colostomy reversal

I too had an emergency surgery on 12/23/13 for perforated colon due to diverticulitis I too thought it was ovary pain because I have PCOS also. After the surgery I was on a colostomy bag for 5 months . I just had the reversal done on 05/22/14 and I am home recovering only complication so far was a hematoma which Dr said was normal. I am so scared about what I am eating for fear of recurring diverticulitis. The doctor put me on a regular diet last week and seems certain foods are causing cramps and pain ... I do not want to go thru anymore surgeries Dr says no chance of it happening again but I am reading stories online that it has happened so I am in constant fear ...

i had emergency surgery due to ruptured intestine and blockage, diverticulitis. thank GOD for Dr Harry Sun at St Barnabas Hospital in Livingston, NJ. The staff nurses everyone, are the best and really care about your comfort and well being.

tamschoolBoy does it help to hear everyone's stories and to know I'm not alone! I had an emergency bowel resection of my sigmoid colon on 6/3/14 after an evening of horrible stomach pain. I had just put my 11 month old down for the night, honestly only the 4th or5 th night she ever slept through in her life! Well at 10:38 I felt like I was being stabbed, I thought it was horrible gas, so I kept taking stuff 15 hours later, I'm in surgery and who knows how I reacted to "the bag" I had peritonitis and the whole 9 yards and now I'm just waiting for my reversal. I can't stand the bag, I know on lucky to be alive and that its reversible but man I can't wait I feel like I an gross and unattractive to my husband and the smell is making me paranoid. Sorry in not more inspiring, I just needed to vent. I know its got to get better. : (

Thank very much for your strength and courage..you are a brave lady.Peace be with you

HII WANT TO SHARE ALIL OF MY EXPERIENCE,AND GIVE AN ADVISE TO SOME OF YOU,I am 37 yrs old and i have gone through so much,at the age of 35 i thought a hysterectomy was the last thing i would have but recently in april 9th 2014 i ended up in the ER due to abdominal pain,lower back pain acompanied with body weakness,leg weakness,leg numbness,headaches and forgot to mention i am a diabetic,my sugar levels wer close to 400 and my pottassium was low.The hospital admited me that night after having a CTscan and it showed a ovarian cyst i had had overgrew so i had to have a mass removal the next day,went in for surgery and when i was cut open my obgyn found out that the cyst(mass)had overgrew to the point that it had damage my colon because it got stuck to it,so i ended up with a emergency colostomy and an appendectomy,the doc said in about 6 weeks i could have it reversed..it was hell for me after surgery by me not knowing what had happened to me when i started to wake up i didnt understand why it was so hard for me to move,i knew i had to feel pain from it but didnt know it had been 3 surgeries..i would hear the nurses deep in my sleep and like far far away talking about how i had gome through a major and long surgery but i didnt understand what they wer talking about..after 3 days i finally woke up better and found out i had a bag stuck to my body,it was prety shocking i just wanted to cry and get outa the hospital,well they took out that GP tube that was stuck to my tummy,they said i was gonna leak a day or so but the days passed by and it never stopped and i told the nurses i could smell the liquid,it was nasty,i told them it smelled like it was infected and nothing was passing through the bag either they said it was normal...they released me to go home around evening time,i was all scared not knowing how to adapt to my new life with this bag feeling nasty and having a whole lot of mixed feeligs inside and out,next morning around 5am i was in so much pain stii not passing nothing through the bag and still leaking from the GP tube hole.The abdominal pain got worse and worse mom took me back to the ER it was then when they found out i had an infection and my intestine had a narrow path,they had to stretch out my intestine and after that i was really dying,my mom said she knew i wasnt gonna make it,next day had a ABDOMINAL ABSCESS,i didnt know what that was they just told me i had to have another surgery due to infection THANK GOD IM ALIVE but thats the worse feeling ever then i was sent to a REHAB CENTER because i needed long term antibiotic so i was in there with 4surgeries and 2more holes in my tummy,it got ugly more abdominal pain 1GP tube stuck to me to drain liquid out,it stopped working my stomach and my abdomen got more sore tender and more painful,all of a sudden liquid was draining out of me through the GP whole not the tube,then 1 of the wounds started leaking a little blood then started draining ans squirting liquid out of my wound..that was terrible,through all this i only had been at the REHAB 3 or 4 days the last thing that happened was the GP tube fell from my tummy by itself i was panickin didnt know how to react to all that was happening to me so they transfered me to the hospital again with another infection,ended up with a WOUND VAC sent back to rehab,not being able to go nowhere i was so depressed,i would see the bag and all the wounds and holes on my tummy and cry, i couldnt stop now i had to wait longer for the reversed surgery..got out of rehab may 23rd..the doc said wait 6 more weeks for reversal,6 weeks are up and now im devastated because they dont tell me nothing i have to wait until october to see if they will schedule me for the surgery i feel down,never thought i would go through this,am i the only one feeliung down,i dont go out cuz its embarrasing,feel uncomfertable,i want to feel good just from the fact of being alive but depression dont help at all.....PLEASE IF YOUR BODY GIVES YOU SIGNS DONT IGNORE THEM THEY MEAN SOMETHING.....IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS POST FEEL FREE TO ASK...I DIDNT PUT ALL THE DETAILS BUT I CAN ANSWER ANY DOUBTS...SOMEONE MIGHT BE GOING THROUGH FAMILIAR CONDITIONS,HOPE IT HELPS

