Waiting for my first colonoscopy

[Deleted]

I wasn't really nervous until now!

Being back in a hospital gown sucks.

[Deleted]

Already over at home eating my victory dinner. Can't believe I stressed for that -it was nothing!

[aimeedyan]

Piece of cake, right? It's just the prep that sucks. The drugs are good (and I even woke during one and still didn't find it that bad!)

Did you find anything out that you didn't already know?

[Deleted]

I've been putting mine off for years. I've always been so focused on the nausea that I never seriously considered it was an issue that I colonoscopy would find. Now I've realized I need one, and I'm terrified to follow through with it.

[aimeedyan]

Apr 4, 2013 20:31:24 GMT -5 @pixiechinchilla said:

I've been putting mine off for years. I've always been so focused on the nausea that I never seriously considered it was an issue that I colonoscopy would find. Now I've realized I need one, and I'm terrified to follow through with it.

Are you scared of the procedure, or that something might be found? 

Schedule it. We can coach you through it! I promise the procedure is no big deal at ALL. And the best part about colonoscopies is that you get results immediately. Your GI can tell you right there in recovery what he/she saw and then the labs (if any were taken) are back within a day or two. And answers are a good thing.

[Deleted]

Apr 4, 2013 21:56:16 GMT -5 aimeedyan said:

Apr 4, 2013 20:31:24 GMT -5 @pixiechinchilla said:

I've been putting mine off for years. I've always been so focused on the nausea that I never seriously considered it was an issue that I colonoscopy would find. Now I've realized I need one, and I'm terrified to follow through with it.

Are you scared of the procedure, or that something might be found? 

Schedule it. We can coach you through it! I promise the procedure is no big deal at ALL. And the best part about colonoscopies is that you get results immediately. Your GI can tell you right there in recovery what he/she saw and then the labs (if any were taken) are back within a day or two. And answers are a good thing.

It's the prep that gets me worried. Everyone always talks about how awful it is, and with how bad my system is now I can't imagine what will happen when I have to do the prep. It sounds just awful. :/

[bcv513]

I'm glad you did well tacom! It was much easier than I was expecting too.

@pixiechinchilla, I was worried about the prep too. But it ended up being not that much different from a regular day.

[Deleted]

Apr 4, 2013 19:01:22 GMT -5 aimeedyan said:

Piece of cake, right? It's just the prep that sucks. The drugs are good (and I even woke during one and still didn't find it that bad!)

Did you find anything out that you didn't already know?

the prep wasn't pleasant, but even that wasn't as bad as I expected (I didn't vomit and I didn't have to miss any work or school - just did it at 6pm Wednesday then 5am Thursday - left for class at 7:30am Thurs).

my doc took a few biopsies so I'll get the results in a week. visibly everything looked ok but obviously the biopsy results are needed before we can say anything definitive.

[Deleted]

Apr 5, 2013 5:25:28 GMT -5 @pixiechinchilla said:

It's the prep that gets me worried. Everyone always talks about how awful it is, and with how bad my system is now I can't imagine what will happen when I have to do the prep. It sounds just awful. :/

no reason to put it off. if I recall correctly you don't have a solid diagnosis (sorry if I'm wrong!) - this could put you on the path to real treatment. that is SO worth the discomfort of a few hours.

and as someone who also has a "bad system," I will say that the prep felt like NBD. the side effects (nausea, bloating, diarrhea, perhaps vomiting) are all familiar to us anyways. the one comfort here is that you know when it's going to happen, you know why it's happening and you know it ends soon. 

[aimeedyan]

I agree - if you're already dealing with those symptoms, it's not much different than a regular day.

To be honest, I do a pre-prep liquid diet and I end up with VERY little to "clean out" when the time comes. It's not that the bathroom time bothers me it's drinking that gross stuff. I struggle with wanting to puke it up. But, you only have to drink the prep until things are running clear. So... by doing liquid only for a couple days prior to the prep, I end up having to drink very little of that stuff!

After a couple of scopes, I figured there had to be a way to cut down on the prep and this was key for me.