Boyfriend's resection

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My boyfriend has just had a long over due resection. Surgery was yesterday morning. What should we expect in the next few days? The whole experience has been quite overwhelming- there are some things they don't prepare you for. I would be grateful if people could share some of their experiences immediately after surgery so he can be aware of what to expect in the coming days and be reassured that what he is going through is 'normal'.

Thanks

Catherine
 
If there are no complications he should be very tender, have pain meds, it will be challenging to walk around, bathe etc. they will start him on no liquids only, then soft foods and progress to a low fiber diet.

The big thing nurses look for is if he passed gas or stool, they want the bowels to wake up.

Depending on the resection it can take 6-8 weeks to feel better. He should avoid lifting anything over 10 lbs for several weeks to avoid a hernia.
 
They tried to get me up and walking the day after the surgery. I was in a lot of pain and wasn't successful until the following day.:)

2
 
If he's on the morphine pump for pain, it does not automatically give you meds when sleeping so you will wake up very uncomfortable. Hit it 3-4 doses in a row before attempting sleep.
 
Thanks all- he is pretty much as you all described. He was unsuccessful getting up and moving around the next day as well- today is his first day getting out of bed and into a chair.

He is very tired as, like you said, he keeps waking up when he needs to give himself another hit. How long did your resections keep your symptoms at bay? Like I said, this is his first and I think he is worried that he will have to go through this all over again. He has only had the symptoms of Crohn's since February 2013 and he is thinking that if it is only since then that his colon became so terribly ulcerated and inflamed then perhaps it will only be another 9 or 10 months until he's in again?? Sorry if some of these questions seem silly but this is all new to us. I appreciate all of your replies- helps to think others have been there too :)

Catherine
 
The walking thing is rough for sure. I slept a lot after mine ,but they like u to walk. I used a wheel chair as a walker. I could give u a list of things, been there. But my surgery had major complications. My g I doc waited way to long and I was in bad shape. But I will say this be with him and tell it him it does get better. If it wasn't for my wife being by my side it would have been a whole lot worse. hope u get better quick
 
He may not feel relief right away, I had to add Questren, because a surplus of bile salts was keeping my BMs loose. I've had complications with my incision opening up, so I am still on sick leave till the beginning of December. I feel fine other then the "extra belly button." I work with small children in a job that requires a lot of lifting. A huge no no when recovering from this surgery.

Thankfully I have excellent sick time benefits! :)
 
Hi,

My son had a resection (keyhole ) on 18th of october the nurses made him get up the day after surgery to sit in a chair for 30min then the nextday they had him walking up and down the ward to try to get his bowels to wake up he was kept in for a week due to the fact he could not tolerate any food it is now 4wks since opp and he is doing great startin back school next monday it takes time but just take one day at a time and he will get there .
 
The most important thing he can do post-op asides from resting is making sure he has a good gastro and will be on maintenance medication to avoid a relapse. Frequent monitoring will be critical.
 
The walking thing is rough for sure. I slept a lot after mine ,but they like u to walk. I used a wheel chair as a walker. I could give u a list of things, been there. But my surgery had major complications. My g I doc waited way to long and I was in bad shape. But I will say this be with him and tell it him it does get better. If it wasn't for my wife being by my side it would have been a whole lot worse.
hope u get better quick
I sure appreciated my wife visiting me in the hospital and helping at home and my son walking beside me in the hospital.
 
I sure appreciated my wife visiting me in the hospital and helping at home and my son walking beside me in the hospital.

I know for me without her I would have given up. I have had 2 surgeries now both were real rough, one took 5 hours do to complications. If it wasn't for her hand and her smile I don't think I would be here today. And on the walkin I had to walk same day on second surgery, no way did I want those air bag things on my legs they kept me up all nite the first time lol.
 
Thank you so much for all of your replies- it really does help knowing that these symptoms are normal. I have spent most of the weekend at the hospital as he has been suffering from terrible anxiety attacks (he thought he was losing his marbles) and after two days we discovered that it was all stemming from a blockage which wasn't discovered until he started to feel pain two days later. As soon as he had the tube up his nose and into his stomach to drain away all the bile all the anxiety went- amazing how your physical symptoms can affect you mentally- wish they would prepare you for these things. He is on the mend now and a lot more positive.

He does however have one niggling question which he will be asking his surgeon Monday morning. He hasn't had an erection since the op and he is worried that something has happened during surgery- has anyone heard of problems in this department following a resection? In the grand scheme of things it is an insignificant issue but just another one of those things that they don't tell you.

