First Ever Colonoscopy on Wednesday

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MissLeopard83

MissLeopard83

Joined
Jul 5, 2016
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My colonoscopy is set for Wed, the 20th, at 9:30am. I have to arrive at the surgery center at 7:45am (not sure why I have to be there almost 2 hours earlier). I got the MoviPrep about 2-3 weeks ago and read the directions immediately so I know exactly what to do. This is what I got to consume tomorrow:


  • 2 bottles of lemon-lime Gatorade
  • 2 boxes of lime Jello
  • 1 bottle of concentrated chicken broth (makes WAY more than the standard carton)
  • 1 bottle of concentrated beef broth
  • 1 bottle of sparkling mandarin orange water
  • 2 cartons of coconut water (I don't want to get dehydrated)
  • plenty of my favorite soda as I drink it all day long
  • 1 little bottle of flavored water drops (non-colored)
  • 1 bag of natural gummy bears (made with clear, natural fruit juice and NO dye)
  • 1 box of popsicles made with lime juice (no fruit bits or yogurt)
  • PLENTY of regular water
I am definitely prepared to be sitting on the toilet all day, too. I have:

  • A&D ointment
  • plenty of magazines and books
  • a small fan so I don't get too hot as our bathroom does
  • 4 packages of flushable wet wipes
  • plenty of toilet paper, though I don't plan to use it as much as the wet wipes since I don't want raw skin from friction
I've read some horror stories (accidentally) of people who had accidents during their prep, so I decided to buy some disposable underwear, just in case.


I plan to do the split-day dosing as I've read that it provides the BEST results. My doctor's office said to do the first prep at 5pm and the next at 8pm, but I don't want to be up all night. Split-day dosing is even recommended by the MoviPrep website, so I'm going to break the rules. They say that it helps flush everything out that was there the night before. The receptionist who called me this afternoon about the confirmation told me to drink nothing after midnight, but even that is wrong according to the directions my doctor gave me. I was told nothing after 2 hours before your procedure.


https://moviprep.salix.com/about-moviprep/split-dosing


So, wish me luck! I doubt I'll be posting on here very much as I'll probably be napping in between drinking plenty of liquids. I definitely want to rest in case I'm up all night tomorrow.
 
I'm having one tomorrow too! Gotta be there at 9 and mine isn't until 10:30. You are way more prepared then me. I have chicken broth that's it.

I have to do the Gatorade/miralax mix. 2 32 oz bottles I have to drink. Then 4 ducolax tablets.

I'm think of starting a bit earlier than it says to too. I have done this before and it has been an awful experience. Before, it hasn't went all the way through and it sent me in the hospital with vomiting. So I'm praying all goes well, for me and you!
 
Ckk4 said:
I'm having one tomorrow too! Gotta be there at 9 and mine isn't until 10:30. You are way more prepared then me. I have chicken broth that's it.

I have to do the Gatorade/miralax mix. 2 32 oz bottles I have to drink. Then 4 ducolax tablets.

I'm think of starting a bit earlier than it says to too. I have done this before and it has been an awful experience. Before, it hasn't went all the way through and it sent me in the hospital with vomiting. So I'm praying all goes well, for me and you!
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I hear ya. I started the clear liquid prep a little later than I planned. I slept until 9:15 and then took a shower. Afterward, I started with some soda and I'm on my second mug of chicken broth. I wish I had made the Jello last night. I made it just about 1.5 hours ago so it has to sit for another 2.5 hours in the fridge. I made some lime Jello that I bought yesterday and I found a box of lemon Jello in the pantry. I'm going to mix them together. The chicken broth is really good. I haven't tried the beef broth yet, but I plan to later on. It feels weird not eating, but I'm pretty sure I can handle it.

I just remembered I need to mix the first dose of my MoviPrep and put it in the fridge so it's nice and cold for when I drink it later. :)
 
Very best wishes to you both.
I hope your Prep days go as you'd like,but don't get complacent.
I started my last one at 5pm and I was STILL running to the bathroom at 6am.I also had to go at the hospital.But we're all different.It's only one day and the relief you feel when you're back home is great.Hope your results are ok.Please let us know how things went,both of you.It's always a help to others.
 
