Prep Day Today For Scope Tomorrow....

So I drank my first mug of PICO-SALAX this morning. Last time I had a scope I had to drink the 4L jug of salty stuff. This time only two packets of what tastes like sour orange candy !! Not so bad but it was pretty heavy on the stomach at first, even thought I might throw it up.. but I am okay now. No movements yet, only been 25 minutes. Next packet is at 2pm. Jello between now and then !!

I am glad to FINALLY be getting another scope done. A lot of you know I had a flare since March and it has taken this long to get a scope!! I also had a CT scan done and bloodwork. Tomorrow I will find out WHAT is going on once and for all!! At least, I hope!! Worst thing is, she always comes in to talk to me right after the scope and I am still "out of it" and I am scared I won't remember what she says!! My mom will be there too but I would like to remember for myself... anyone else run into this difficulty?? I was thinking about takin my camera and just putting it on to record voice.. think she'll think I am crazy ?? LOL. Least then I would be able to play it back for myself later !!

Anyways.. on with this crappy day !!!!

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Currently in a flare since March 6 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey Jen, good luck with the prep! I think it's a great idea to bring in your recorder; you might want to check and make sure it's okay to do since some hospitals won't allow cell phones around the equipment. Never hurts to ask though! Great that you are bringing your Mom with you; having another set of ears to listen is a good thing. Take care today, and hope all goes well with the prep.

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Carol

Remicade - will have my 22nd infusion on June 12.

Hope you get through the rest of the day without too much discomfort. Wouldn't it be nice to just be able to swallow 1 small pill and lots of water and be done with it? There's got to be a better way, but at least your prep doesn't sound as bad as alot of the other ones. Good Luck

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*******Donna*******

Good luck tomorrow. The recorder is a good idea. Have your mom write everything down too just in case the recorder doesn't work or you can't use it.

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Lori (Bellski)-age 43 from Illinois

Thanks all. I am doing ok.. although my bum is KILLING me now. I have to drink another pouch of stuff in about an hour and then that should be it for the day. I am nowhere near "clear" yet tho !! I am using my day wisely.. cleaning up my computer room and sorting thru digital pics on the computer. And of course, reading on Healing well and running back and forth to the bathroom ! LOL

:)

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Currently in a flare since March 6 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi, I'm in the same boat as you today I am getting a scope tomorrow and taking the same prep as you. Can't wait until tommorrow at about 2.30pm when all this will be over and I can eat again. I am starving my kids just eat pizza and I was so tempted just to have a little bit, of course I never but I was so close.

Ew...prep! I hope your scope goes well tomorrow.

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Female, Age 19, Dx w/ UC August 2007

Jenn, You're finally getting your scope! I hope that they can figure out what's going on and you can get some relief!

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Tressa 35 (F)

Hmm Pico Salax, I'll have to remember that. Orange sour candy doesn't sound bad. I have my appointment next week and will be setting up a scope then so I'm sure I'll be doing a prep within two weeks.

Was it really thick when you mixed it with liquid? I took a powder prep once but it was a giant jug and when I mixed it up with my ex-favorite type of gatorade (big mistake, now I hate it), it was so thick it was practically pudding. Yuck

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Female, 23, Ulcerative colitis (pancolitis) since 1999; GERD; gastritis; osteopenia in femur head & lumbar region of the spine from long term prednisone use. 

Currently unmedicated and flaring :(
Waiting for my appointment with the new GI on July 18th. Insurance finally kicked in, hooray!

Hey all.. reporting in before I .. I am not sure what! I am so weak now and really sore.. it hurts to even sit on my butt!! Thanks for all the replies and well-wishes. :O)

Tressa, thanks for the reply.. how have you been doing yourself??

Ediekristen.. I had that jug of stuff last time and it was terrible!! This time with the two little pouches of powder mixed with a coffee mug amount of water was not bad AT ALL !! Just like eating sour candies!! And nope, not think at all... highly recommended!!

I probably won't be back until tomorrow after my scope.. I am exhausted. Hey, did anyone ever notice how many FOOD commercials there are on tv!? Or is it just that I am so wanting food right now !! Lol....

Catch up with you all tomorrow !!

Tums.. good luck with your scope as well !!!!

:O)

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Currently in a flare since March 6 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know what you mean!! I swear when I'm doing preps it's like I catch EVERY food commercial ever. Most the time I don't even watch TV, I'll just watch some shows on DVD or something. And if you go to work the day before and are on clear liquids, it seems like everyone is eating burgers and pizza and everything delicious.

