2.5 weeks post op - GI Issues?

Hi everyone.

I had TAH on 1/11/11. Uterus, cervix & right tube/ovary removed. I've honestly been feeling pretty good but about 4 or 5 days ago I started having issues with diarrhea. Now it's really bad!

I have my post op apt on Wednesday.

I did search the forums here & saw that others have experienced the same issue. I'm not sure it's c-diff. I'm a nursing student, I have smelled c-diff and this isn't the same (sorry, not trying to be gross). I also was not on antibiotics pre or post op.

I do have IBS which I found out about a year and a half ago after colonoscopy. I also had to have another colonoscopy before surgery because of rectal bleeding with periods. I have some kind of nodule in my colon that is unidentified after biopsy. My best guess is that it looks like scar tissue and there's probably endo under/in it. My GYN also thought it looks suspiciously like scar tissue.

I just hope this goes away. I have been feeling really good since surgery (pain wise) and haven't had many narcotic pain meds... had PCA with morphine in hospital... morphine & I don't get along too well (got so sick). They had to pull me off. Now I'm just taking ibuprofen as needed. Have even been doing exercises on the wii fit lol.

But this diarrhea is awful. I hope it's just some sort of stomach bug that will go away but I will be talking to her about it @ my apt. on wed.

Anyway, just thought I'd post here & see if anyone had any advice. I'm kind of afraid to take immodium just in case it is some sort of bacterial infection.

Hi Miasma,

I had the same problem with diarrhea post surgery. I wasn't able to go to the bathroom at all for several days, then things seemed to straighten themselves out for a week or so, then the dreaded diarrhea. Had it for a couple of weeks then it cleared up on it's own. Not sure what the cause of it was, but have heard from a couple of different people that when you have a surgery and the bowels are touched or moved they can go into a "shock" and it can take a while for them to get resituated and working properly again. Just in case keep a close eye on your temp and weight and seek immediate care if you gain or loose 3lbs in a 24 hour period.

Thanks Agnus. I'm glad yours cleared up for you, I can say this is not fun. I had similar issues... I couldn't go for several days, finally drank some prune juice. Like you, things seemed to be fine for about a week and now this! I'm seriously hoping this stops soon.

I don't have a scale, but I will keep an eye on my temp. Hm, on second thought I think the wii fit thing has a scale, lol. I'll have to check.

Ty again for the post, Agnus. Even thought it's awful other women had the same experience, It's nice to feel less alone!

Take care. Hope you are doing well since your surgery. I see you had it in December.

Good luck to you, and you may want to take it easy on the Wii fit. Give yourself time to heal properly. Don't rush things or you could end up setting yourself back. It sounds like you are feeling pretty good for so soon after surgery but take the time to rest often, that is when the body does it's best healing. You have a long road ahead of you don't get discouraged, since my surgery I have had only 1 day that I have felt like myself. Now is the time to pamper yourself, and let others do for you. Take care, and I hope you feel better soon.

Thanks again agnus. I'm trying not to push myself too much but I do feel pretty amazing, other than the diarrhea lol. I was in so much pain from the endo pre-op... surgery pain has been NOTHING compared to that. I do want to get back to normal, back into school (nusing program), etc. But I do know to take it easy.

I was really tired for about a week after surgery and my energy's been returning until now. Now I feel wiped out again. Would be nice if I could stay off the poty long enough to shower. Yeesh.

am slightly concerned about possiblity of c.diff. Will talk to my doc about it at post-op apt Wednesday.

It took several months for my bowels to get back to normal. I would either have diarrhea or be constipated, no middle ground for quite some time...however...I am 7 months post op now and things seem to be running right again...

Oy, several months eh, LovetheOcean? Yikes. I have IBS... don't usually swing the constipated route though. I am glad to hear you're running right again lol (good way to phrase it).

Hopefully this won't last too long. I feel so miserable. Wiped out again like I was immediately post op. Yuck.

For some of us, this surgery takes a long time to recover from. :-)

Yeah, you can say that again. How can I complain? I'm not even 3 weeks post-op yet and ready for life as usual hehe. I swear if it wasn't for this GI garbage, I'd feel right as rain. Honestly, I'm so glad I finally found a doc who would do this for me. I really think I'm going to feel SO MUCH better. =)

HI -- my surgeries did a number on my bowels. I was in the same boat as you post-surgery and it was exhausting and discouraging. I attributed my problems to the surgery - I am convinced that after any kind of abdominal surgery your bowels are affected and it takes months for some of us to return to normal. I also had to take iron because I was anemic and the iron really irritated me. I stopped the iron in Dec and I still wasn't 'right'..so I just started taking 'Align' probiotic and I'm noticing a difference after 1 week of using it. I am careful about what I eat also. (fatty, greasy, spicy is not on the menu for me anymore). Good luck to you!!!