Colonoscopy

My mum had bowel cancer at 36 so apparently we (her children etc) have to have a colonoscopy 10 years before her age of getting it.

So unfortunelty for me, that means this year. I've had my referal sent off ect and am just waiting for an appointment.

My Mum isnt the best communicator so I find it hard to get any info out of her about what to expect.

Does anyone have any experiences they'd like to share? I would be much appreciative.

Can I go under fully? Or is twilight the only option?

Thank you so much!
x

I have them every 2 years & the worse part is drinking the awful prep stuff they give you.
They give you enough sedation that your asleep & you wake up in recovery or as they are wheeling you out.

It's honestly not that but i do know how scary it is.

I'm happy to answer any questions you have :)

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I have them every 2 years & the worse part is drinking the awful prep stuff they give you.
They give you enough sedation that your asleep & you wake up in recovery or as they are wheeling you out.

It's honestly not that but i do know how scary it is.

I'm happy to answer any questions you have :)

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Thanks hun.

Yes Mum said that solution is yuck.

So if when I go and get it done and it all comes back ok...How often will I have to get them done?


I really dont like the idea of twilight. I had a friend tell me years ago that it was bad. She kept waking up and it was really painful.

Mum said they did twilight for her last time too and she woke up and it was in quite a lot of pain.

I really dont want that.

Do they give you they option of GA?

Thanks again hun!
x

My husband had one last month, and said it really wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.

All I can say is don't plan to leave the house the day before the procedure and don't eat anything spicy because he said it all gets a bit tender from the amount of times you go to the loo.

The build up is much worse than the actual procedure he said. He had the 'twilight' but was totally out of it.

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My husband had one last month, and said it really wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.

All I can say is don't plan to leave the house the day before the procedure and don't eat anything spicy because he said it all gets a bit tender from the amount of times you go to the loo.

The build up is much worse than the actual procedure he said. He had the 'twilight' but was totally out of it.

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Thanks hun!

I'm not scared but I am worried about the pain.

I have always had quite irritable bowels and when I do go to the loo a lot I get very sore so I am quite worried about how I am going to fee afterwards etc.

All this worry and I havent even thought about the possibility of bad results.

I'm sure I'll be fine but I guess you should always prepare yourself for the possibility that they might find somthing off.



Another question....

When do you find out the results???

As far as i know they don't do full GA only light ones, but i've never has any trouble & i've had 4 all up with many more to go.
You'll wake up feeling really gassy from all the air they pump inside & slighty groggy from the sedation.

I really don't know how often you'll have to get them, as i have them because of my illness.
In saying that i have them every 2 years so they can detect anything abnormal early enough to do something about it, so you may need them this often as well or you might be lucky and it's only every 4yrs etc..

ETA.. They can usually tell you straight away if there are any polyps or if there is something abnormal, i'm yet to have this problem but i can guess it would take a few days/weeks to get results.
As for pain you can ask them from something stronger if you need it :)

I just asked DH if he was any pain the night of, the next day, the next time he went to the loo. His response was 'i wouldn't have even know I'd had the procedure done'

Don't worry about waking up Hun, they will give you enough of the sedative to knock you out.

As Cheshire said, DH found out straight away that everything was fine

Thank you both so much for sharing!! Much apprecitaed.

Nic - Please give my thanks to your DH.


I'm sure all will be fine.

Thanks again!
x

You'll be totally fine honey xo

I agree you'll be fine x

Hey Sarah,

There are a few recent thread's about colonoscopies with heaps of good info - I'd urge you to check them out.

I've never had a colon but we do these all day every day at work. So if you have a question, fire away.

It is rare you will be given a full GA for a colonoscopy. It is a very quick procedure. Having said that, we have a list every day that requires an anethetist which is used for patients with more complex medical conditions or who have high tolerance levels to the drugs we use. Of all the cases we do, very few wake during the procedure. I can count it on one hand. I can also count on one hand how many recall the procedure.
If you do happen to show signs of waking or being aware of what's happening during the procedure, you will be given more sedation.

MG