actually pretty relaxing. Alcohol/pot would relinquish the little control you have left and you’d barely be able to walk.
My instructions are always specific about no alcohol before the event or for 24 hours after. No mention of pot that I remember. I wouldn’t want to be stoned when having to high tail it to the bathroom multiple times in an evening.
There is no fucking way that alcohol on a completely empty stomach several hours before a medical procedure that requires sedation is ok. How is this even a debate?
- Jaycat.again was talking about the night before. I didn’t eat any solids, but I had a lot of jello and crap that day, I didn’t have a completely empty stomach. In fact, my doctor advised patients not completely fast – he was clearly worried about low blood sugar. He wanted me to eat more than I really wanted to that day.
- Jaycat.again might not be getting sedation. I didn’t.
- Maybe the procedure is at 4PM the next day, and he’s talking about drinking at 6PM the evening before. Not what I’d want to do, but I don’t think it’s obvious that you shouldn’t be drinking 22 hours prior to sedation.
But I’ve found the practices where I’ve had procedures were very happy to discuss specific situations with me. Often, the receptionist had a doctor or nurse call me back to discuss it, and they were fine answering questions like “this tastes gross, can I add that to the solution to make it more palatable?”. So “Call and ask” seems like the obvious advice. I’d just be really specific about what my goals were, as some drugs might be safer than others. And it might matter how often you use cannabis – if you ordinarily use it every day, it might be safer to take the same dose than to skip it. If you’ve never taken if before… seems like a really bad idea to try it on that day.
My instructions didn’t say anything about smoking tobacco, which is also something you put in your body. 
My brother somehow wasn’t told not to drink before the procedure, and had a diet coke or something. They decided he couldn’t get sedation, for fear he might vomit. As he didn’t want to do the clean-out again, they mutually agreed to do it without sedation. He hated it, but everything went smoothly.
Wasn’t it completely empty soon after you drank the nasty liquid and took the laxative? Regardless, maybe this is one of those if you don’t want to know the answer, don’t ask things. I would be stunned if the doctor told someone that it would be ok.
I kinda assumed he was taking about drinking booze before drinking the laxative, not after. 
I went to bed shortly after finishing the stuff.
Prepare to be stunned. My doc says one drink is ok.
Well damn.
Cheers!
Correction. They are now saying they “advise against” the use of alcohol, marijuana, or tobacco (!?) the day before the procedure. And, in any event, to be forthright with the anesthesiologist.
I bet he talked to the anesthesiologist, who pointed out that people who say, “one drink” often mean a lot more than that.
My grand mother in law was hospitalized for something, and they asked her if she drank. “I have a glass of wine every afternoon”, she replied. So they didn’t give her alcohol, nor treat her for withdrawal.
She did have a glass of wine every afternoon, and a great deal more. And she developed the DTs in that hospital, and needed emergency treatment.
That’s not all that unusual.
Do be forthright with the anesthesiologist, whatever you do.
It’s also quite reasonable to ask specifically about alcohol or marijuana, especially if MJ is legal where you are. I’m quite sure they’ve heard worse! Be prepared for a knee-jerk reaction of “OH NOES!!!”, and if you get that, definitely go into more detail about what you want to accomplish.
My gut (hah) feeling is that in general, they’d rather you avoid anything that might interfere with sedation, either enhancing it or making it less effective. for as long beforehand as you can manage. But if you’re nervous enough about the process, and need something to help you relax and get some sleep (assuming the, er, output has all been put out), it’s not out of line. I was once given a benzo (Xanax, I think) to take the night before a procedure involving sedation, because I was so stressed.
Of course, the logistics of having something that might slow your responses, when you might need to move in a real hurry, should be considered. I’m sure I quipped in some colonoscopy thread or other about the hazards of taking a sleeping pill on prep night! I’m a frequent flyer - have had 8, and 9 is coming up some time next year, though I’ve never added any pharmaceuticals that might slow me down.
Depending on the ingestion method, either alcohol or marijuana might be bad from a mechanical standpoint. A brownie is a no-go. A bloody mary, ditto. A CBD gummy might be okay (I don’t honestly recall whether gumdrops etc. are permissible on my pre-procedure diet), and similarly a gin and tonic because it’s a clear liquid. Red wine would likely best be avoided. And smoking is probably a bad idea because anything that damages your lungs is best avoided before surgery if possible (though they do these on smokers all the time, so I wouldn’t worry too much).
I’d definitely advise against using whatever, and NOT telling them. I don’t know how long your system remains slightly depressed after alcohol (rarely use it myself) or marijuana (never tried it, really!) but you want them to be aware of all the potential risks.
Hint: crap is not a clear liquid 
And by “eat”, I assume you meant the various things that are legal on a liquid diet.
Jello, by the way, is pretty vile, especially the flavors my doctor allows - red is forbidden, ditto orange or purple (which I can understand, since red is a component of those colors), but blue is also forbidden. I can just imagine it: “DAYUM. She’s got cancer EVERYWHERE. Oh, nope, just blue food coloring. They look exactly alike”.
Mama Zappa, thanks for your considered responses. I am going to go it Cold Turkey, so tomorrow will be a day of strictly bouillon and jello for me. My only consolation is looking forward to the pancakes and bacon supper I’ve been promised when it’s all over.
Good luck!!
I’m a bit of an evangelist on the topic of getting it taken care of. My first scope was a “while we’re at it” when a gastro wanted to do an upper GI. A friend’s husband died, after battling colorectal cancer for many years (to be fair, he developed it when younger than the recommended screening age). A neighbor has been ill for several years. I do not ask for details of his prognosis. And a friend of mine went in for her colonoscopy for what she thought were likely hemorrhoids… stage 3. She’s going through chemo right now. A colleague’s husband was (as I gather, I did NOT ask) avoiding screening… and had a somewhat urgent scope late in November a couple years back. They got the news that it was cancer- merry fucking Thanksgiving 
He lasted 6 months. And of course our own Maggie the Ocelot (again, younger than the standard screening age).
Here’s a writeup I did a few years back, after my 4th or 5th one.
For tomorrow (today, by now, LOL): if there’s a pho restaurant near you , pick up a couple of quarts of their broth to bring home. Tastier than store-bought broth, and especially if it’s cold where you are, the warmth will be nice. Likely too late to get and install a bidet toilet seat - when we tried one a couple years back, I told my husband, “we WILL have the fancy heated-water one in the master bathroom before my next scope”. We did - and it made a big difference. Depending (hah) on how your gut tends to behave in general, you may find a package of disposable underwear to be helpful. I bought some, the last time around, due to some unrelated gut issues, and was glad of it. If your bathroom tends to be on the chillier side, as ours is, get and set up a small space heater - you’re gonna be in there a lot.
And as far as that after-session meal: dunno if that’s supposed to be at a restaurant, or at home. I learned the hard way that a restaurant meal is risky, as it tends to wake up the gut… with unpleasant results. I don’t think most people have quite as much trouble.
But in any case, good for you for getting it out of the way! (or, as my primary care doc said, “it’s behind you now”, to which I quipped “so to speak…”).
And for some funny reading: Dave Barry’s column is well known. A lesser-known, but frankly funnier, story is here. (the tl/dr version: double check your appointment date and time very, very carefully).
My oft-repeated offer: to anyone within a hundred miles of Washington, DC: if you need a responsible (quit laughing!!) adult for yours, and cannot find anyone, I will volunteer to do it. Just give me a week or two notice.