hope you have had reversal by now .I had mine 12 months ago ..now I live a normal life again , a bit fatter but no colostomy bag to worry about

I discovered this forum while waiting for my reattachment surgery and the stories here gave me much comfort and reassurance, so I thought I would share my experience as well.Like many here, I had emergency surgery after going in for severe abdominal pain.

May 22nd: Went to emergency room, followed by surgery early morning May 23rd.My intestine was leaking due to diverticulitus complications. During the presurgical scan they also found a mass on my ovary and performed a hysterectomy at the same time. Recover from the first surgery was long and painful, I also had to have the tube down my nose...that was the worst. Later I remembered that my nose was cauterized as a child to stop nose bleeds...so that may be why the tube was so painful.Total stay including hospital and nursing home/rehab was 20 days. Recovery was sped up once I was able to eat solid food. (after 10 days in hospital)From that point on I was feeling stronger every day.

On dealing with the Stoma/bag situation:The first day with the stoma/bag, I was sitting on the toilet in the hospital crying. I was sobbing over the bag and saying "I can't do this, I can't do this!"Believe me it does get better/eaiser as time goes by. I kept reminding myself that this is only temporary and how many people have to deal with this for life. After a while it really was not that big of a deal, no worse than changing a babie's diaper which you have to do for years, and this was only gonna be for a few months.

TIPS: 1. The bag fills up with air rather than waste. In my case the bag never "broke" but would instead come away from the skin to release air when it got too full, particularly in the middle of the night.This can be avoided by getting up every night after 4-5 hours sleep and clearing the bag whether you feel like it or not....beats waking up covered in sh!t.

2. I was told to avoid eating most vegetables (low residue diet) and felt sickly, and looked peaked and unhealthy because of the lack of nutrtition. Finally I started eating BABY FOOD and it made a big difference in my vitality and overall health. Baby food has come a long way in recent years.Most are organic and they have a large variety of fruit and veggie combos that taste great. Also it is cheap ( $1.00 - $1.50 per jar/pouch) and comes in individual servings.

Reattachment Surgery September 2nd:September 2nd 8am: reattachment surgery (a little over 3 months later)Surgery went well, duration: 1/2 hour. On a clear liquid diet, pain is considerable around the stoma site. Like before it is worst when sitting, to standing, basically enganging the abs in any way.

September 3rd: 10:02pm first gas (farting) bowels are waking up, can move on to soft food.Bowel wake up seems to be going slow and sporadic. Quiet for entire day, then rumblings start again.Put me on a stool softener, and vegetable laxative twice a day.

September 5th: Home from the hospital 3 days after surgery. Very sore...sleeping most of the time...gassy...nauseous...only able to eat a couple of tablespoons of soft food in one sitting.My belly is swolen and it looks like I am 5 months pregnant. Heating pad on the belly is helping.

