Just scared myself a lot! Damn google!

[tlc-x]

So, it's obvious that some time this year i'm going to have tests/investigations where they're gonna stick tubes in me. I got worried, so decided to google what they're like and do some research. Now the worried has turned to panic.

Sigmoidoscopy
Colonoscopy
Barium enema


Are the three likely apparently to help diagnose Crohns. I'm terrified. It sounds painful, uncomfortable and argh!

You would have thought that with IBD you'd get used to pain.. haha, ohh i'm so scared.

Anyone had any of those three then? What were they like?

My great aunt says that technology has changed, so all that I might need in to swallow a camera pill thing and they can see through that... i'm not sure if that exists though!

But yes, scared. I need to breath. I also need to stop doing this to myself!!





What if they do all these painful, uncomfortable tests and find I do just have IBS?! :ybatty:

 

[rygon]

Ive had the colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy (also known as a flexi). Being from Uk you are most prob likely only to have some local anaethetic for the colonoscopy (nothing for the flexi)

The worst part I found for the colonoscopy was the prep a couple of days before (limited diet and the moviprep which is awful on your bum). The test itself is a little bit uncomfortable but not painful. They dont last too long either (30mins tops), personally I wouldnt worry about them at all. Its pretty cool getting to see what your insides look like as well

 

[littlefreebird]

i've had all 3.
i wouldn't be nervous about any of them.

colonoscopy is the biggest procedure because the camera goes around the entire colon...however i found this personally to be the easiest. the bigger the procedure= the more sedation and meds you get to keep you comfortable. you are sedated but concious. i heard horror stories before mine but it was fine, i was given the sedation and muscle relaxant, i didn't even feel the camera go in, i just all of a sudden saw my insides on the screen, it felt like 2mins but the whole thing took about 20mins- 30mins.

sigmoidoscopy was more uncomfortable for me because i had a bad flare in the rectum at the time- i wasn't given anything for it and i kicked up a bit of a fuss, eventually they 'said' they put sedation in my IV but i am convinced it was water as it made no difference....they used a children's camera scope and they were 'in' for about 3mins before i told them i couldn't do it anymore- they stopped the procedure and luckily still got the pictures they needed so don't worry about this.

the barium enema is just an enema which is unpleasant but is over in seconds, you're then in and out getting xrays over a period of a few hours. i've had the barium drink also which isn't that nice but i used to close my eyes and pretend it was alcohol lol and is much easier to drink through a straw as it makes less contact with your mouth.

in total honesty i dread the bowel prep you get before these procedures than the actual procedures themselves and i'm sure a lot of people here feel the same so don't worry!

 

[StarGirrrrl]

The barium enema is quite unusual in the UK, usually the Drs go for the Barium xray which is much better. You just drink the stuff and have xrays taken.

I know it is scary, the thought of these tests, but they have to be done so you can get better.

The scopes sound alot worse than they are, they really are not that bad, what is bad i'm afraid is the bowel prep beforehand. You may think your D is bad now but the prep is designed to flush out the colon. That means once all the solid has gone, that liquid still goes through your colon as it is designed to and has come out of your bum.

Once you are over than and done with it the procedures is a breeze. Once the scope goes in and you get over the discomfort, you will realise it's not so bad. The upper endoscopy isn't too great though, I went for the throat numbing spray instead of the light sedation,
I wish they had offered me both!

There is a Capsule Endosocpy (or Pill Cam) which is what your Great Aunt meant, however while it can't take biopsies like the scopes, it can visualise the whole small bowel which the scopes can't- they can only peek in at either end (upper endoscopy and colonoscopy/flexi sig) of the 15ft organ. But it is a very expensive test and your local PCT may well restrict the use, which means if you don't fit their criteria you won't get it, unless you have several thousand and go private. I was denied one in March 2011 and haven't had any luck in persuading them otherwise yet. Some areas provide it no questions asked and some don't. The scope(s) however will be done first as they are the norm and the CE isn't. If you can go private for it you will still need to have had recent scopes for them to agree to do it.

Tash there is also an Undiagnosed section of the forum where you are more than welcome to post

 

[rygon]

Also used is the MRI scanner for the small bowels, no problem there at all (again needed some bowel prep beforehand)

If you do have the bowel prep, make sure you have some soothing cream for your bum (you will need it, it can get very sore). Also a pile of books, laptop etc as you will be camping out in the toilet for most of the day

 

[Emily]

I've had multiple colonoscopies, a barium swallow, plus a barium enema. The colonoscopy is a breeze (other than the prep) cause you are completely out and as soon as you wake up, your good to go home (plus you feel nice from the anesthesia).

The barium swallow, which you didn't say your getting is annoying and uncomfortable.

Onto the barium enema. It was AWFUL...just terrible. They didn't put me out at all cause I had to keep rolling around on the scanner or whatever, all the while having barium pumped up my butt and the barium sort of hurts in your intestines. But there was a nurse there whose sole job was to relax me and in the end it was okay, because it proved to be extremely useful after my surgery (they had to check if there was a leak-the enema proved there wasn't and ended up getting me out of the hospital!)

Since you are in the prediagnosis stage, these are all kinda necessary... They are annoying but just remember this all so that you can get some answers and feel better! Good luck!

