weight gain after colectomy

I had a total colectomy in April 2010 and was in the hospital for a month with complications. My small bowel lacks inertia just as my large colon did. I'm back to 100's of laxatives a day (senna) just to get some relief. I've always been thin, typically 98 lbs., came home from the hospital at 86 lbs. and now just continue to gain. I'm at 106 lbs. heavier than I've ever been. I don't understand it either. I exercise 5 days a week and lift weights. I don't feel that I'm eating more but I still can not figure the weight gain out. Any suggestions?

I too have had a total colectomy. I am 50 years old and in spectacular shape. I'll be brutally honest here. Just because you are "hungry" does not actually mean you need the nutrients. Don't eat to satisfy your hunger, eat to supply your body with needed nutrients. Whether you want to admit it or not, if you have gained 40 pounds, you are eating too much. Fat is storage. It means our body did not require those extra calories to function. You ate too much. Don't blame it on surgery, that's a copout. I feel for you. But you need to be honest with yourself. Quit eating so much. Humans didn't evolve with all these easily-accessible foods. As a result, we now eat far more than we need.

I am a 19 year old female I have dealt with constant hunger pains for over a year now since my total colectomey in 2009. I had read everyone's symptom's over and over again. Tried almost everything that I could think of to make the hunger pains go away. Went to so many doctor's and had a scope done and quite a few cat scans of my brain and abdomen area. Everything was coming back normal even all my blood work, i am and never have been pregnant. I thought it was so many things, until I finally found a doctor that was taking her time to listen to everything I said. The constant hunger pains, never feeling full, the nausea, acid reflux symptoms(and that I had tried every over the counter drug like prilosec and zantac) NOTHING WAS HELPING.
I had to have a total colectomey because I had beginning signs of colon cancer and also my colon was pretty much destroyed after a long period of using laxatives. I have gained 50 pounds in 2010. Was constantly week and sick and miserable for a full 6 months, I could not go to work all I could do was sit in Bed and eat the pain away.
My new doctor tried me dicyclomine for stomach pain and is commonly used in IBS patients.
you take it 4 times a day before you eat, and there is not any hunger pains. I was getting hunger pains constantly because I would eat and go #2 (not having a colon as you all know..you go #2 A LOT) so I went from not being able to go to the bathroom before my surgery to constantly going to the bathroom after my surgery. the dicyclomine has made it to were I am going less and not feeling as hungry as I was before.

Its going to be a long road to recovery because I am so out of shape and going to need to start out slow to being able to get back on track. I hope that it stays this way for me and for those of you who are still struggling with the pain, I hope maybe this will help you.

Thank you
Crystal

After reading all the posts, I know I am in the same boat.  I had a partial colectomy March of 09 and didn't have any problamwith weight gain. 
Then I had the rest of my colon taken out in March of 11. Since I have put on 25lbs.  I know it is colories in and colories out, and I do not believe it is a "copout' because I think it is caused from not having a colon.  I am considering having lapband done, but can't find any information on getting one after a colectomy.  If anyone has found out anything on how to help lose the weight and not feel hungry all the time please let me know

thank you

Cara

 

I am another victim of weight gain after having a collectomy. Mine was due to ulcerative colitis when I was 13 years old. I am now 26 and have struggled with weight gain since middle school. While I have managed to lose some weight it always comes back and when I can lose weight it is usually due to pretty extreme dieting and hours in the gym 5 or 6 days a week...not sure of how to lose the weight and keep it off. I have also never been able to get down to a weight that is considered "normal" for my 5' tall frame. This has been extraordinarily frustrating and like everyone else posting, I can not seem to find the solution to my problem.