September 7th: expelling what felt like diarrhea, but was actually a clear/milky mucus with some brown stool in the bottom of the toilet.(note: I was never given an enima and still had old stool from 3 months ago in my intestine...gross!)Clear mucus diarrhea continues for the next couple days, mainly mucus in toilet.

September 10th: extreme diarrhea all day and night (exploding ass time)...again although it feels like diarrhea there is clear mucus and brown stool which with each sequetial blast is becoming more and more tubular like normal stool.Also burnung sensation around anus. I'm not sure if it is just sore/raw or if it expelling the last of the vegetable laxative which I stopped taking because it was burning my stomach and makin me nauseous.

September 11th (9 days after sugery): Feeling almost normal for the first time in a long time, able to eat without feeling nauseous and bowels are becoming more controllable.Bowels calm the entire day. 10pm urge to go..first "normal" bowel movement, though still a alittle on the small side. Have some pain around wound, but lessening, cutting back on pain meds...weaning off.

***Weird side note*** For the first week after the reattachment I felt a "phantom" bag at the stoma site.I would feel that weird tickly sensation like when waste was coming out of the stoma.

My husband has just had it done. He also had a bad time the first time, but it was from infections. We had to wait 5 months to have the reversal done. We are in our second week of recovery. Everything is going well. He would not go back to the bag. But with all surgery you have adjustments you and your body have to make. We talked to 2other people who have had it done. They are back to a normal life.

Hello I like so many others had a large part of my colon removed. Was in hospital for almost a month due to infection. Was 95 % septic. almost died. But God and prayers saved me. Woke up and I had the bag...seven months later had my colon reconnected. So 2014 was not a good year for me. Now five months after reconnection. I still have issues a scarred up stomach. Which makes it look like it is stretched so tight. And a beer gut. But I dont drink. I am alive and Im very thankful. My advice have a good surgeon . I had a new surgeon and another hospital do my reconnection. Because the other one was so very bad. The reconnection went the opposite of my other two surgeries. A good doctor is so important. Keeping praying to God to heal you and give you strength. Jz

Do you take anything to try to control these frequent bowel movemrnts sometimes I will have as many as 10. My surgery. Was bavk in 2012. I am at my wits end

Mine was 2009. I do take loperamide hydrochloride occasionally when very loose and frequent, but I try to be careful the types of food I eat.

The reversal is MUCH easier. Tell him not to worry.. My 30 yr old Daughter went through the same thing.. The 1st surgery was an EMERGENCY and she almost died.. The 2nd surgery
went very well and she was also SCARED TO DEATH.. So glad that's over.. Good luck to you and your dad :)

Hi my husband is 35 and his colon ruptured from diverticulitis and he had a perforated bowel. He had to have 8 inch taken from his colon.He had to have emergency surgery and almost died. He had his reversal 4 months later. It's has been3 months now and complains about his stomach still hurting from gas. Is this normal

Better life with bag in His age.My husband 87 had surgery in January 2015 and reversal April 2015 /3 month later/.But what nightmare reversal turned in.Need to go surgery again 6 days after reversal and got bag again this time for the rest of His life.I wish we have had more inf about reversal complication.
His turned to be 3 hours surgery and a lot pain 24/7 on scale 1-10 He said it was worst than 10.
Anyway 4 weeks in Hospital and now in diapers for discharge from His rectum,colostomy bag and caseter because He can not urinate.
If we know about danger with reversal He will never have it done.He got these disposable bags for 3 month,eat what He please and had no problem and no pain.Just have to wear comfy pants to accommodate bag.In His age doesn`t matter He does not wear pants with belt etc...
Now I`m just hoping to get better and get out of care of nurses 16 hours a day.
Better life with bag than no life at all.Maybe it is more successful for younger ppl but not for my husband 87.

I had my emergency colostomy in February 2015, and had the reversal surgery done two weeks ago. All I can say so far is that the reversal is far worse then the first surgery. It's only been two weeks, though, and I am finally off of pain meds. There's a change after going through all this that I made need yet another colostomy as I had much scarring and the reconnection may leak. Not what I wanted to hear.