HERE'S THE POOP!
Ok look, nobody wants to talk about this, I know. It's not "polite" conversation, and believe me, it almost kills me to type this out so publicly....BUT. I get lots and lots of questions about this, so I thought it was worth talking about. And what are the questions about? POOP. Yep, poop.
For anyone who's not familiar with me, here's the scoop: I'm 3.5 yrs post-op, maintaining an almost 150 lbs loss. One of the questions that I get asked the most is about bowel movements and what's normal, etc. I guess it's all the rage since Dr. Oz talked about the letter S on Oprah. So here's the poop scoop:
Pre-surgery, I had irritable bowl syndrome. I had to go, quite literally, ALL THE TIME. I would eat, and that would immediately trigger spasms in my digestive track, and I would have cramps, and a big-rush emergency to get into the rest room. A lot of times, I didn't like to go out to eat because I KNEW I would have to make a mad dash into the restroom, and I hate, hate, hate being in a public restroom with anyone else. It was embarassing, constant, painful,and a hassle for anyone with me. If I had to guess how many times a day I rushed to the bathroom, it would be between 3-5 times, depending on how many times I ate. It also didnt matter WHAT I ate - everything triggered it.
Fast forward 3.5 yrs. I was at my doctor's office and she asked me when my last bowel movement was. Uh, I can't remember? I got maybe three times a week now, and instead of the 30 mins that I used to spend in there in my former life gripping my stomach in pain, I'm in and out in a matter of three minutes. Completely normal bowel movements. Should I be going more? Eh, maybe, but I'm not constipated. My body has just adjusted.. I go normally. No embarassing mad dashes to the rest room. No meal-triggered cramps and attacks. No more IBS. NONE.
This has probably been the most wonderful part of my post-op life. Quite honestly, IBS used to control my life and my decisions. I would have to plan an escape route, or wait until a restroom was empty, I'd be in horrendous pain, it was AWFUL. And now? I feel NORMAL. I cannot tell you what an amazing change this has been in my life.
I'm not a medical professional, therapist, or anyone with any type of anatomy training. This has just been MY experience, and one that I'm THRILLED about. I'm posting it here because I know it's sometimes awkward to ask or talk about, but honestly, I'm pretty shameless. lol
I hope this helps answer some questions, but please feel free to email me directly if you would like to talk about it. :)
For anyone who's not familiar with me, here's the scoop: I'm 3.5 yrs post-op, maintaining an almost 150 lbs loss. One of the questions that I get asked the most is about bowel movements and what's normal, etc. I guess it's all the rage since Dr. Oz talked about the letter S on Oprah. So here's the poop scoop:
Pre-surgery, I had irritable bowl syndrome. I had to go, quite literally, ALL THE TIME. I would eat, and that would immediately trigger spasms in my digestive track, and I would have cramps, and a big-rush emergency to get into the rest room. A lot of times, I didn't like to go out to eat because I KNEW I would have to make a mad dash into the restroom, and I hate, hate, hate being in a public restroom with anyone else. It was embarassing, constant, painful,and a hassle for anyone with me. If I had to guess how many times a day I rushed to the bathroom, it would be between 3-5 times, depending on how many times I ate. It also didnt matter WHAT I ate - everything triggered it.
Fast forward 3.5 yrs. I was at my doctor's office and she asked me when my last bowel movement was. Uh, I can't remember? I got maybe three times a week now, and instead of the 30 mins that I used to spend in there in my former life gripping my stomach in pain, I'm in and out in a matter of three minutes. Completely normal bowel movements. Should I be going more? Eh, maybe, but I'm not constipated. My body has just adjusted.. I go normally. No embarassing mad dashes to the rest room. No meal-triggered cramps and attacks. No more IBS. NONE.
This has probably been the most wonderful part of my post-op life. Quite honestly, IBS used to control my life and my decisions. I would have to plan an escape route, or wait until a restroom was empty, I'd be in horrendous pain, it was AWFUL. And now? I feel NORMAL. I cannot tell you what an amazing change this has been in my life.
I'm not a medical professional, therapist, or anyone with any type of anatomy training. This has just been MY experience, and one that I'm THRILLED about. I'm posting it here because I know it's sometimes awkward to ask or talk about, but honestly, I'm pretty shameless. lol
I hope this helps answer some questions, but please feel free to email me directly if you would like to talk about it. :)