# Ugh, do I REALLY have to schedule ANOTHER colonoscopy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 29, 2023, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304 "2023-08-29T18:16:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/81 "2023-08-31T02:57:41Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Doctors don’t know everything (though they usually DO know more than you do). Exactly so. And some doctors are better than others at recognizing their own shortcomings. A good doctor will listen to what you say, and give it at least some credence. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/82 "2023-08-31T09:05:57Z")
My [Butt Gremlin Donnie](https://imgur.com/bCxN9C9) would like to remind you to get your damned colonoscopy - he might have relatives living in your butt too. [This is really an image of the tumor in my gut. My roomie Ginnie said it looked like a tiny goblin - little round head, and an arm pointing at something.] ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/83 "2023-08-31T10:53:59Z")
At least we can get this done locally now. It used to be a 2 hour drive one way. That sucked. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/84 "2023-08-31T10:58:16Z")
I’m not clicking on that! I made my appt so the ball is rolling now. No spank you! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/85 "2023-08-31T11:35:44Z")
> [@bump](#): > > Here’s the instructional video. We don’t routinely get colonoscopies - just the FIT kit every two years, if you’re in the right age group (there’s a specialist committee on screening advises on what’s cost-effective), but that seems to be much simpler to deal with than your Cologuard, and with much less packaging: just a secure letter-size envelope: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Hb7euOEXEsc/maxresdefault.jpg "How to use the bowel cancer screening FIT kit | NHS") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hb7euOEXEsc) ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/86 "2023-08-31T13:16:39Z")
Comedy moment: A couple of years ago a friend had a colonoscopy. He stayed conscious/unsedated for the procedure, and said that was able to see what the doctor was seeing. He said that the normal procedure is for the doc to insert the probe all the way to its deepest point, and then turn the camera around to inspect the colon as the probe is slowly extracted. As he was telling me this, I immediately started hearing Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Looking Out My Back Door” playing in my head. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/87 "2023-08-31T14:07:19Z")
I’ve heard of navel-gazing, but rarely from the inside. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/88 "2023-08-31T14:16:30Z")
Ours are every decade starting at age 50, unless you have certain risk factors or findings during your colonoscopies. I had mine a few months back, and it wasn’t any big deal. The prep wasn’t exactly fun\*, but it wasn’t particularly unpleasant either, especially not for something I don’t have to do again until 2033. The actual procedure and its aftermath were not unpleasant at all. A shot of propofol, a nap, and some absurdly voluminous but not painful gas in the recovery room, and an afternoon hanging out watching TV. - The prep consisted of a period of eating only specific foods of specific colors, and then starting about 24 hours beforehand, a series of doses of Miralax (I mixed it with Gatorade) at defined intervals. Honestly the worst part was trying to down an entire quart of Gatorade with a bunch of Miralax mixed in at the intervals they specified. You can only hold _so much_ of that, and after the first couple, it got very old very fast. The other end of the process wasn’t nearly so uncomfortable as drinking all that liquid. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/89 "2023-08-31T14:50:59Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > A couple of years ago a friend had a colonoscopy. He stayed conscious/unsedated for the procedure, and said that was able to see what the doctor was seeing. He said that the normal procedure is for the doc to insert the probe all the way to its deepest point, and then turn the camera around to inspect the colon as the probe is slowly extracted. I’ve done it twice, and that’s almost right. The exam is done on the way out, but they don’t turn the probe around until the very end, when they need to to examine the inside end of the anus. (Oh, you have some hemorrhoids. Doesn’t look too bad. All women who’ve had children have some…) Honestly, i found it fascinating, and not terribly uncomfortable, and wonder why the US standard is to sedate everyone. I think it’s mostly to spare men from feeling homosexual. But it’s a huge expense (extra doctor and nurse during the procedure, extra time to recover at the clinic, extra person to drive you, more extra time to recover at home) and slightly increases the risk. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/90 "2023-08-31T15:36:58Z")
I suppose that’s one of the reasons why ours limit colonoscopies. AFAIK it’d only happen if the basic test showed a potential problem and/or there’s an indication of high risk. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/91 "2023-08-31T16:57:33Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > My best recollection: Eat a normal breakfast the day prior. Which means 2x your normal, but low in bright red or highly spicy stuff. Skip lunch & dinner. otso hotso, bit tolerable after a big enough breakfast or two. > > Drink a couple bottles of spiked Gatorade in the afternoon (same volume of liquid as normal if you’re living in a hot place and hydrating properly) and eat a bottle of pooping pills. > > Duly begin pooping around what would be dinner time if you were eating dinner. Fun to watch and the pounds just melt away! Such fun. > > Go to bed as the innards excitement subsides, and next morning Uber or ride with a friend to the clinic. Easy peasy. That was my experience. I drank a lot of chicken broth and ate a lot of yellow jello. (Red or purple not allowed). My sister is a couple of years behind me and told me that yellow gummy bears are allowed. I had one 9.5 years ago and 4.5 years ago. One or two small polyps were found each time so I get another one in six months. I have issues with blood sugar and fasting so I always make sure to schedule the first appointment of the day. It wasn’t that bad for me but I realize that there are various preps and experiences out there. The drug part is kind of fun so I’ll opt for that each time which I grant is indulgent. