I have had two (and prepped for a third), and I agree with this.
It is annoying to have a clear-fluids diet for a day, especially if you are not home. But it’s more the the thought of it that is distressing than the actual experience, so don’t dwell on it.
In all three cases the prep solution was something I had to drink in a high volume in a relatively short time, and it is a chore. If you chug it down too fast and you might get a bit nauseated, so pace yourself. Different doctors order different solutions, and different timing.
The evacuation is *not *like the diarrhea you get when you’re sick. I never got any kind of cramping or discomfort, just a huge amount of fluid flushing out after the initial dump. You don’t get a whole lot of advance notice, though, so you do need to stay within a couple of minutes of a toilet. Unlike others, I did not have any soreness or need to apply balms or salves. It was just fluid coming out (when you’re sick you get this acidic nasty diarrhea; I had dysentery in Egypt once and had a severely sore output port).
There seems to be general agreement that the actual procedure is anticlimactic, since you are pretty much out for it.
By the way, you may be wondering what “prepped for a third” means. In 2010, I took my Jell-O and chicken broth to work to enjoy a clear liquid diet to get ready for my colonoscopy appointment the next day. About 2:30 it started snowing and by 4:00 I figured I’d better leave before it got bad. Too late. My drive home was on 10 miles of interstate plus another mile home. It took me four hours. When I got home I began the prep immediately and after my second round of The Shits the doctor’s office called, about 9:00 PM, to cancel the appointment. The only thing worse than doing the prep and having a colonoscopy is doing the prep and not having a colonoscopy.
I’ll spoiler-box this for those who get grossed out easily.As I sat there, evacuating everything, I marveled at the fluid nature of it and thought to myself it was like I was pissing like I’d never pissed before. Except out my butt.
I’ve had 3. I recommend getting it done first thing in the morning. The prep is not fun, but have some books to read or tv to watch and just plan on chilling at home. What I’ve done is just work a half day, and then the real prep begins. YMMV depending on the kit you get. Oddly, I was taking in so much fluid I never got that hungry.
The only problems I had with my colonoscopy were (a) finding someone to take me there and back, and (b) the doctor noticing that my blood pressure was a little high, although I do tend to register high on automatic blood pressure machines, and I had not taken my BP medication that day as I was told not to eat anything solid.
I was pretty much knocked out (at least from my perspective) for an hour - or as I put it, “the best hour’s sleep I had in years.”
I had some twists in my colon which was leading to some very painful gas and intestinal blockages they were able to straighten out and that greatly helped.
Along with the above, my doctor also had me avoid anything with seeds even tiny ones like in tomatoes or cucumbers.
I’ve had two and the procedure was nothing and the prep was horrid. Both times it was GoLYTELY which was the only thing my insurance covered. I want to track down the home (or grave if he is deceased) of the person who invented that stuff and take a full dose right then and there.
IIRC, my last one was scheduled in the a.m. I didn’t need to drink the stuff until the eve before. Wife and I planned on just watching some vids. The stuff was somewhat nasty - like saltwater - and there was a lot of it. I recall wondering what the reaction would be like. When it starts, there is no questioning it. The loosest, most forceful discharge imaginable. But no pains/cramps, etc., and each discharge was fast. I don’t remember it being any problem after I went to bed.
A bit of a hassle severely restricting your diet before, but not a big deal. Sure makes you appreciate food after. I lowered the boom on the cookies and crackers in the POST room!
Not only a hassle having someone drive you home, but my Dr. required that my wife wait there throughout the procedure. Which we both thought somewhat overkill, seeing as we lived 5-10 minutes from the office.
The only thing I will add to the advice here is that during the prep, there are no false alarms. If you think it is only air this time because you haven’t taking anything in since the last 4 trips to the toilet, you are wrong, there is another gush of liquid about to come out.
I’ve been back and gotten my third about two years ago and the doctor said that I had polyps but “nothing to worry about.” I did appreciate that the staff was amazing and good natured – that’s certainly appreciated before a procedure.
I had mine just a little over a month ago. As others have said, the prep was the biggest challenge, and I quickly learned that different providers have wildly different recommendations for the preparations. My doctor told me to go a week without nuts, seeds, red meat and a very short list of other things, while online I found others with extremely detailed lists of eat-this-and-not-that but for half as long. I used the list I found online as a guideline but didn’t sweat it too much when I accidentally wound up eating something that was a no-no on the online list as long as it wasn’t something my doctor told me to avoid.
I didn’t find the diet too terribly hard to follow, and found the final preparation fairly amusing (pretty much as described in Dewey Finn’s spoilerboxed comments).
I did have problems after the procedure, though everything that hurt wasn’t what I was expecting to hurt. I woke up with a very sore throat, and by the next day a black spot developed on my uvula, which had become a bit swollen, and I felt as if something was stuck in my throat for a couple of days. My leg hurt as well for some reason.
I had IV-sedation/conscious-sedation of some kind and was basically awake but so stoned as to not really care or feel anything. The anesthesiologist described it as “two too many martinis”.
Your friend is right. You will be quite busy for the day. Make sure you get the extra soft toilet paper.
The procedure itself is a lovely little nap, then you can eat whatever you want, once you’ve farted in recovery (they want to make sure your colon is working normally. So toot away.)
Go forth, be an adult, and get this done. They clip out any polyps and you should be good for ten years.
I had my first one over this past summer and I don’t have anything to add to the thread - but will echo this - first thing in the morning, do the prep the day prior. No biggee.
Mine was also Suprep - not horrible but bad enough. Definitely the worst part, tho. And as others have stated - a few hours of discomfort beats some of the alternatives.
I had one removed. I felt no pain at all. They warned me there could be some blood in my stools for a day or two, and if that got worse or did not stop, to call them right away. Just something to keep an eye on afterward. I had no complications.
Downside: since I had a polyp removed, I get to go back for this in 5 years instead of 10. Fun times.
I’ve had two colonoscopies. Both times the prep was OK; it was more about the hunger than any discomfort (almost no abdominal discomfort.) And the first one was just a matter of being put under and waking up afterwards, no issues.
But the 2nd colonoscopy was quite painful. I wasn’t given enough sedation and I could feel the tube poking and moving about in my colon, jabbing into corners and places. It was like a blunt stabbing sensation, really quite bad.
