Surviving a colonoscopy

fasting
(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #1

I suddenly realized last night that, because of my colonoscopy yesterday, I didn’t actually eat for about 48 hours, and never felt hungry. The instructions were to have nothing but liquid the day before, and especially no dairy, so I couldn’t even have cream in my coffee. It was just cups of black coffee and some chicken broth, for the salt. Time was when I’d have been in agony after the first couple of hours! I did eat supper last night, but I could easily have lasted till this morning if I’d wanted to push it.

Also, they gave me seltzer and a packet of Lorna Doones once I recovered from the (light) anesthesia, but even though I was a little groggy, it was easy to resist them (my inner Scotsman was not entirely happy; we’re half-Scottish on both sides of the family, so shortbread is in our blood, you might say!). I was completely fine with just the seltzer.

Guess I’ll have to re-evaluate my attitude toward fasting! I thought I’d permanently ruined my metabolism from drinking—I was sober for years before I stopped having hypoglycemic episodes if I failed to eat every two hours or so. This was amazing! :bacon::bacon:

(Karen Parrott) #2

Glad you had a good experience. Since I’m a food addict and I did not know if the twilight anesthesia would cause me to “food seek”, I had to tell my good friend and the nurse about only letting me have water, sparkling water no sugar or some coconut water post surgery. No juice, crackers or cookies. No joke!

With the nurse and the GI MD, I had to quiz them about the IV, ringers, no glucose unless it was medically necessary, that I could spend weeks fighting binge urges, so Ringers> glucose> code blue & flat lining.

Luckily, I had no issues with food seeking behavior and was very aware of my choices post procedure. Sadly, my blood pressure dropped too low during the procedure, so I remember most of the procedure after the staff reversed some of the sedation… Lordy… watched all on the TV, asking questions all the time… ugh. I would close my eyes they said, I would not remember a thing, they said… Ummmmmm.

Anyhoo, great learnings on fasting. You know yourself, so you can take IF slow and take glucose readings. Take care. My GI system came back online fairly quickly. I won’t need another screen until 2028.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #3

Thanks, Karen. I was awake for my first colonoscopy, and it was so boring that I was glad to learn that this hospital puts you under. But keto is just so weird—I don’t get a distended belly, I don’t get hungry, so what’s the point of life, then? LOLOLOLOL! :smiley:

(Trish) #4

For a colonoscoy you definitely want sedation as it hurts like hell when they go around the corners. I recently had just a flex sig and there’s nothing given for that and I’m telling you once he got about about foot in I started having quite the Sigourney Weaver moment. Felt certain the damn thing was going to come right through my abdominal wall at any moment. The live Kodak moment play by play on the 27 inch monitor in front of me was interesting though LOL.

Separately, and while on the topic of colons and fasting, I wonder if the “rest” the colon gets due to fasting is specifically beneficial in any way?

(Mike) #5

I just had my 6th colonoscopy last week :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: (The first one saved my ass). This was the first one that was Keto but I did not notice a huge difference in how hungry I felt. The prep always made me feel a bit uggy so I really did not want to eat anyways. That being said DONT PUT THEM OFF. Had I waited another five years I would not be here to bitch about having so many of them!!!

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #6

I see what you did there! :smiley: :bacon:

(Raj Seth) #7

“Wha’choo talkin’ 'bout, Willis?” :rofl::rofl:

6 days and thats the best you got @PaulL?

Gotten to expect waaaay better wit from you🤣

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #8

Sorry! Life has been interfering with my creativity . . .