MissLeopard83 said:
I hear ya. I started the clear liquid prep a little later than I planned. I slept until 9:15 and then took a shower. Afterward, I started with some soda and I'm on my second mug of chicken broth. I wish I had made the Jello last night. I made it just about 1.5 hours ago so it has to sit for another 2.5 hours in the fridge. I made some lime Jello that I bought yesterday and I found a box of lemon Jello in the pantry. I'm going to mix them together. The chicken broth is really good. I haven't tried the beef broth yet, but I plan to later on. It feels weird not eating, but I'm pretty sure I can handle it.

I just remembered I need to mix the first dose of my MoviPrep and put it in the fridge so it's nice and cold for when I drink it later. :)
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Can we eat like the flavor ice Popsicles?
 
Good luck! MissLeopard, they usually like to get you there so early because there are a few things they have to go through before the procedure. Things like, hooking you up to an IV (to keep you hydrated and so that they can inject the sedative), and hooking you up to monitors (so that they can keep an eye on your pulse rate, BP, etc - you won't be intubated since it's just sedation and not anesthesia, but they still like to keep an eye on your vitals). And they'll go through a bunch of pre-procedure questions, ask you when was the last time you ate/drank, ask how the prep went, ask what meds you're currently taking, and so on. Plus you get to change into the oh-so-flattering hospital gown. :p All of that stuff together takes a bit of time, so that's the reason for getting there so early.

As for not eating - just don't watch any network TV. I swear, the first couple times I did prep, I watched TV, and all the commercials seemed to be for food/restaurants. It was like torture! The most recent time I did prep, I left the TV off or watched Netflix in between bathroom trips, and that went much better. Just avoid commercials and don't watch any food-related shows and you'll be okay. The not eating is hard but it's only one day. I always plan out what I'm going to eat after my scope, that helps me deal with the not eating.
 
Just a little (from experience) advice....I overloaded on liquids the day before my 2nd scope...did my prep at 5pm, drank non stop liquids and still didn't go...I was miserable as I was plugged full of liquids...took my 2nd dose at about 10pm and the flood gates opened for about an hour. I then dosed off and on all night and was up maybe 4-6 times. You are well prepared and I hope all goes smoothly. (Had my 3rd scope 2 weeks ago- with very little sedation- it was fine)
 
I just got up from a long nap and I'm eating lemon-lime Jello (tastes so good!). I have the first dose of MoviPrep mixed and ready to go as it's been sitting in the fridge for several hours. I'll be taking it soon. I've already had a few BMs today without it (I think it's the chicken broth with sodium), so I hope it works smoothly. Right now, I'm watching a movie on Amazon Prime (Twister; I love that movie). :)
 
I just started drinking the solution with a straw. That stuff tastes TERRIBLE. I have to drink 8 ounces every 15 minutes. God awful stuff.
 
MissLeopard, I haven't done that particular prep, but I've heard others say to push the straw as far back in your mouth as you can - that way it'll sort of bypass your taste buds. Keeping the prep very cold should help too. Good luck, just remember that prep is the worst part and tomorrow should be a breeze. You just have to get through this yuckiness and then tomorrow you get a nice sedation nap. :)
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
MissLeopard, I haven't done that particular prep, but I've heard others say to push the straw as far back in your mouth as you can - that way it'll sort of bypass your taste buds. Keeping the prep very cold should help too. Good luck, just remember that prep is the worst part and tomorrow should be a breeze. You just have to get through this yuckiness and then tomorrow you get a nice sedation nap. :)
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I wish I had a longer straw. The canister is too tall. I'm just drinking it as fast as I can. I only have 8 more ounces of the first dose left.
 
Well, I finished the whole entire canister of the first dose and then drank 20oz of Lemon-Lime Gatorade. No quick trips to the bathroom yet, but I can feel it drawing water into my intestines as my abdomen is bigger than usual. I know I said I was going to do the second dose tomorrow morning, but I changed my mind - I'm going to do it tonight as directed by my doctor. I'll keep drinking liquids through the night to speed things along. Right now, I'm watching "Twister" and eating some more Jello.

