New to this.....what to expect?
Posted , 6 users are following.
Well guys (and gals),
Went to ER the other day with what I thought was appendicitis (almost wish it was). Doctors were convinced it was as well, but to be sure we did the CT scan. Results came back as acute diverticulitis. They released me because all my vitals were fine and because of my age (I'm 33). They give me cipro and Flagyl to take. Also said liquid diet for at least 24 hours, then introduce foods slowly. My main concern is after 48 hours it still feels like a severe cramp going down my whole right side. Should I expect this to continue to hurt for a couple days. I would've thought treatment would've helped this by now. I've been bed ridden for 3 days now because it's pretty painful to walk. I've eaten very little because I'm concerned about how it will react.
Should I be nervous about eating and about still experiencing pain? Peeing is the worst because it really hurts as the pressure of the bladder is released.
Any help or what I can do going forward would really be great, I'm nervous about this.
Thanks in advance,
Dan
0 likes, 11 replies
linda21711 Dritchie84
Posted
I'm just writing back to let you know we all know what you're talking about...all the questions that arise after diagnosis with DV. My situation was very different than yours, so I can't offer my experience to you. But just know we're all here for you and I imagine others will offer their experience if it matches your.
This is a good group to use for information and support.
Dritchie84 linda21711
Posted
Thanks Linda I appreciate it! I totally understand everyone's experience is most likely going to be different. I'm hoping people can share similar stories for at least piece of mind right now lol.
sandiishealthy Dritchie84
Posted
Hi there I had a similar situation to yours about 3 weeks ago. I went to the hospital the first time and was told it was a hernia ugh. Three hours later I go back with a 102 fever. They do a cat scan and tell me it's diverticulitis. They give me iv antibiotics and send me home with more. I felt better for a couple of days then the pain got REALLY nasty when doing a BM or peeing. On the 4th day morning I almost pasted out from the pain after a BM. It didn't stop so I called 911. At the hospital the did a workup including another CT scan. This time it showed a micro perforation with an encapsulated abscess. So I was admitted and given IV antibiotics and told that the next day I might need a drain or surgery. However the next day I saw another surgeon and he told me I look great and asked if I wanted to eat. I said hell ya and he thought they'd feed me and see how I did. So I ate a regular diet with low residue and did fine. I went home with oral antibiotics. I've been eating regular healthy food and have added more fibre than I had before. I feel fine. No pain. The weird thing is I've NEVER been constipated before except when I had an epidural once. I eat healthy and have fibre rich foods every day before this happened. But because I have this disease I guess I need much more fibre than normally recommended. Also I believe nuts played a big part in this as I was eating tons of them but probably not chewing them enough. So now every day I take my temperature and palpate my lower left abdomin for tenderness and probably will for a long time just so I have a good handle on how that area feels. I was diagnosed in 2003 with diverticuliti but never paid any attention as I had no symptoms and had normal bowel movements. I saw the first surgeon last week and she said I should think about a resection. I was like WHOA time out here. That seems a little radical compared to the second surgeon's opinion. Sooo I'm getting several more professional opinions before I decide what I'm gonna do. But for now all is well. I'm eating normal with lots of added fibre. I'm back to exercising and life goes on.
linda21711 sandiishealthy
Posted
The surgeon that was assigned to my case (also perforation with abscess) when I was hospitalized for a week at Christmas wanted to do surgery just by the fact that that is what I had. So far, I'm doing fine: I'm careful what I eat (no red meat, I chew everything REALLY well, I haven't had nuts/seeds/berries yet, I take Benefiber in the AM and PM) and so far so good. I make sure I eat whatever results in daily BMs: fish, chicken, vegetable smoothie to get natural fiber, fruit. I recently had my follow up colonoscopy with my GI.He said I had scarring in the colon due to the infection but he did not see reason for surgery at this time. He said there's a movement away from resection as an automatic response to this. I'm counting on him being right. I'll take it as it comes and post what I'm going through.
cecilmccecil Dritchie84
Posted
Sorry to hear that, it sounds like you have an internal infection. Stay on the antibiotics and if you still don't feel better, go back you may need a different antibiotic. Clavamox knocked my infection out, I call it "dog bite medication" because that is what it is usually used for it is VERY strong, stronger than Cipro. Let pain be your guide, if the pain does not go away go back. For me when the antibiotics worked, they knocked out the pain in 2 days. When I had an abdominal infection, NOTHING knocked the pain out but oxycontin. I was on oxy and antibiotics for 4 months. Sometimes they can't see the infection on the catscan.
Guest Dritchie84
Posted
Hi
You can expect to feel lousy for 4 - 6 weeks, both from the infection and from the side effects of the very strong medication. This is a condition that does NOT go away in a couple of days. The pain can actually niggle on for months if it was a really bad attack. Having said that, if the pain gets worse, or you develop a fever, GO BACK, as you may have a perforation or abscess which needs more than the standard pills. Many of us find that we also pee a lot. I'm not a medical person but there does seem to be a knock on effect to the bladder.
Stay on the liquid diet or low residue for at least the course of the antibiotics. Also you should start taking a daily probiotic to replace the good bacteria the pills have killed off along with the infection. It does take time to regain your confidence. Once you have built up to a normal diet high in soluble fibre, you should look at this forum for preventative measures. In the UK it is managed with diet and lifestyle changes, not surgery, unless a life threatening emergency or severe restrictions to quality of life. In the USA surgery is far more common, but it does not guarantee the condition won't return, and there are other complications like hernia, colostomy bags, leakage. You wouldn't chop off a leg to prevent another sprained ankle.
This forum is invaluable and you will find many people have gone through what you are experiencing and asked all the same questions. Patience is the key but you will feel better.
Dritchie84 Guest
Posted
It's definitely slow going....getting out of bed has been very limited due to the pain, which certainly has gotten better, but is still there. It's like a big muscle cramp that won't go away going down my whole right side of my torso. Great details there! I'm just going to take it easy then and ride out the storm. Here's to better days!
carmen67051 Guest
Posted
Guest carmen67051
Posted
hfkmd Dritchie84
Posted
Hey, Dan,
Any update on your condition? I was diagnosed by a CT scan with right sided diverticulitis about 9 days ago and given a 10-day course of antibiotics (last day for antibiotics is tomorrow). I tried to advance from a liquid diet to a low residue diet a couple days ago but my pain came back, so I returned to just liquids for now. I can still kind of feel the pain in my right side - it's more like a gnawing ache, especially if I move around and at night when I'm trying to sleep.
How long did you pain last? How long before you started to feel normal again? I am so depressed and scared. I have a colonoscopy scheduled for June 1st. Any info you could share would be very much appreciated.
Guest hfkmd
Posted