Thanks, Catherine
 
Thank you so much for all of your replies- it really does help knowing that these symptoms are normal. I have spent most of the weekend at the hospital as he has been suffering from terrible anxiety attacks (he thought he was losing his marbles) and after two days we discovered that it was all stemming from a blockage which wasn't discovered until he started to feel pain two days later. As soon as he had the tube up his nose and into his stomach to drain away all the bile all the anxiety went- amazing how your physical symptoms can affect you mentally- wish they would prepare you for these things. He is on the mend now and a lot more positive.

He does however have one niggling question which he will be asking his surgeon Monday morning. He hasn't had an erection since the op and he is worried that something has happened during surgery- has anyone heard of problems in this department following a resection? In the grand scheme of things it is an insignificant issue but just another one of those things that they don't tell you.

Thanks, Catherine
well I cant say for him but for me with all the staples throwing up pain killers and so on I could prob say I would have had to think real good myself to get one lol glad that he is feeling better that's great news
 
Thank you so much for all of your replies- it really does help knowing that these symptoms are normal. I have spent most of the weekend at the hospital as he has been suffering from terrible anxiety attacks (he thought he was losing his marbles) and after two days we discovered that it was all stemming from a blockage which wasn't discovered until he started to feel pain two days later. As soon as he had the tube up his nose and into his stomach to drain away all the bile all the anxiety went- amazing how your physical symptoms can affect you mentally- wish they would prepare you for these things. He is on the mend now and a lot more positive.

I had ileostomy surgery a few weeks ago, and my digestive system became paralysed after the surgery. When they put the tube down my nose and pumped out all the bile, the relief was incredible! And yes, the pain - and not knowing what is was caused by or whether anyone could fix it - was very frightening. When they'd pumped my stomach, my fear level went down a lot too.

I know they always tell you to get up and move after surgery. Personally, I find I get up and move when I am ready. I think this depends on your personality. I know that I am eager to move, to get back to being independent and doing things for myself. So when I actually feel I don't feel well enough to get out of bed, I go with my instincts. This was true for my recent surgery. As I got better and felt better, my anxiety went down, my desire to get up came back, and I felt ready to start walking again.

For others it may be different - some people might need more encouragement and have to make themselves get up and walk, perhaps before they feel ready. This is a natural reaction too. If he feels ready to get up and do more, great. If he doesn't - that might be the right decision for him right now, but some gentle encouragement might be needed if his physical signs of health are improving and there is no obvious reason for him not to want to get up (pain, dizziness, etc. - if he is anxious about getting up and about, check with him to make sure why, as there might be a specific problem that needs addressing).

With surgery in general, everyone's recovery varies, but I think the important thing is that recovery should generally be linear. He might have times when the pain is worse, or he feels sick, or whatever, but overall you should see day by day improvements, even if those improvements are very small. If he seems to be going backwards - that's a concern. The times I've gone backwards it's been due to a complication - the paralysis after my recent surgery, and once before I developed an infection. It doesn't necessarily mean something's majorly wrong, but any sign of deterioration should be investigated by a doctor.

Whether or not he'll need surgery again is really impossible to say. I would try not to worry about that right now. The surgeon will have done everything he can to ensure that the most problematic parts have been removed, and he should keep seeing his doctors and gets the right medications, etc. to ensure he stands the best possible chance of not needing further surgery. But if he ever does, deal with that when it comes. If there is a second surgery, it won't be as scary as the first. But for now, concentrate on recovering - he's got through the hardest part; hopefully now he will feel better than before. :)
 
Btw. although mine was a different kind of surgery, I had severe complications afterwards and was in hospital two weeks. Even when I was discharged, just moving around, eating, etc. felt impossible. I've now been home just over two weeks, and am eating fine, moving around fine, no more nausea, only a little pain (and I'm not on any painkillers anymore). I'm still tired, and I can't lift anything heavy or bend much, I'm still sitting or lying most of the day, but I'm going for short walks round the garden everyday. But mostly, in just the two weeks since I was discharged, I've gone from feeling half-dead to feeling human again. You'll be surprised how quickly recovery can happen. When you're sick, it feels like you'll never get better, then just weeks later, you feel like a whole new person. :)
 