I mixed the second dose and put it in the fridge. :)
 
Well, it looks like I was off on my colonoscopy time tomorrow. I thought it was 9:30am but my patient portal says 9am. The sooner the better! :)
 
Things are moving right along (forgive the pun). No cramping, vomiting or nausea. The only thing that is yucky is the taste of the prep. I just started the 2nd dose so only 24 more ounces to go in 45 minutes.
 
Finished the prep and things are running clear, which I'm very happy about, but my other end is not. A&D is only helping a little. The good news is that it seems to be slowing down, so I may be able to go to sleep soon (I hope!). I hope I don't have to do another one of these for a while.
 
Has anyone had a lot of burping with the prep? I keep getting air bubbles up my throat. When I first got them, I thought I was about to throw up or something, but it was just gas.
 
Well, nothing has happened in about an hour, so I'm planning to get to bed soon. Hopefully, there won't be too much interruption. My BMs are clear, so it should be OK.
 
I got about 4.5 hours of sleep. Just took my thyroid medication and am waiting to take my Bentyl at 7am, then nothing allowed from then on. I cannot wait to get back home and take a long nap - after I eat of course. My stomach is growling so much, I swear that a lion or tiger is in there. LOL!
 
Just got home a few minutes ago. Everything went smoothly. My care team was very nice - I even got some of the same people as last time, so that was nice and they recognized me, too. The doctor didn't see any inflammation during the scope except for some small non-bleeding internal hemorrhoids (I did have a small amount of bleeding this morning when I wiped, but I used plenty of A&D ointment). He took biopsies of the terminal ileum and the entire colon with cold forceps and sent them to pathology to check for microscopic colitis. He also removed a small polyp and sent that to pathology. Polyps run in my family, so I'm not surprised. The last thing I remember before the procedure is the nurse injecting the "milk of amnesia" (Propofol) and then I woke up in recovery 30 minutes later. I went in earlier than my procedure time of 9am - I went in at 8:15am. That was really nice. Now, I'm just relaxing at home and trying to toot as much as possible to get rid of CO2 they injected during the procedure. :)
 
Ah, yes, the farting after a scope can sometimes be quite prolific! They used to do colonoscopies at my local hospital, and would put all the colonoscopy people in the same recovery area with just curtains in between the beds, so you could hear everyone farting and everyone could hear you farting. :p They've fortunately more recently built a new GI clinic where they do the colonoscopies now, with private recovery rooms (an actual room, not just curtains), so for my last couple scopes I got to fart in privacy. :)
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
Ah, yes, the farting after a scope can sometimes be quite prolific! They used to do colonoscopies at my local hospital, and would put all the colonoscopy people in the same recovery area with just curtains in between the beds, so you could hear everyone farting and everyone could hear you farting. :p They've fortunately more recently built a new GI clinic where they do the colonoscopies now, with private recovery rooms (an actual room, not just curtains), so for my last couple scopes I got to fart in privacy. :)
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It was hysterical! Right after I woke up, the nurse asked if I would like something to drink and I agreed to ginger ale. She said, "I'll go get your drink. Try to see if you can get rid of some of the gas." Right as she left, I farted. LOL! I got home and immediately felt like I needed to go to the bathroom but it was a bunch of gas. Let me tell you, it was so much quicker to expel the gas in my intestines than it was from my stomach when I had my endoscopy. Gas was sitting in there for about 2 days and it HURT. I took simethicone then and it still hurt. I don't think I'll need to take it this time! :lol2:
 
I'm having to ice my wrist area since the nurse put the IV in my hand again - GAH! The recovery nurse took the needle out and it was already bloody because the prep nurse really jabbed it in. It hurt really bad - like someone was pinching me really hard. Now, my vein is all swollen and sore. I put some ice in a bag and wrapped a paper towel around the bag. It feels better already.
 
