.....Just after the struggles with the appliance, I had a follow up appointment with my surgeon. Remember when I said I had to record my fluid output? Well, it turns out, I was severely dehydrated. My kidneys almost shut down. Though I was drinking my fluids, it was just coming right back out. Emptying the bag got really old, real fast. Just so you know, the maximum output for a day is 1500 fl oz. I was over that almost every day. I felt like crap, but I thought it was surgery related. I ended up staying in the hospital again for five days.
We get the appliance right; I get rehydrated with a much better understanding of what I am supposed to do. We go home armed with Imodium and Lomotil to help slow things down.
Mid-March, I finally got to a point where, I could change out the appliance myself. I figured out that French fries really slow things down. We started to find some humor with the situation. I have to say this....it is very hard to be intimate when that dang bag is rustling around. If you take a plastic bag a crunch it up, it kind of sounds like that....what a turn off.😬
May 2, 2023 time for the reversal to reconnect and put everything back into its home. I will have a wound that looks like I took a bullet to the stomach. Everything inside is functioning properly. I should be able to return to work next Wednesday. There's one more minor detail. I now have to figure out why my hips and knees ache and aren't working properly.
We now have a good plan in place to stay on top of this issue. The battle is not over and with Crohn's, it never will be.
Hi mom here. I am thankful that you had a great drs. this last time and many friends . family and strangers praying for you. It hurts my heart that you have suffered so much with this, but you are strong and your life is looking up once more, hopefully you will make it many years without another occurrance.
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