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Female, 23, Ulcerative colitis (pancolitis) since 1999; GERD; gastritis; osteopenia in femur head & lumbar region of the spine from long term prednisone use. 

Currently unmedicated and flaring :(
Waiting for my appointment with the new GI on July 18th. Insurance finally kicked in, hooray!

Hey! I noticed the same thing- I put on the travel channel and it was about food! So, I had to resort to house hunters or something like that. And then, there still were food commercials! Ugh.

I had my scope yesterday and I'm almost in remission! Yeah! Only 5 cm in my rectum is still inflamed. The stomach pain is still pretty bad, though. I'm going to follow-up with the doc in 2 weeks. She thinks maybe gall stones or IBS? I wonder if it's a side effect of the meds.

Anyway, I hope that your scope went well today and that you're feeling better.

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Tressa 35 (F)

Hey all! Thank you all again for the marvelous support !!

My scope went well. !! She said there are no signs of colitis or crohns but she did biopsies anyways which has been causing some slight bleeding and soreness. She said that what ever I am doing to keep it up !! So I guess that means i am pretty much in remission ! Yippee! I am still pretty tired, etc but I guess it will take time to get my strength back. She did say that my colon is a little loopy tho. ?? Hopefully that won't cause problems down the road.

In any case.. I am going to continue with my Asacol and avoid fried foods and keep up with the fresh fruits and vegetables. She did recommend more fiber so I guess I'll have to look into that !! She is also setting me up with a specialist who I will see every 6 months just to see how things are going. :O) :O)

Again, thank you all for your advice and support over the last few months, I would have gone insane without this site !!

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Currently in a flare since March 6 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have the same problem with the loopy colon... The hepatic flexure I think is the one that gets all twisted and every time they do a scope they have to push on my abdomen to release the loop. I always wondered if that would cause pain in every day life or constipation or something but never thought to ask.

But congrats on having no signs of disease!! That's awesome !

Thanks Ediekristen! Actually, I remembered one of the nurses in the OR pushing on my abdomen and I remember tellin her it hurt. But when I woke up I couldn't figure out why she would have been pushing on me... now I know.. lol Thanks for the input !

Any input on what to eat to up my fiber intake??

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Flare March-June 2008.. pretty much in remission again July

My doc wrote in the report that I have a "tortuous and redundant colon"!!!

I'm so glad to hear that you're doing so well, Jenn! Have you been feeling ok, too?

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Tressa 35 (F)

Hey Tressa.. I have been getting some energy back and I returned to work <part-time so far> last week. I am making sure to get lots of rest and sleep when I am tired rather than pushing it to the limit like I used to. I do still get right sided lower abdominal pains but not near as bad as before. I changed my eating habits over the last few months so hopfully things will work out. I am reading alot and still researching on better ways of living and changing my life style. Eating better, stressing less. I am going to start walking every night maybe next week.. I am not ready for the gym yet that is for sure. Or maybe start Yoga.
I am still keeping a food journal.. that has helped me A LOT!! For instance, I realized that when I go on a candy eating binge my abdominal pains get worse.. so.. I have cut out a lot of sugar and no more candy !!

Keep me up to date on your own progress!!!!

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Jenn 26/female
Ulcerative PANCOLITIS diagnosed 2004
Asacol 3 pills once/day
Daily Vitamin for Women and Folic Acid
Flare March-June 2008.. pretty much in remission again July

Well, you're stronger than I am! I KNOW candy makes me crampy and gassy (not to mention gives me cavities) but I can't resist my favorite candies... sour patch kids, twizzler sourz, sour gummy lifesavers... I'm a sucker for sour gummy candies.

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Female, 23, Ulcerative colitis (pancolitis) since 1999; GERD; gastritis; osteopenia in femur head & lumbar region of the spine from long term prednisone use. 

Currently unmedicated and flaring :(
Waiting for my appointment with the new GI on July 18th. Insurance finally kicked in, hooray!

You've made A LOT of progress! Good for you! I'm learning to rest when I need it, too. In fact, DH is doing the dishes and i'm on HW! I thought it'd be harder for me to take it easy. I'm actually pretty good at it! (especially since my internship and classes are over- i have a masters degree now! :)

Today, I self-diagnosed my stomach pain as an (peptic) ulcer. My GI's secretary told me that's what she thought, too, but isn't supposed to say anything. I started Zantac to see if it helps. My UC is under control- finally. I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel! Hope and recovery are great!

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Tressa 35 (F)