Colonoscopy and Gastroscopy next week
Posted , 3 users are following.
I have got both procedures booked for next Thursday. I am terrified at the thought of both, but nowhere near as petrified as what I assume they are going to find. My whole life is on hold. As far as I am concerned, there is no life past next Thursday in terms of futured plans etc. I am having the procedures done at the Lister in Stevenage and the doctor I saw at my consultation said I would be given entonox for the colonoscopy. Is this sedation, painkiller or both? I had it during my first labour in 1988 and remember thinking it was pretty useless then. Should I ask for anything else? I am the world biggest wuss and pretty much sobbed my way through my consultation!
Thank you x
0 likes, 13 replies
shirley61689 opalfruit
Posted
opalfruit shirley61689
Posted
Thank you for your kind reply. You certainly have been through it lately. I hope you get a good result. Did you have entinox with either of colonoscopies? I am having the gastroscopy and colonoscopy on the same day. Apparently the gastroscopy is first and then the colonoscopy. Do you know if the second procedure is done immediately after the first or will there be a gap? TBH I just want it over and done with now! x
shirley61689 opalfruit
Posted
Hi I never had anything with the first one and sedation and pain killer with the second made no difference at all to me just grin and moan lol I had a large polyps in my colon that was bleeding as thought it was quite for 4 yrs and had to be took off in 4 pieces so a long procedure I m sure they do both ends together but you will be fine I've cried a hundred rivers. But the prep was the worst for me remember u are not on your own hundreds of us have to go through breast exrays ect we get there in the end x
dimmy opalfruit
Posted
Hi
Over the past 12 years i have had 7 colonoscopies, one sigmoidoscopy and 2 gastroscopies. I didn`t have any sedation or painkiller for the Gastroscopies. They will spray the back of your throat with a spray (tastes like banana)...this numbs the back of your throat. They will put a gumshield in your mouth and you lay on your side. You will feel a bit of pressure (NOT pain!) when the gastroscpe goes down . During the procedure you may feel a bit of pressure but thats all. It lasts about 20 minutes. As far as the colonoscopy is concerned DON`T worry!. The worst thing about this procedure... as many people will tell you, is the preperation for the 2 days beforehand to cleanse the bowel!. Follow the instructions regarding the food (or lack of it) you can eat to the letter and drink plenty of water. IF you do not cleanse the bowel properly they will not be able to see the inside of your bowel properly so you will have to go through the whole process again. Make absolutely sure you stay near a toilet the day before, and on the day of the procedure. I would not leave the house because you will have frequent almost instant bowel motions. Drink plenty of water. In all my colonoscopies i never felt any pain just a bit of bloating and pressure. Before the colonscopy a doctor nurse will explain what will happen and you will sign a consent form. It will mention an extremely slight chance of perforation of the bowel (about 1 in 500 or 1000) depending on the hospital. DO NOT be alarmed by this as ALL operations/procedures etc, carry a small risk ..even for an ingrowing toe nail!. The Doctor who gave me my results after my last colonoscopy said he had been at the Royal London in the endoscopy dept. for 10 years and had NEVER heard of one single case of perforation...but obviously they have to tell you about it. I never had any bleeding afterwards even when polyps were removed. You may read some bad reports on colonoscopies but believe me this is not the norm and is rare. The colonoscopy lasts for about 30 to 40 minutes. A specialist nusre did my last one and she was more thorough than the doctors who did my previous procedures. I have never heard of anyone having Entonox for a colonoscopy which i believe is the same as gas and air given during childbirth. As far as i am aware it is a painkiller not a relaxant. I am usually given pethiden or fentanyl. Some people prefer no medication at all. When you lay on the table they will dilate your anus with a finger to make the scope easier to go in. After this i felt hardly anything and watched the whole procedure on the screen in front of me. As you are having the Entonox you will be placed in the recovery room afterwards for about an hour where they take your blood pressure etc. As both these procedures are "live scans" you will be given the preliminary results before you go home so all going well you will not go home worrying. If any biopsies are taken they will contact you if anything suspicious is found. DON`T worry if they take biopsies as this is a regular thing even if you look all clear. I had biopsies taken last time but the nurse and consultant told me it was just routine and the polyp looked a healthy colour and polyps take several years to potentially turn cancerous. I know it is traumatic and nothing i can say will allay your fears but as i said earlier with my procedures i never had any pain...and all going well you will come out really relieved and "walking on air!"...and it will soon be over. I assume someone is going with you ?...they usually insist on this if your having sedation. You havn`t said why your having these tests?...if you want any other advice please let me know. Good luck and i hope i have gone some way in putting your mind at rest and i would be interested too hear how it all goes....regards and best wishes...Dimmy
opalfruit dimmy
Posted
Hi Dimmy,
Thank you so much for your reply. There were a few things in there that I didn't know and your reply was very reassuring. My leaflet from the Lister also says that Entonox will be given, although a sedative can be given instead. I know it sounds really daft, but apart from the result, it is the thought of anything at all going into my back passage that is my biggest concern. It makes me feel quite faint at the thought! As far as the prep goes, I am not bothered about it at all. I shall follow my booklet to the letter, and have bought plenty of extra loo rolls and toilet cleaner!