I had a full colectomy due to uc in 1995. I gained 40 pounds over 15 years. I worked out religiously. Out of frustration, I went to a nutrtionist. She said my surgery didnt allow me to digest food fully andI was actually malnourised. She put me on a liquid multivitamin (nothing fancy, got it at sams club.) She also had me do 6 small meals to aid in digestion, and told me to focus on "high protein" instead of low carb or fat free items. In short, I doubled my chicken intake, added protein shakes, eggs for breakfast, almonds for snacks. 4 months I lost 25 pounds and no tummy trouble. I kept to 1500 calories a day with a 30 minute walk every morning. I recently "fell off the wagon" and am returning to my better habits. She recommended Dr Oz YOU ON A DIET and hungrygirl.com. nutritionist is mollykimball.com. She is truly amazing.

I hear you, people, same story repeated over and over again - weight gain, water retention, pain in the tummy, bloating, burning sensation after colectomy, In 3 years I have put on 10kg, although not all of this is fat - some is lean tissue (I know because I train with weights). From my research, it is known that the large intestine contains receptors which stimulate the release of hormone CCK which is responsible for producing the feeling of satiety. Obviously, when the colon is missing the lack of hormone makes me terribly hungry - all the time, even after I eat, or when the blood sugar is high. Well, I found that fiber-type supplements, as well as high-fiber diet helps a great deal (lots of steamed veggies, wholewheat pastas, rye bread, oatmeal and bran cereal).

I use Slippery Elm, Flaxmeal, Oat and Wheat Bran, Wheat Germ, Chia bran and a wonderful thing called Glucommannan (it turns into a thick gel and binds all my veggies into an unpainfully excreted bulk). I learned that I had to get used to the new sensation of feeling a little "stuffed" with all the fiber, but that's better than constant burning and movement inside the stomach. But the best part is that I feel satiated all the time, don't have hunger pangs and eat just enough to keep myself healthy. One last thing - Colostrum!!! It's a miracle - I take 4x200mg chewable tablets, they taste like milk-candy and completely healed my gut. I highly recommend you all to try these suggestions, I have spent years working them into my dietIf anyone has experimented with this of wants to go for it, let me know, I would appreciate this.

Completely disagree. Every body is different and even though the surgery seems to be the same, the results post-operation can be vastly different. Some people may bounce back nicely, for others it may take a long time before the body "understands" what has been done to it. As a nutritionist and personal trainer, I have seen a rainbow of clients with different problems. But only after I experienced it myself I realized how unpredictable the digestive system can be. I had a total colectomy 3 years ago and have gained weight from a diet which was 1/3 of what I used to eat prior to surgery. And my diet is CLEAN, MODERATELY SMALL, haven't touched a processed food in decades - no sugar, no white flour, only lean poultry and fish, green vegies, organic eggs, beans and whole grains. That's it - for breakfast, lunch and dinner.



A lot of the weight trouble DO COME FROM GENES, believe it or not. There are hormonal issues, too. Then, there is that special place where each one of us feels "good" after eating a meal (some just love running on empty, they get a "rush" from it). Stress plays a big role, too, and the self-pressure of being thin and having the ability to live a "normal life" asap after the surgery worsens the situation.



So, yes, over-eating leads to weight gain, but the picture is far more complex and the factors of individuality should be considered when we are talking about the reasons for how we look and whether we feel our best at that particular weight.

I had the complete colectomy like 1990 and was told I was the first person they had done this to. I have had a couple relapses caused by dehydration as I have diarrhea always but have found that drinking slim fast helps me control this better because it makes me go to the bathroom usually within an hour of taking it so I can schedule life a little better this way :-) plus I get the nutrients from it. The burning you have might be from not needing the amount of bial and acid being made as the food doesn't need as much digesting usually because without the normal amount of large intestine it passes more quickly and stay's liquid. I had this problem and my Dr. gave me some medicine to cut the amount I produced I only took it for awhile and it helped. I also keep on hand a prescription of Dicyclomine 20mg (for intestinal stomach spasm's) and I only take it once in awhile now if I don't pay attention and eat too much because my intestine will spasm. This prescription helps a lot. I have gained about 30 lbs and eat like a bird and the only thing that seems to help is massive exercise which life don't seems to allow too much. I also don't eat supper except fresh or canned fruit or vegetables as meats tend to not digest enough before bed now. With these adjustments my life other than the weight have become normal. Not sure why we all seem to have gained weight but would assume it has to do with the surgery some how. I do have a spell EVERY day at about 2 pm when I can fall asleep in the middle of a highway it seems but if I keep moving I can make it through and I have a vitamin D deficiency but take a 1-A Day and 4000 IU of D. Hope this helps. Wish I new why we gain the weight though.

