Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Colonoscopy advice

11 replies

Inmyownlittlecorner · 24/02/2018 09:31

I’m due to have a Colonoscopy next week & I’m terrified.
I’ve been having the odd stomach pain for about 18 months now. I was seen by a consultant when I was admitted to hospital who did many scans etc, couldn’t find anything & said that she thought it was gynae related. I saw a Gynaecologist & ended up havei g a large polyp removed which has made a difference to my periods & the pain I experienced. However I still get pain in my upper left abdomen frequently.
The hospital admission also kicked started a health anxiety I never knew I possessed.
I have had no correspondence from the hospital on what, if anything I need to do to prepare for the colonoscopy & when I asked a friend about her experience to try to reassure me she told me that she had a pack from the hospital, had to fast, take laxatives, had a sedative & needed someone there to take her home. DH absolutely cannot get time off at this short notice & there is no one else. DH won’t be around in the evening/night either.
Can anyone share their experiences with having a Colonoscopy, recovery etc please¿
Thanks.

OP posts:
ALemonyPea · 24/02/2018 09:39

I had a colonoscopy in November last year. I got a pack from the hospital containing strong laxatives and bowel prep, and a diet to follow 4 days prior.

The bowel prep stuff is horrible, and it’s recommended you stay close to a toilet while you do it.

I had a sedative for the colonoscopy, it relaxed me more than anything, I didn’t feel,sleepy at all. DH collected me from hospital, but didn’t feel he needed to be there to look after me.

The colonoscopy itself wasn’t half as bad as I thought it would be, some slight discomfort, but nothing else.

Recovery was fine, no problems I can think of, not even any pain and bowel movements afterwards were fine.

Good luck op.

ALemonyPea · 24/02/2018 09:40

If you’ve not had a pack from the hospital, I’d definitely phone them Monday and find out why, everyone I know who’s had a colonoscopy has had a pack.

LivLemler · 24/02/2018 09:44

Hi OP. I've had a couple so will try help. If you haven't heard from your hospital you should get in touch. You will need to take a prep the day before to clear you out, and also eat a specific diet that day.

You will be given the choice of whether or not to have sedation. I would strongly recommend you accept it, especially if you're nervous.

Physically speaking, I found the day before the worst bit by far. The prep is rather... intense and you'll need to be home within easy reach of the loo once you've taken the first dose. You'll also need to drink lots and lots of clear fluids. There are a couple of different drugs used, so the instructions will vary, but the overarching theme is stay home with plenty of reading material!

Physically, I found the scope itself completely fine (and I fainted during blood tests a few months ago). One time the sedation knocked me out completely. The other I was sort of awake but very detached from all that was happening, I certainly didn't care about what they were doing.

Afterwards I had very slight discomfort (they puff gas in so they can see the bowel properly) and eating was the most amazing thing.

I'm sure this isn't easy with your health anxiety, but I hope I can reassure you that physically the process is fine. And worth doing to get answers or a clean bill of health! Flowers

loobylou10 · 24/02/2018 09:47

Agreed. You need picolax prep and fasting instructions. If you chose to have sedation then you will need someone to take you home afterwards.

Inmyownlittlecorner · 24/02/2018 09:59

Thank you so much everyone.
I’m glad I checked about the prep needed.

OP posts:
viques · 24/02/2018 10:50

As others have said, the worst part is the preparation because the stuff you have to drink, and there is quite a lot of it, tastes awful, but you are doing that part at home so that makes it easier.

some tips, put the jug of preparation in the fridge , it tastes marginally better when cold. Have some Vaseline handy for your bottom because it is going to be working overtime! Make sure your loo is warm, wear loose clothing and tell the rest of the family you have priority. It is not like having a bad dose of the runs, you will have been on a bland diet and have fasted so what comes out of you is not too unpleasant .

If you start taking the picolax stuff (or whatever they give you, might be a different name) at about six in the evening then everything will be more or less done and dusted by about 11 o'clock so you can get a decent nights sleep, you won't be up and down all night., but sleep on a towel in case of a drop of leakage.

During the procedure there is less of you on show than when you have a smear so don't feel embarrassed. The worst bit is the paper knickers with a hole! It is not painful though you might feel a bit of pushing at the last bit as it goes around, hang on for that, it's important they are as thorough as possible. Some people don't want to look, but I watched the screen and found it quite interesting through my Valium daze.

you will probably be very farty for the rest of the day.

Don't worry, as procedures go it is ok,I am sure there are worse, and it is a very effective and quick way of diagnosis. If they find polyps or anything suspicious they nip them out at the time or take a biopsy and send them for analysis, you won't feel the nipping btw.

MissTulipan · 24/02/2018 15:00

I had a flexible sigmoidoscopy yesterday, I am writing to comment on the sedative. I told the surgeon doing it that I wanted the sedative because I had a sore bum (Fissure) I think lots of people opt to not have it for sigmoidoscopy as it’s quite quick. But he was very understanding and when lying down ready he put the sedative in and said ‘here’s the magic stuff’ and the next thing I was in recovery. I don’t remember any of it, felt nothing at all. So from my experience the sedative was wonderful.

twinone · 24/02/2018 15:10

I am going to go against the grain here but I found the bowel prep fine.
I did follow the diet advice and also limited the amount of food I ate prior to taking the bowel prep, figuring I'd have less to get rid of Grin.
The procedure itself was fine, I had the sedation, wasn't given an option not to.
After I felt rather queasy and didn't feel great until the day after.
We (My twin sister had one too - it was for research purposes) had somebody to pick us up and take us home. Hospital wouldn't let us leave until he came to the unit to fetch us.

Floralnomad · 24/02/2018 15:18

I had a colonoscopy in November , the prep was definitely the worst bit however I would say don’t mix it with squash as it doesn’t make it taste any better . The way I managed was to drink a glass of the stuff really quickly followed immediately with a glass of squash . I decided to not have any sedation as I’ve got a high pain threshold anyway and all they offered was midazolam and pethidine both of which make me very sick . The actual procedure was uncomfortable more than painful and because I hadn’t had any sedation I was ready to go home very quickly .

WeaselsRising · 24/02/2018 15:29

I've had a few colonoscopies now and the actual procedure is nowhere near as bad as the anticipation. I always have sedation and generally don't remember any of it. I have never found it painful either. You just fart like a trooper afterwards.

This will cheer you up Agent Picolax

You must get someone to collect you though. They won't let you go home alone.

FaithEverPresent · 24/02/2018 15:36

I had one 18 months ago. Nowhere near as bad as I feared. I had the prep where you only had to drink two doses of 150ml rather than loads. My advice with the prep would be - stay at home, have a pack of those nice wet toilet wipes to hand. I also had incontinence pads which I wore overnight and to travel to the hospital just in case. Have a good book in the bathroom!

I had the sedation but honestly I could have managed without it. I’d describe it as mildly uncomfortable at times. Nowhere near as bad as I’d imagined.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page