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So ya. Turns out I got pretty ill last year and ended up in the hospital for a month while they tried to treat me with my newly diagnosed UC. I had lost 52 pounds (20 or so kg) in just over a month and had some pretty intense bathroom sessions in which they were pretty graphic before they sent me off for my colonoscopy. They didn't seem very optimistic from the start about medical treatment and a month later I had my large intestine taken out. I just got back from the hospital yesterday after my J-Pouch construction phase (2nd of 3 surgeries including colectomy) and have now finally decided to check out online what these rad little pieces of intestines will bestow upon me in the near future. I might add now, that after perusing this forum for over an hour that I'm a bit discerned that there is quite a bit of negative shop talk about the reconnection part.

It seems to me most negative comments so far are people who have had their surgeries back in the 90's or earlier, is the risk of failure as high now than back then? Surely it's not.

I dealt with the 6 month, physical ileostomy transition surprisingly fine after a month or so and I found the toughest part was the mental battle, especially being a single male who enjoys his bachelorhood quite frivolously, as dealing with a bag with a tongue-like piece of intestine sticking out into it was pretty much the worst idea imaginable. I got back into skateboarding a little bit and actually became a bit more active overall.

I have opted for the J-Pouch as I've heard mostly good reviews about it, I haven't experienced too much other than minor dehydration so far (touch wood) with anything else, and I was hoping to get some feedback from anyone else who has dealt with this, which is all of you I would say..

Also, after my shower today I had a nap and things started functioning in my male-ness again after basically being dormant for the last 2 weeks, I was shocked to find some pretty scary looking bruising and adjacent pains with this temporary maladjustment. I then googled it and it led me to this forum and apparently this is normal, yay!

I was hesitant to join the online world about this and was just going to go about my life as if nothing ever happened, but now I'm glad I've read some real life experiences..

Yours Faithfully,
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This site is mostly visited by those that are having problems, those that are seeking more information about surgery, those headed for surgery, and those in recovery. What you don't see a lot of are visits from those of us who had surgery and moved on. I had surgery 14 years ago, best health decision of my life. I'm very physically active and surgery gave that part of my life back to me. With my jpouch I have hiked the John Muir Trail in the Sierra, backpacked, hiked in and out of the Grand Canyon and have completed many 100 mile+ thru hikes abroad. I have traveled the world extensively, and visited many 3rd world countries. None of this would have been possible with UC; in fact I had to cancel a trip to France the summer before I opted for surgery due to illness.

So read everything here with an understanding that some do continue to have troubles, but most of us don't.

Sue Big Grin
I am not sure if j-pouch failure risk has changed all that much in the last couple decades, except for a few things. Surgical technique has improved and patient selection has improved. So, they are somewhat better at weeding out Crohn's patients, and definitely better at choosing candidates for less conservative approaches.

It is 100% accurate that most people here post to get help with complications and advice for functional problems. Few people post to announce how great they are doing.

Bottom line, whether the failure rate is 5% or 20% (depends on what study you read and where you had your surgery); you may as well assume you are in the success category, since in all likelihood you will be. I had my surgery in 1995 and am doing fine. Not perfect, but fine.

Jan Smiler

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