Just fixed myself some over-easy eggs (love those runny yolks!) and managed to eat very well. They tasted SO good! My stomach is a little happier and not growling nearly as much as it was this morning. :)
 
MissLeopard83 said:
I'm having to ice my wrist area since the nurse put the IV in my hand again - GAH! The recovery nurse took the needle out and it was already bloody because the prep nurse really jabbed it in. It hurt really bad - like someone was pinching me really hard. Now, my vein is all swollen and sore. I put some ice in a bag and wrapped a paper towel around the bag. It feels better already.
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I've started asking them to do it in my inner elbow (like where they take blood) OR in my lower arm (vs my hand) --- and they have done that for me in the past!
 
I *hate* IVs in the wrist! It's so flipping painful! The inner elbow area is so much less painful, I agree with JenS - if they try to do an IV on my wrist, I always ask if that's necessary or if they can do my inner elbow instead.

Mmm, eggs over easy sounds delicious! I love runny yolks as well! Glad to hear you got a good meal. :)
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
I *hate* IVs in the wrist! It's so flipping painful! The inner elbow area is so much less painful, I agree with JenS - if they try to do an IV on my wrist, I always ask if that's necessary or if they can do my inner elbow instead.

Mmm, eggs over easy sounds delicious! I love runny yolks as well! Glad to hear you got a good meal. :)
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The nurse could tell I was tensing up when she was getting it in because my heart rate, which was already elevated, was going up because of the pain. For some reason, I have "white coat syndrome." I don't know why, but I always have high BP and pulse rates when I am at the doctors' office. The anesthesiologist, fortunately, remembered from last time and didn't make a big deal about it. She even told the nurse that it was normal for me.

The eggs were good, but my gut is still a little tender. I'm definitely going to have to take it easy with food for the next day or two.
 
I took a nap a few hours ago, and woke up with a tender belly button. Before my nap, I decided to start taking the Florastor regimen my doctor prescribed me as I have read that colonoscopy prep can kill the good bacteria in your gut. It worked well when I had gastroenteritis by getting rid of the symptoms MUCH quicker. However, I hate how expensive it is and I only have a few capsules left. I'm supposed to take 1 capsule in the morning and another at night. Gotta buy some more tomorrow.

I also have some remaining diarrhea which irritating and very watery. I'm trying to stay as hydrated as possible.

Anyway, I hope the belly button pain and the diarrhea are mostly gone by tomorrow morning as I'm supposed to return to work. The pain makes it hard to sit straight up, which is a problem since I work an office job.
 
The diarrhea is TERRIBLE and the hemorrhoids aren't helping. I just sent my dad to the store to get some hemorrhoid cream to shrink them up so they'll stop feeling like someone is jabbing me with knives. I'm running a low-grade fever, too. I really hope I don't end up calling off for work tomorrow. I've only called off 1 time since I started there 7 months ago and I would really like to go back tomorrow. The schedule turns into a disaster otherwise (I'm the scheduler for the nursing departments in a retirement community). :(
 
Well, I'm back at work today, but still a little sedate and tender. I don't feel like I'm going to fall asleep or anything, but I definitely feel calm. The lower part of my abdomen is cramping a little. The pain around my belly button went away last night right after I took some Kaopectate for the awful diarrhea. I could not keep having D because it felt like I was pooping razor blades. Preparation H helped somewhat, but it's still raw. I might get some of the stuff people recommend here - Calmoseptine - at the drugstore after work. A&D is my favorite stuff, but it really wasn't doing squat yesterday. I realized that I put black pepper on my eggs yesterday (habit!) which was also a BAD idea. I wasn't even thinking when I did it, but it definitely did not help with the burning at all.

Anyway, I'm hoping the day goes by fast. I didn't get much sleep yesterday because my mom and dad decided to have two contractors out to the house and our dog wouldn't stop barking non-stop. :(
 
Are you able to have a heating pad or hot water bottle at work? That could help with the belly pain. If you're not allowed to have a heating pad plugged in at work, look into either a hot water bottle or a microwaveable heating pad. I have a microwaveable stuffed animal that I keep at work, it holds the heat for up to an hour and it's come in handy a few times (although I do look like a crazy person holding a stuffed cow to my abdomen, hah). I also have a hot water bottle that I keep at work - I can microwave water in a bowl or cup and then fill the hot water bottle with it.