How are you doing? x
shirley61689 dimmy
Posted
Hi we are not all the same with pain threshold you are very lucky to have had not much pain glad u ok I am bleeding a bit with a hard by 3 weeks after but it can be delayed blood I've been told when I came out my report said no cancer found that was before my polyps was removed at a differant hospital as it was big not heard anything back so assuming it's ok fingers crossed
dimmy shirley61689
Posted
i think it all depends as well on the skill of the doctor or nurse doing the colonoscopy, and maybe how wide or narrow the bowel is...plus the amount of sedative given. Don`t get me wrong even though i need to have colonoscopies every 2 years for the rest of my life, and have never had a bad experience with the exam....i feel much the same as opal fruit when my time approaches!
shirley61689 dimmy
Posted
Yes I thinking about mine again in 8 weeks time but it's just to check the patch where they removed a large polyps it will be a sig so not that nasty prep omg don't know how long it takes for result of polyps result to come back I rang the Secretary at the hospital and she said if it's a problem with it I would have been notified straight away I don't know if that's true. Carnt understand how they give you your results before you leave on the day do they take tissue at the same time do you think and test it while you ate resting after.
dimmy shirley61689
Posted
Hi Shirley
Just to clarify what i meant was they give you the "general" results of the colonoscopy and let you know if they see anything of obvious concern or the (like me when they found a tumour the size of a grapefruit during my first colonoscopy in 2004)...OR they give you the all clear PENDING any biopsy results which do take about 7 to 10 daus to come through. The hospital would normally only contact you if the biopsies revealed something supicious. IF
shirley61689 dimmy
Posted
Omg that's big massive so sorry may I ask how old you was to have one that big hopefully it's never grown back again was it a ok tumour I hope you poor thing
dimmy shirley61689
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Clicked the reply button too ealry!...IF you havn`t heard anything from the hospital within 2 weeks they usually say its all clear. It saves the hospital manhours in not phoning everyone who has had biopsies taken .Obviously at the end of the 2 weeks after the taking of biopsies you could phone the hospital for the results to put your mind at rest. However i don`t do this as i am a believer in no news is good news!
dimmy shirley61689
Posted
I was 48 with the first tumour back in 2004 in the sigmoid colon(left side) which was cancer. The consultant said it would have started off as a small poylp about 5 to 10 years earlier!!!.. I had the op and 6 months of hell with chemo. I was given the all clear after 5 years in 2009...then a couple of months after that i had symptoms (mainly vomiting) and was diagnosed with a NEW tumour( not a reoccurance) in the bowel just below the caecum (right side where the stomach joins the bowel). Another big op but refused chemo this time...which has proved the correct decision as i am still here!. At no point did i have to wear a colostomy bag. Because i had cancer twice genetics did extensive blood and tumour tests and came to the conclusion that i probably have "LYNCH SYNDROME"...which is a hereditary gene defect making me more vulnerable to bowel cancer (my 2 uncles had it on both sides of the family. This is why i have to undergo colonoscopies every 2 years as a preventive measure to nip out any polyp before they turn cancerous...last colonoscopy in march this year ....ALL CLEAR!!
dimmy opalfruit
Posted
I can only speak from personal experience but i would always go for the sedative...they actually call it "conscious sedation" and it will mean having a cannula/iv line put into your arm or wrist. Its worth it though because i felt i was fully awake and watched the scope go round my bowel. and didn`t feel drowsy. But then again i felt really relaxed and there was no pain so the sedative must have done something for me!. I think most hospitals would prefer a colonoscopy to be done without sedation so they can release you quicker. But with the sedation you have to stay longer in the recovery room so their resouces are utilised for longer. BUT just think of yourself ...its your body so i would opt for the sedation. My hospital never even gave me the option..they just gave it to me as routine.. As for somethjing entering your bowel the first few seconds are a bit uncomfortable when the doctor dilates the anus with gel/finger and the scope first enters your back passage but after that you will hardly feel it for the rest of the exam.. Finally the bowel cleansing..i was given Picolax and Bisacodyl...you have been warned!!!!..good luck.