Wow...this is enlightening...Crohns Gal - how did your incision open up? Inside? or Outside? I'm thinking inside? What was the reason did you do too much too soon? Lift something? Doctor screw up? The pain must have been incredible. You poor thing. When did you go in for your surgery? I'm trying to figure out how long I will be out of work. I have a resection in my large intestines. Its about 10 inches long near end (about a foot up). I am trying to decide if I should go in now while i am still working and have Long term disability or if i should just leave my job now so I don't have to worry about getting back to work after the surgery. I wanted to wait for summer but...now I'm not so sure. Sorry - don't mean to hijack this post. I just see all of you have had this surgery. Also not a fan of the nose tube. Is this standard? Not liking the sound of this...Cat678 - I hope your BF is feeling better still and on the road to recovery. I bet he is nervous being just diagnosed so early on but maybe this was all slowly working up to this. He may have had it for years just never knew it? Maybe? I
t is scary though. Well, I will be praying for him. Keep us posted!
 
Also not a fan of the nose tube. Is this standard?

It wasn't standard for the surgery I had. I developed post-surgical ileus (paralysis of the digestive system), which is a complication that doesn't usually happen. Because nothing could move through my system, the bile built up in my stomach, which was incredibly painful - my stomach swelled up until it was enormous. That's the only reason I had the tube - through my nose to my stomach, to drain the bile. I hated the idea of the tube, but it was not bad at all. It was a bit uncomfortable being put in, but it was very quick. Once it was in it was fine - and it worked! With the bile gone, my stomach stopped swelling and the relief from pain was wonderful. They left the tube in, first attached to a bag to continuously drain bile, then later the nurses would come and pump it out every few hours or so.

But no, that's not typical.
 
Oh that is good to know. I have only heard from my mother it was terrible (for another issue) and so I have been so worked up about the thought of it when I go in for surgery. See - this is why I love this forum. Thank you for sharing. It really does help all of us to know what everyone is going through. It sounds like you are feeling better and I am happy to hear this. Good luck with the rest of your recovery!!!
 
Wow...this is enlightening...Crohns Gal - how did your incision open up? Inside? or Outside? I'm thinking inside? What was the reason did you do too much too soon? Lift something? Doctor screw up? The pain must have been incredible. You poor thing. When did you go in for your surgery? I'm trying to figure out how long I will be out of work. I have a resection in my large intestines. Its about 10 inches long near end (about a foot up). I am trying to decide if I should go in now while i am still working and have Long term disability or if i should just leave my job now so I don't have to worry about getting back to work after the surgery. I wanted to wait for summer but...now I'm not so sure. Sorry - don't mean to hijack this post. I just see all of you have had this surgery. Also not a fan of the nose tube. Is this standard? Not liking the sound of this...Cat678 - I hope your BF is feeling better still and on the road to recovery. I bet he is nervous being just diagnosed so early on but maybe this was all slowly working up to this. He may have had it for years just never knew it? Maybe? It is scary though. Well, I will be praying for him. Keep us posted!

In my case my surgery was planned for November but my GI had asked that if I felt I was having another obstruction that I go directly to his hospital. I had the NG tube to help open my obstruction and get my bowels moving again. At that point my medical team decided that I should stay and have my surgery.

As far as the incision goes. I had just finished my prednisone taper the day before entering the hospital and I take 150mg Imuran (Aza)/day. Both these drugs slow healing. While in hospital the incision had some redness around it concerning the Drs. That I might have an infection. 2 staples were removed by the surgeon, no abscess, so nursing was arranged for me to have my incision cleaned and packed daily at home. 13 days post op I had my staples removed. The next day the skin was open about one inch. I had a lot of drainage sitting in my incision behind my staples my GP figures this is why my incision wasn't healing together. The nurses came in and began packing my whole incision. What's ended up happening is that my incision has healed separately, the 2 staple area ended up becoming separate from the main incision so my nurses were packing 2 different areas. They pack my wound to encourage it to heal from the bottom up.

My original full open surgical incision was about 6 inches long. It's about 1.5-2" long now. I work as a preschool teacher with 2.5-4.5 year olds, if you've had any experience with kids this age, they love to run full tilt into you and their heads are at the same height as my incision. There is also a lot of lifting involved. Add that to the fact That I am immunosuppressed, and it makes my work environment unsafe for me. I don't think my surgical outcomes are typical. Thankfully for me I have excellent sick benefits so even though I've been off since September 10th I have only used 51 of my 125 paid sick days. I don't plan on going back to work until my incision is completely closed.:)
 

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