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/92 "2023-08-31T18:02:34Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Honestly, i found it fascinating, and not terribly uncomfortable, and wonder why the US standard is to sedate everyone. I’m the same way. I’ve had colonoscopies where I’m completely out, and where I’m relaxed, but aware of what is happening. I prefer the aware ones. My usual doctor prefers the asleep ones, though I’m pretty sure he’s performed both on me. I don’t care enough to change doctors. At least under the relaxing drugs, it’s not painful, just a bit weird feeling. Snipping polyps is just a slight tug. I recover easily from both kinds of anasthesia, so I suspect it is just the novelty of seeing a live movie of my insides that explains my preference. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/93 "2023-08-31T18:16:26Z")
I have had really bad experiences with both types of sedation, which is why i shop for a doctor willing to do it unsedated. But it’s less painful and less invasive than getting an IUD, for which sedation isn’t even an option. I really think the sedation is mostly about men being squeamish. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/94 "2023-08-31T18:30:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I really think the sedation is mostly about men being squeamish. I’m inclined to agree. I’m evolved enough to not be squeamish but I enjoy the sedation. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/95 "2023-08-31T18:52:31Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I really think the sedation is mostly about men being squeamish. Well, we guys get ultrasound guided prostate biopsies without sedation. That’s a LOT of equipment jammed into a small cavity. And I think that’s at least equal in potential discomfort to having an IUD inserted. While I’ve not had an IUD inserted, I did insert a couple hundred IUDs into patients in my career. And I also did a fair number of sigmoidoscopies in my career, without sedation. All those procedures were tolerated pretty well by the vast majorities of patients. But doing a full colonoscopy is trickier; making it around all those different curves for that distance, inflating everything as you go, often pushing on the patient’s abdomen externally to help it around the difficult areas results in a LOT more stimulation of gut pain receptors, and can cause a lot of involuntary movement due to the colicky pain. Some people tolerate it better than others, but I don’t think that difference is based on squeamishness for most such folks. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/96 "2023-08-31T19:02:16Z")
Hmm, maybe I just have a straight colon. The IUD hurt enormously more than the worst bit of the colonoscopy, and most of the colonoscopies was totally painless. There was just a little pain going around the curves, and only going in. (The first was a bit painful for a couple seconds. The second was uncomfortable for a moment.) Going out, as the doctor did the exam, wasn’t even uncomfortable, either time, and I enjoyed watching. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/97 "2023-08-31T23:05:00Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Yes, but it’s soluble fiber, and i wonder if it wouldn’t help move everything else along. Not in the last day, of course, but in the week leading up to it. Metamucil contains 3 grams of insoluble fiber and 2 grams of soluble fiber. You’re supposed to stop taking it 3 days before a colonoscopy. The low-residue diet is so weird. It’s kind of the inverse of what we’re usually told to eat: white bread instead of whole-grain, canned peaches instead of fresh, white rice, no juices with any pulp. It’s like a 1950’s nursing home menu. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2023, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/98 "2023-08-31T23:11:21Z")
In my two times, nothing was said at all about fiber and the dietary restrictions were only for the 24 hours of actual mostly fasting. It’s interesting how this varies. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2023, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/99 "2023-09-01T00:04:41Z")
> [@nelliebly](#): > > . You’re supposed to stop taking it 3 days before a colonoscopy. No, I’m told to stop eating anything with fiber in it 6 days before the colonoscopy. I get 5 days of a no-fiber diet, followed by a fast day. And that five days is really unpleasant. It turns out that everything i like to eat has fiber in, even corn chex and similar things that don’t feel like they have much fiber. It’s a week of no vegetables, no fruit, no beans, none of the bread i usually get, … It gets old in about a day, and my gut isn’t very happy, either. If it were 2 days of low fiber and one day of fasting, i would be a lot happier. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2023, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304/100 "2023-09-01T02:02:01Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > (They use a lot of lube. I wanted to clean up.) The first rule of anal penetration is “too much lube is almost enough.” I suppose that’s especially true when the penetrating object is a few feet long. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ugh-do-i-really-have-to-schedule-another-colonoscopy/989304.md?page=6)