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Need to know Surgery Questions

Fri, June 14, 2013 1:34 PM

Hi. I'm 19 years old and I'm having my first surgery for Crohn's. I think what I'm having is an ileocolectomy/resection. I only say I think cuz I know its my terminal ileum thats being removed cuz I had a blockage and all. I'm VERY scared. I'm about 107 lbs now and I'm 5 feet tall, so that doesnt help when it comes to surgery. I'm also afraid of what happens after. I know I'll start to feel normal afterwards but...well I'll make a list of the things I need to know.

1.How long is recovery? (I ask this cuz my mom wants me to stay with her while I recover and I'd rather stay with my boyfriend, who I'm living with)

2.Do I have any worry of bleeding or tearing and how long would I have to worry about that?

3.What foods should I eat ayhgtfter?

4.What things should I bring?

I think thats about it. If you all could offer any other advice I'd love it. Thank you.

collegegirl67
Joined Dec 21, 2012

Wed, July 10, 2013 2:39 PM

Reply posted for collegegirl67.

Take things slow for activity as long as you can after the surgery to heal.
For me - a hard cough after waking from surgery tore the incision. No one told me that the repair for an incisional / ventral hernia
is life altering in terms of activities and I am sure you have seen the lawsuits in play for the mesh used in hernia repair.
Be good to yourself until you completely heal.
Aside from that - I hope that everything goes better than hoped and that you feel better.

ykuos
Joined Apr 24, 2013

Wed, June 26, 2013 8:23 PM

I had my surgery 15 years ago after my bowel perforated. I had 1/3 of my large intestines and about 18 inches of my small removed. Seven months later, I had a second surgery to reverse my ostomy. At the time, I was hesitant to go through with the reversal because my life had improved so much and I was nervous about having my symptoms recur. The good news is that I have been in remission since that time - 15 years! Good luck. I hope you have the same success I have had.

rebeccacc
Joined Jun 26, 2013

Tue, June 25, 2013 2:03 AM

Reply posted for collegegirl67.

I had the same surgery 4 years ago. I does take about 4 weeks to heal. I think you should stay with the person that will be able to really take care of you. It can be very painful at first so you need to have someone with you almost all the time. Start with liquid diet and work your way up. When I had surgery, my doctor kept me in the hospital for about a week afterwards because that is the worst time as far as pain and complications go. when you leave you will have progressed in the diet area. Good luck!

kawaiirobinson
Joined Jun 25, 2013

Mon, June 24, 2013 7:02 PM

Reply posted for collegegirl67.

Okay, I had my terminal ileum removed, and had an ileostomy that was taken down after three or four months. The first surgery was done about two years ago, so I'm a little fuzzy about what all had happened.

I was back to work in about two weeks after the surgery both times. I was kind of stubborn, and intent on going back though! I think the recommendation was 4-6 weeks.

I was on a clear liquid diet, progressed to a full liquid diet, then was on a low residue diet. I forget what period of time each diet lasted before I could advance. The second surgery was nearly the same process.

Your surgeon will probably go over everything like this in depth with you. Ask questions when you go for your presurgical eval. If you still have questions after that, give your surgeons office a call.

neverending
Joined Dec 8, 2010

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