I have a question to pose to people who have had ileostomies longer than I and perhaps have experienced this before. Now, I have all my bowel - nothing has been resectioned (YET) - and an ileostomy. My recent CT scan has shown that despite 6 months of living with my ileostomy, I am still having inflammation from Crohn's disease and the doctors would like to do a colonoscopy as well as an ileoscopy to be able to get a better look at what's going on in there. I have been told I have to give myself an enema once a day two days before surgery and then the morning of in preparation since I can't drink the prep. From looking online, it seems that some doctors order this and some doctors simply go with clear fluids for 24 hours. Needless to say, this isn't something I'm real thrilled over and if I can get out of having enemas I'm going to. I just want to know what other people who might have had this happen experienced, and what kind of advice they might have for me.
Prior to my ileostomy in 2010, my original GI would have me drink a gallon of GoLightly throughout the day before the procedure. My more recent GI would have me on clear liquids and 2 glasses of phosphate with Dulcolax tablets. GoLightly was surely cruel and unusual punishment. Your situation, however, is different because you are having 2 kinds of scoping which may not be what you found online. Your best bet is to negotiate with your doctor on options. The last thing you want is to have your doctor cancel the procedure after he or she finds out through the scope that you are not properly prepped. Good luck! PB
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I have an ileostomy and I have FAP, so I get double scoped pretty regularly. Ugh, just found out that I have to be scoped in 2 weeks and I just got scoped 2 months ago!
Anyway
Prep is pretty simple.
The day before... for 24 hours, only clear liquids. Nothing red dyed. Broths and stuff like that. Then after midnight, nothing at all. You'll be right as rain.
Once, as a dumb experiment, I drank about 8 ounces of the Golightly (shudder) that stuff is vile!
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Yeah, they aren't telling me anything like that. They are telling me they want me to do five Fleet enemas. Doesn't sound right to me at all. It seems to me from research that saline is what's normally used. I don't know - and I don't really believe in medical professionals anymore, either.
Five Fleet Enemas. What the hell? That can't be right, Megan. That's just cruel.
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They are insane!
If you have an ileostomy, your system empties about every 12 hours, so if you go on clear liquids the day before and then absolutely nothing 12 hours before, you will be perfectly fine.
I'm with Primeboy ... you don't want to have to go through this all again (if for some reason you're not as 'clean' as they need/want).
But the regime your docs suggest sounds excessive. Can you talk with them again before? Ask why such a severe regime.
I'm not sure what the fleet enemas are about I have to say. With the ileo, that lower part isn't really getting stool ... right? So one enema should do a clean for that area.
And as ZaliBee says about how ileo systems empties ... 12 hours of clear and 12 hours of nothing should do it. I'd do closer to 24 of clear to make sure.
But you need to touch base with your doc again.
All the best and let us know ... we are all curious as to what they are thinking.
Exactly, this seems unusual and excessive! The only thing I can think of is that my ileo is temporary; I have all my bowel still. Maybe there's something left over? I have no freakin' clue. I've clarified this too, and they are insistent. Here's my plan - clear liquid diet followed by 12 hrs of nothing and I will try this enema thing ONCE only because I don't want to have to go through this crap again for awhile. If that thing comes out clean I am going to be pissed and relieved I don't have to do it FOUR MORE TIMES, and call it good!