Sitting on the toilet to drain an Indiana Pouch

13 years 4 months ago #34712 by muaji
Yeah, Pat; you're right about that. :) I'm getting used to my new life. thanks for all the help.

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13 years 4 months ago #34702 by Patricia
I remember the sleep deprivation well!!! The first 4 weeks i was continually cat-napping and never really got into REM sleep but once i got to that 4 hr mark..what a difference. Then you test it to go a bit longer. Mine actually signals me when it needs to be emptied...i get a cramping. Make sure you don't go over 600 cc's if you can or you can make a floppy bladder and you don't want that. Are you measuring at all? I did that in the beginning every time unless i was out..just gave me an idea of how much was an average for me for the day.
It takes about 6 months for that mucus to thin out to the point where you only use the saline maybe once a week. And honestly i never use it now as its very thin like egg drop soup.
Sleeping through the night took about a year.
You'll get there and if you should leak once in a while at least it looks like you spilled something on your shirt not wet your pants!! :laugh:
pat

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13 years 5 months ago #34691 by muaji
Thanks Pat; I'm doing pretty good now. I'm getting up every 4 hours to cath; it used to be every 2 hours. Man, talking about not sleeping. :) The pouch is beginning to expand; I can go longer without going to the bathroom. Thanks for all of the help; this is really a great support group. I appreciate it very much.
William

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13 years 5 months ago #34584 by Patricia
Just hang in there william...there is a ton of mucus in the beginning. When you are cathing..just a little hint...give a big cough...that sometimes disengages huge amounts. Keep up with the saline solution as that does thin it out and break it up. It will eventually figure out it is no longer a colon but a bladder and start to behave...they're very slow learners!!! :silly:
pat

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13 years 5 months ago #34583 by muaji
Hi Pat, sorry to take so long in getting back to you.
There was one set back while I was in the hospital; they had switched me from a liquid diet to a solid diet. After going three weeks of being pumped full of saline solutions and glucose, not to mention drugs, I was put on a liquid diet. Someone messed up in the kitchen and sent me a full solid diet-roast chicken, rice and mixed veggies. I didn't think twice; I ripped into that plate like a starving vampire. :D
The worst part, was that I had forgot that my dentures were still in the security department. My stomach couldn't digest it and I was vomiting all that day. After I was better, I gave them a lecture-I was an Institutional Cook for the Jewish Home & Hospital for the Aged and was quite familiar with nutrition and the different diets, plus we had to go to school to study nutrition.
They didn't make that mistake again.

I got in touch with my insurance, which referred me to "Living Better Now" I had to send copies of the prescriptions for the red rubber tubes, saline solution and the syringes to irrigate the pouch. They send the supplies bu UPS, so I should be getting my supplies soon.

Thanks for all the help

William

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13 years 5 months ago #34580 by muaji
Hi all, I'm back ;) Was having a little trouble with my user name & pass word. I got it all straightened out.
I was wondering, how long will it be before the Indiana Pouch stops leaking? I know that I was discharged from the hospital Sept 14th, and I have been doing pretty good with getting up every two (now it's every 4 hours). The problem is that it doesn't leak urine but mucus. I have to put 3 to 4 sterilized pads over the stoma area when I sleep so that the mucus doesn't mess up my clothes or the sheets. Is there anything else that I should do? When I cath, I use the saline solution to break up the mucus, but at the end of the day, it still produced mucus.
All info will be appreciated.

William

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