I agree with all you have said very much but also feel "in my opinion" that this surgery causes the metabolism to slow down tremendously and have found that if I can push myself through the rough road and force myself to exercise MORE that it will pick up but unlike the normal person that after awhile of exercise can go a bit without it and the metabolism will stay up mine don't it starts to drop right back off almost immediately and I start feeling sluggish. Whereas when I was into the gym and weight lifting before problems my metabolism would stay up for 2 to 3 weeks so in conclusion I feel that the removal of the large intestine does cause an extreme slow in body metabolism and the burning of even 1/3 of the food I use to be able to eat and maintain my weight and fitness. I maintain great vitals and cholesterol etc according to my Dr' and tests but the weight is a battle. Also seems to worsen with each year I could fight it before and keep it off but now it seems to be a great amount that I battle with each new year and I'm now about 30 lbs. heavier and still fighting it.

i have sam problem had a sub total 5 weeks ago didnt loose a once in hospital at home now to sore to exersice and still lost nothing except my large intestine , also being told i would loose around twenty lbs sore upset and worrird dont no what to do and never wannna go through that pain again inhospital 7 days at home now cant do much of anything but poop about twice a day discuraged i want waight loss after all this ,,,, help any ideas

you poor thing i know its rough i just got home last week from a total im tired soar my guts hurt i hardley eat anything and so far have gained ten to fifteen lbs lost nothing except my large intestin im 43 if i dont get a hold on it now i never will i dont know what to do and wonder if it was worth all the pain . althou i go poop im depressed and sore and tired and my gut is swollen and bruised to heck from all the shots my insesion are so sore and , nothing eles i can do cant fit in any of my clothes soooo depressed i thought this was gonna be a life changing thing little did i know how depressed i would be...

I also had a total colectomy due to colonic inertia in 2004. Four months later had 3 more feet of my small bowel removed along with half of my rectum due to complications after my colectomy.  I have ALWAYS been able to eat whatever I want and stay around 120 pounds without exercise.  Last December I was up to 170 pounds.  I have recently lost 40 only due to excessive exercise and a "clean eating" diet.  I am so beyond frustrated. I have always been an athlete and I am not used to my body like this.  I hate looking at myself in the mirror. I just don't understand how things can go through you so fast and yet still be fat. My GI doc tells me that I should be happy that I am healthy and not on total parenteral nutrition or have tons of deficiencies. I am not happy.

Hi all

I too had a colectomy in 2006 and have struggled with my weight since.  I have gained at least 40lbs.  I exercise everyday, weights and an intense cardio.  I have, as recent as this past weekend found out why the weight gain and why after exercising religiously it hasn't shifted.  I attended a nutrition workshop on the weekend through my gym and what I found out was; Did you know that 'FIBRE'  is the key to everything!  Did you know that fibre mitigates the insulin produced and if you don't have fibre the insulin you produce just turns straight into fat!!!  So with a coach, we're going to somehow introduce more fibre back into my diet without the stress.  I've seen so many Dr's and Dietitians over the past 6 yrs and no-one has been able to give me the low-down.  I'll post again with ongoing results and let you know what's working... With this knowledge I now feel empowered to do something about it!!

MrsBeXD

I had the same surery on Aug 2011and gained 45 pounds. Every pound is in the mid section. I am cutting more out of my diet each weak but feel uncomfortable daily due to weight gain. Can any one explain why the excessive weight gain?