 

[Rebecca85]

As you are. 16, are you still under a children's hospital? If so I think they make the process easier! There was a little boy who underwent testing at our school and I'm pretty sure his prep wasn't as unpleasant as mine!

 

[Jin]

I've had all three done and you have nothing to be worried about

They're a tad awkward and perhaps annoying to put up with but nothing to fret about.
The colonoscopy prep I HATE lol but it needs to be done so there's not much choice.

Good luck with the tests and keep us posted!

 

[tlc-x]

As you are. 16, are you still under a children's hospital?

No, i'm in the adult section for the actual specialist. Last year they sent me to the childrens section and they aren't specialist, just child specialists, so they didn't know what to do and then discharged me when my flare up went down - so this flare has been worse. So i'll be an adult.. scary!

 

[StarGirrrrl]

Can I just remind folks that OP is in the UK and we only get twilight sedation

 

[Gabismommy]

I have had a colonoscopy. They put me to sleep though. The worst part was definitely the prep and I was kind of uncomfortable from the gas for a couple hours afterwards. It's not too bad and trust me it is worth it in the long run to feel better. I hope things get better soon!

 

[moogie]

I had them too. Like it was said before nothing to really worry about. I love the sedation I wish I can get some for home when teh kids act up

The prep drink is awful though. Good luck!

 

[tlc-x]

Thanks to this post i'm not so worried about the actual procedure.. just the prep Oh well i've had loads of different issues in my life so had lots of weird and disgusting medicines to drink!

 

[Gabismommy]

If it makes you feel any better, when I did the prep I was only super sick feeling twice and not for long at all. Maybe 30 minutes. I don't know if all preps work with drinking it in two doses but that is what I did. Each time within minutes I got sick however it went away very quickly once I got the prep back out of me. Haha. Hopefully if you get sick it will pass quickly as it did for me! Good luck!

 

[lifesover]

Thanks to this post i'm not so worried about the actual procedure.. just the prep Oh well i've had loads of different issues in my life so had lots of weird and disgusting medicines to drink!

I'm the worlds biggest baby, I have had 4 colonoscopies now, the preps are the worst, as I don't like drinking meds, but I must say it's not that bad once you've taken it, it's mostly in the mind.

For the colonoscopy They give me (in Spain) some drip that looks and acts like water, I have told them it does nothing but make my mouth dry, it's more uncomfortable than anything else, every one I have had has been different. I had one in Hungary which I didn't even feel.

I had the Endoscopy (down my throat) too, that's awful but very fast, I didn't have any sedation despite begging for it lol. Looking back it's worrying before that is worse.

If you can stop the worrying before you go, you have cracked it because that is far worse than the procedure.

All the best.

 

[Rebecca85]

The prep does taste bad (especially if you get Moviprep!) but here are some tips for coping with it:
Go on to a low residue / light meal diet a bit earlier than recommended in the leaflet they give you.
Chill the drink as much as possible (if you can get some of those gel ice cube things they would be good, they really cool it down without adding extra water).
Rubbing an ice cube on your tongue is supposed to help numb the taste buds too.
Some people find it's easier with a straw placed to the back of the mouth, others prefer to gulp as quick as possible.
A heat pad or hot water bottle can help ease cramping as you go to the toilet. After you are cleaned out, a hot bath might help.
Make sure you have plenty to do (eg a laptop, books, portable dvd player) in the bathroom! You might want to borrow some things off friends and family in preparation.
Before you start,smear Vaseline around your anus, this makes clean up easier and so you will be less sore. Reapply after each visit.
Use wet wipes!
Drink plenty of water in between each glass of prep- most of it will come straight out but it helps clean things out.
if you are 'running clear' then you can stop drinking the prep and continue with plain water, my nurse told me they do give a bit extra prep just in case someone is constipated or something.

Hope there's some useful stuff there!

 

[lookame]

Colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy are the 2 I've had done. Colonoscopy is your best bet to get a dignosis and your wiped out completly under for that so you'll only feel the after effects.

Honestly they aren't that bad and it's best to have em get em done with and move on with life. Don;t get caught up in oh it's going to hurt because that pain doesn;t last long. Of coarse anything new is scary but in the end you'll find that you feel a little silly getting all worked up over something so small.

Everyone here though has had one or the other or all 3. Especially a colonoscopy since they are able to biopsy and gain results via a biopsy. Now chances are your GI won;t jump right into letting you a have a pill cam, most insurance companies won;t cover a pill cam unless a colonoscopy and bariarum follow trough have been done first so your going to have to get a colonoscopy(at least). Also there are a lot of complications that can occure with a pil cam since the camera is actually a prtty big size and it can get trapped and ause a blockage, whereas the colonoscopy they shove a camera up there and if they find they can;t get it through they just take the camera out. So I rambled anyway just relax and cross that bridge when you come to it.

 

[littlefreebird]

i HATED the transfer from kids to adults- theres some difference!!

i was 10 when i was diagnosed and i'm 21 now- they put me under adult care from the age of 15

 

[tlc-x]

How come littlefreebird? I'm not worried about going in to the adult section because they'll sort me out hopefully, whereas the childrens section didn't have a clue, nor did they even try to find out.

 

[rygon]

Just remember to ask questions to your doctor. I find docs arent too forthcoming with information ( i assume they think you already know it all). So any questions you have its best to ask there and then before you forget.