Incontinence right after surgery

hi Mary,

I am 8 weeks post takedown right now on j-pouch number 2.
This last takedown I ended up with a 13 day ileus and was ultimately sent home with a TPN infusion that was to be given to me daily by a homecare nurse. Two days after I got home, the insides finally started working again.

I had the incontinence you describe during the ileus and the only way to counter it was with depends adult diapers. Fast forward 6 weeks to today. I still wear depends in the nighttime because the accidents still happen in mid sleep. However, the frequency is going down.
You are potentially in for a rough ride. I had a complete blockage 2 days after the ileus cleared up and was afraid that the ileus was back. But it turned out that the pouch, still being so fresh, had not yet properly positioned itself. So contortions on the toilet were in order to get 'it' out.

I am now finally at the point where I have more good than bad days, but it's still far from where I'd want it to be.

Take it slow, you underwent major surgery. Even though the takedown seems like a minor thing, all your insides need to get used to the new 'normal'. And that is major.

The one thing right now that seems to be a lifesaver for me is Metamucil. If I slack and forget a dose, I am paying the price for that. Definetly try it out when your ileus will clear up. Lomotil is not such a big success for me anymore. Neither is Imodium. It seems these are mainly affecting the colon or maybe the pouch at a later stage. Just not yet for me.

Also, highly recommend Ilex cream to counter the obligatory buttburn in the first while.

Keep,your spirit up, the first jpouch I had was a charm and made a world of a difference for me compared to previous UC and CRC days. I had to give it up because my previous surgeon left me with ten centimeters of colon between pouch and rectum. And law and behold, I had three nasty precancerous polyps 2 years later. So here's to round two ! Still wouldn't trade it for any alternative.

merry Christmas,

Toddi

Thanks Toddi! I meant to say the stool is fairly NON odorous at this point - I haven't been eating.
How much Metamucil do you take? What form? How often?
Also- how did you know your ileus resolved?

I take a tablespoon of metamucil before each meal. Had my takedown end of August. What a difference the metamucil makes. It even helps with the butt burn!!!

Hi Mary,

I take 2 large measuringspoons full of Metamucil per day. One in the AM, one in the PM in 8oz of cold water.
The trick is to guzzle it quickly before it 'coagulates'. I use the orange tasting kind and find it OK to drink.

How did I know the Ileus had resolved. Lets just say it was the most anticipated fart of my life. Once I passed air I felt my insides move and started on clear liquids right away. Tolerated those and was on my way to real food very soon.

Hope your Ileus clears up quickly. Its such a frustrating waiting game.

Toddi