Question for colostomies

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lmliess
lmliess Member Posts: 329
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
I do have a question about my new colostomy. I have actually only been on solid food for about 2 days. How long before an actual bowel movement? I am VERY gassy but I keep thinking I should have a bowel movement soon? I just don't want to get constipated on top of everything else. Any thoughts?

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  • Glv49
    Glv49 Member Posts: 206 Member
    #2
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    I can't remember exactly..
    I can't remember exactly.. but do remember a lot of diarreah, but I was taking radiation and chemo together.

    Gail
  • Buzzard
    Buzzard Member Posts: 3,043 Member
    #3
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    Hmmm...
    I got gassy about the second day at the hospital after 5 cups of jello....(I wanted to go home asap) I had a bowel movement on Saturday after getting home Friday...usually 2 days after solid food does it..If you are gassy it won't be long now.......Good Luck and God Bless
  • lizbiz
    lizbiz Member Posts: 120
    #4
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    I had one very soon after I
    I had one very soon after I started eating solid food. If you're worried though, try a little Miralax if you do feel like you're constipated.

    The chemo causes me to have constipation at first and it hurts really bad when it finally comes out. I've found that taking Miralax helps me tremendously (before the diarrhea starts).

    Stay strong,
    Elizabeth
  • peterhw
    peterhw Member Posts: 69
    #5
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    Colostomy
    My surgery was on 1/12/09, so I have had my ostomy for a little bit over two months. I had bowel movement the first week, though it was kind of watery. Your doctor should give you a list of recommended "soft food" to have for the first few weeks. You can slowly introduce regular food. There are some food, like broccoli and beans, that can produce gas. Make sure you chew at least 25 times for every bite. I am new to this ostomy thing. So far I am very happy with it. It makes my chemo treatment much easier to handle. Visit www.uoaa.org. There is a lot of valuable information.

    Peter
  • tiny one
    tiny one Member Posts: 465 Member
    #6
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    ostomy
    I'm sorry that you had to have a colostomy. I wasn't prepared and woke up up with my ileostomy. That was quite a shock mentally to get used to. Mine was temporary. I had very little trouble with mine. The bag spared me from diarrhea when I was undergoing chemo and radiation. I could eat almost anything. I started having output right away in the hospital. There's a good book The ostomy book, I wish I would've read it when I had mine. The trick is to find a good appliance and bag. In summer you'll need to change the appliance more simply because you'll sweat more, especially if you like to be active outdoors. Be especially careful with the skin around the stoma, you don't want this to get all red and irritated. God bless.

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