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Diarrhea after surgery. No drugs helpingHi,

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

Have crohns in the illium.  Had surgery 3yrs ago.  Removed 14 inch sm intes.  Had severe diar before and after.  Had tried it all too.  Not even 8 limotil worked.  Take welchol now.  Not absorbed by body.  I have to take it as soon as i wake up.  If i put something in my mouth first, the day is not fun.  I usually take 3 in am and then 3 later on in the day.  I am on a very strict diet.  I don't eat fruit, fiber, very little soft veges, etc...  I noticed anything with shortning makes things worse.  Hydrogenated.... is in everything.  Even boneless chkn brst,some brands.  I eat stacy's pita chips, pretzels w/out shortning, rold gold, marsmallow, skippy creamy natural pb, and chkn, boars head cold cuts, pot roast, or steak, bkd potatoes,....nothing healthy.  white bread, and cheese.  I can eat much more now, than ever, since I avoid anything with shortning.  It is so hard to figure it out.  That is some of what I do to try to control things. 

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

I too, had frequent diarreah after surgery.   My doctor has used two drugs on me that helped control it immediately.  The first drug was called Welchol, but it was rather expensive on my insurance plan, so he switched me to another drug called Cholestyramine.   Both of them worked very well.  I think that the were intially created to help control cholesteral, but I do not have a problem with that...my problem was the diarreah, which is now under control.   Talk to your doctor about these drugs, and see if they will work for you.

Best of luck,

Don

 Reply posted for ebko.

Sorry, but I have to laugh: "Choose the doctor with the Chinese name"??? I live in New York City. There are hundreds if not more Chinese acupuncturists, or those who use herbal treatments, etc. Glad it helped you, but I'd like some specifics re foods to avoid.

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

I had trouble after a resection, and working with a Chinese Doctor helped a lot. He advised me what to avoid eating, and gave me herbs to help me feel well and slow down diahrea. Look in the yellow pages under herbs or acupuncture, and choose the doctor with the chinese name. He shouldn't insist on acupuncture.

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

I also am having  problems with diarrhea-it seems that whatever I eat goes through-I had a J-pouch procedure done and 2 months after the final surgery I developed a leak in the anastomosis (luckily no need for another ileostomy) but the GI system is back to what it was immediately after the primary surgery-loose stools-I take Metamucil, Lomotil and Tylenol with Codiene (at bedtime so I can sleep a few hours uninterrupted)-does anybody have any suggetions? I'm getting so tired and the surgeon said it could be a year before things are back to normal (well, as normal as one can without a large intestine!) I see my GI doctor for the first time since the surgeries so maybe he will have an idea but at this time I am at my wit's end!! Thanks for any and all suggestions-

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

So sorry to hear of your frustrating ordeal.  I hope you find a solution soon.  Whatever happens, somehow our bodies seem to adapt eventually.  Meanwhile, may you also find some big doses of humor and insights to emotional peace each day. 

My hemi-colectomy surgery in May 2006 included removal of the ileocecal valve and a portion of ileum.  My surgeon tried to build a replacement valve, which may or may not have been completely successful.  Six months later, following a colonscopy to see why i still had diarrhea 6-11 times daily, my gastroenterologist prescribed Bentyl.  It cut the loose, watery episodes in half.  

Now, when I need antihistamines, I've decided to forego the Bentyl in order to not experience double drowsy side effects .  I would not recommend this to anyone without medical approval, but the antihistamines seem to work as well as the Bentyl for me.  Why?  Maybe because they both tend to dehydrate?  I don't like that idea from a kidney health standpoint.  Also, because the missing part of my ileum rendered me unable to absorb irritating bile salts properly--I want to dilute those little monsters as much as possible. 

18 months post-surgery I was finally able to tolerate adding soluble fiber to my diet and the diarrhea symptoms concurrently improved.  Raw fruits and vegetables may never again be a part of my diet and I still need to run everything through a blender sometimes--but life is awfully good with CCFA's help.  I love this website--and give my love and encouragement to all Crohnies out there. 

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

Just to help ease your worries, and possibly shame, "addicted" wouldn't be the likely outcome of continued use of the codeine. There is a risk of becoming dependent, which exists with steroids and many other treatments as well. Dependent just means that your symptoms return or get worse when the meds are stopped. Though doctors often wrongly confuse the two terms, there are vast differences between the two. 

You are justified in being concerned. I have been taking percocet(no tylenol) for almost one year now to control the pain and "cause constipation". Although I was miserable before starting the meds, I often regret not toughing it out. I protested and stopped taking it for a month a while back, and was miserable. I lost 30lbs, and what little I did eat went right through me. I'm only taking a total of 30 mg a day, which is the same as my starting dose. But I do know that at some point I want to be off the stuff. I worry a lot about what will happen when I stop taking it. Aside from the pain, living in the bathroom, and not being able to do anything, I'm scared that I'll suffer withdrawal effects. 

The last year has been wonderful in terms of living. I've been able to go to work, attend my kids' school events, go on long drives, go mountain biking, and have sex with my husband. These are things that are all very infrequent when I have a flare up. 

I would discuss your concerns with your doctor and close family. You might also want to ask if you could try vicadin or percocet without tylenol instead of the codeine. An important thing to remember is that people taking pain medication for pain over long periods are far less likely to develop tolerance than people taking it for other reasons. They are also FAR less likely to become "addicts". The only potential is for physical dependence which can and does happen. You should ask your doctor what the plan is when you stop taking the codeine. Best of luck to you. 

Katie

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

Hi I just had surgery on my bowel 91/20/09, Since the first week I did have some form stool but now I am going all the time. I was told during my sleepy haze post op that they connected my illeum to my cecum. . I am confused by that statement, because I am not sure how much bowel I have left.They have me taking qestran twice a day with instructions to take 2 packets at one time until it sloows up.During the first week post op I did have formed stool.. Any suggestions if any on what else might calm everything down?

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

Did they take the valve between the ilium and the large intestine?  If so, that is the problem.  That may be why you doctor says it's mechanical.

10 years for me.  6-8 watery and urgent.    Imodium helps. 

 It gradually gets better.  You become less distressed by it.  You learn to take notice your body's signal or something, because I seem to have more advance notice.

 Reply posted for ZooZooB.

Please read my posting called "Natural Cure" on any of the forums here and then email me for more information.  Your diarrhea is simple.  I can only assume you have taken antibiotics in the past to treat some bacterial infection.  Either you took in before or after surgery or have taken in the past for various illnesses.  Antibiotics kill bad bacteria but they also kill the good.  Your intestinal fluora is mostly bad bacteria when it should be mostly good.  Yogurt has the good bacterias called probiotics but you would need to eat a gallon to get what you need when you can simply take a supplement.  Im sure there are other things going on like allergies to foods but after you read my posting, we can chat further.  Email me.