I am one of the people who swears by Calmoseptine - it won't shrink hemmies, but it's very cooling and soothing and will take away the "ring sting" feeling. I use it almost daily even in remission - I put a dab on before doing anything active to prevent chafing back there, like if I'm going to the gym or if I'm going to walk my dog, I'll put on a bit of Calmo first. It's great stuff. They usually keep it behind the pharmacy counter, so you might have to go to the pharmacy window and ask for it specifically. Or you can order it online, which is what I do because I hate having to go to the pharmacy counter and ask for butt cream. :p
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
Are you able to have a heating pad or hot water bottle at work? That could help with the belly pain. If you're not allowed to have a heating pad plugged in at work, look into either a hot water bottle or a microwaveable heating pad. I have a microwaveable stuffed animal that I keep at work, it holds the heat for up to an hour and it's come in handy a few times (although I do look like a crazy person holding a stuffed cow to my abdomen, hah). I also have a hot water bottle that I keep at work - I can microwave water in a bowl or cup and then fill the hot water bottle with it.

I am one of the people who swears by Calmoseptine - it won't shrink hemmies, but it's very cooling and soothing and will take away the "ring sting" feeling. I use it almost daily even in remission - I put a dab on before doing anything active to prevent chafing back there, like if I'm going to the gym or if I'm going to walk my dog, I'll put on a bit of Calmo first. It's great stuff. They usually keep it behind the pharmacy counter, so you might have to go to the pharmacy window and ask for it specifically. Or you can order it online, which is what I do because I hate having to go to the pharmacy counter and ask for butt cream. :p
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Unfortunately, I'm unable to use either a heating pad or a hot water bottle. I'm thinking about getting some Thermacare patches, however, since they are self-heating and I can wear them under my clothes. Not sure how much of this will last through tomorrow, though.

I will definitely make sure to look for the Calmoseptine in the place you mentioned. I saw it was sold on Amazon and I have Prime, so I could get it as early as tomorrow. So far, today, I haven't had any BMs (the Kaopectate does too good of a job; I wanted to take Imodium, but I couldn't find my stash) so the hemorrhoids aren't being irritated today. It's a good thing because here, everyone knows your business since the bathrooms are in really public places. Either I have to walk through one of the nursing wings or all the way down to the other end. Either way, people see what I'm carrying and are really nosy. It's OK when I'm wearing a skirt and I can just tuck the tube in the top and pull my shirt over it, but I'm wearing a dress today with no pockets. :thumbdown:
 
I have similar issues at work, the bathroom is not super close to my desk and I'm not carrying a big tube nor my entire purse to the restroom with me. I keep the Calmo tube in my purse and just squeeze a bit onto a tissue, then fold that up and put it in my pocket or just hold it in my hand if I have no pockets, and just bring that tissue into the bathroom with me. That's the best system I've found for dealing with that particular problem.
 
Cat-a-Tonic said:
I have similar issues at work, the bathroom is not super close to my desk and I'm not carrying a big tube nor my entire purse to the restroom with me. I keep the Calmo tube in my purse and just squeeze a bit onto a tissue, then fold that up and put it in my pocket or just hold it in my hand if I have no pockets, and just bring that tissue into the bathroom with me. That's the best system I've found for dealing with that particular problem.
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That's a good idea. I'll have to remember that. :)

I looked up some more information about polyps since the GI doc removed 1 during my colonoscopy and it says that it can be a sign of inflammation. I'm still pretty young - about to be 33 next week. I'm hoping to get the results back within a few business days as they were really quick last time when I had my endoscopy.
 
Wow, the IV site is still hurting. I can see a nasty bruise has formed under my skin where some blood pooled. I don't think I'll let that nurse stick me again. The first time I went there, they stuck it in my hand but the nurse at that time was MUCH better. It didn't hurt quite as much as it did this time. Ick! I just remembered I had some pain relief spray (Aspercreme) in my bag, so I just sprayed a little on the bruise. Maybe it will help the swelling go down.
 

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