Hi, i hope you are doing better by now. I don't know how old this post is. I also had LAR, 5 yrs ago. Over 10" of sigmoid removed due to diverticulitis that was serious, abcess. I developed an allergy to the cipro, part of the treatment, so it was only option after 4 attacks in less than 2 yrs. Well here I am 5 yrs post op & I still have bad irritable bowel. I have to go on low residue when that happens, but my real trouble is i think a structure where sutures were. It's terrible & feels like a bottlenecking sensation. It lasts sometimes a week or more. Miralax with warm prune juice works well for constipation. If you can't take that, Dulcolax Plus/stool softener a combo pill, also works. When I don't catch backup early, I get this problem. I am also frustrated with this because I drink a lot of water & have problems when I try to up fiber. I'm going to make an appointment for a colonoscopy since my 5 yrs post op is up. Again, I hope you are doing well.
I'm 3 year's out from stage 3c colo-rectal cancer with chemo, then radiation, and lower anterior resection surgery. Longer story, but also got compartment syndrome DURING my surgery and almost lost my leg. Imagine going to the bathroom after this surgery while only having one good leg? Yeah that super sucked. Anyhow my first 3 years, was bad 9-25 bowel movements PER DAY. I tried imodium (1.5 to 2 pills every day), but afraid of the long term problems of using imodium. At year 2.5, I found a Bowl Management paper from the FAIRFAX COLON & RECTAL SURGERY that talked about using Metamucil WITHOUT a lot of water to harden and to form longer stools. This helped and have 4-6 bowel movements per day now. It still sucks, but it's better than what I had and my energy level is low. My quality of life is significantly diminished since surgery.
I was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer about 18 months ago. A 6.9 cm mass was located immediately on the other side of sphincter muscle which is called the rectum. I believe I had the best colorectal surgeon in the state but was also a man of few words. As a result I did radiation and chemotherapy pre surgery to reduce mass. After surgery I was lucky enough to have a temporary illostomy and a reconnected colon to my sphincter muscle. All cancer with clear margins was removed and I get to live and am a happy 61 year old man for the additional life I have been given by these incredible medical people. I did another 6 months of intense chemotherapy to ensure no reoccurring cancer will be a problem this was with the temporary illostomy still in place. The effects of chemotherapy are very difficult to grind through but with my wife's help I made it. After dealing with the illostomy for 6 months I was ready for reversal surgery. Not as bad as original surgery but still an ordeal. I am glad to be done with the bag and the extreme diet restrictions associated with it. I was told it would take time to train my bowels to work correctly again when I complained about small amounts of waste being eliminated 20 times a day. This is also when I was told for the first time that it was because my entire rectum had been removed during surgery and it was a good trade off. While I agree with the trade I should have had better information and the future effects before that point. I got lucky and was talking with a man I met who experienced the same situation 15 years earlier. He was assigned a bowel retraining nurse who assisted in his recovery process. He shared a few helpfully tips and as a result my life has improved drastically. First I take 1 imodium tablet every morning, this slows the bowel process down considerably. I then take 4 Meta Mucil fiber capsules every morning, this bulks and binds the stool considerably. I also take vitamin B100 for nerve damage done by the chemotherapy, I now have severe neuropathy in my hands and feet (no feeling and numbness). As a result of this man's advise I have returned to work with a few inconveniences that some may not tolerate as well as me. I do not eat breakfast or lunch I only consume liquids during my day and wait until returning home to eat a very full meal around 5 to 6 pm. I immediately begin a bowel emptying process hopefully after dinner if I can hold it that long. Some days are good enough I can enjoy a meal in a restaurant but need to return home immediately afterward. Not a perfect life but alive and functioning without diapers or a colostomy bag. I hope as the reattached colon stretches over time my ability to postpone the need for evacuation will get longer and allow for a more normal situation, this is why I also try to hold back on emptying my colon for as long as possible for training reasons. I want to control my body again instead of my body controlling me. I hope this will be helpful to someone else the way I was helped by a chance encounter with another victim of colorectal cancer.