Don't be envious now. Got a big jug of stuff chilled in the fridge. 8 oz every 10 min. UPDATE

[NRaleighLiberal]

The sad update below

___________

Then the real fun will begin.

4 AM - 6 more glasses.

7 AM - off for the "procedure"

glad this only happens every 5 years!



could they possibly make that stuff more disgusting tasting? (the texture is the biggest issue for me)

I am miserable...ask me anything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

_______________________


UPDATE - nothing happened! I noticed that the taste and texture seemed less horrible, but thought it was just an improved prep. But...6 PM. 9 PM. 1 AM. Nothing - went to bed - nothing.

So - called at 7 AM thinking they would resched - well, they did - to TOMORROW - meaning still no food and starting a different prep this afternoon.

I AM MISERABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[Borchkins]

1. Been there. Done that.

You have my sympathy.
B

[lapfog_1]

2. yeah, unless you have been previously diagnosed with polyps

or have a history of colon cancer...

I would recommend the genetic markers test instead. Collect a sample, bag it in the kit (OK, that is kinda gross), and send it to the lab.

[mnhtnbb]

20. Or a family history...

I am not a fan of invasive, risky, fishing expedition tests--without good cause--that generally yield results of little to no concern.

It's worth reviewing the literature, despite the fear mongering offered by many docs (especially the proctologists making
beaucoup $$ from doing the tests).

I thought the vanity license plate--on an expensive Porsche--owned by a proctologist we knew in Lincoln NE pretty much summed it up:

URANUS

[Freddie]

3. A Sprite "chaser" after each glass helped a lot

Gets the awful taste/texture out of your mouth. Think of how good food will taste after the procedure.

[PJMcK]

4. Me, too!

I start my prep tomorrow morning for the Friday morning procedure.

Actually, it's an important step in our aging health. Perversely, I like it because 1) you clear your system, 2) you (hopefully) get a clean bill of health, 3) they give you the best drugs and 4) when you go home you eat and sleep for the rest of the day!

Good luck to us both!

[Sneederbunk]

5. Hope everthing comes out ok.

[jberryhill]

6. But don't you appreciate the feeling of being clean as a whistle inside and out?

I just imagined I was jet-propelled prior to mine.

[doc03]

7. Has in kicked in yet? I drank that stuff for hours and nothing. On my last glass it

it kicked in, I was on the throne for like an hour.

[comradebillyboy]

8. Colonoscopy...good times!

[SeattleVet]

9. Here's a little light reading material for while you are 'occupied':

http://www.miamiherald.com/living/liv-columns-blogs/dave-barry/article1928847.html

(This has the potential to clean you out, even without the MoviPrep!)

[SeattleVet]

10. When I got mine, they told me that they were now recommending every 10 years...

if no problems are seen, instead of every 5.

[cyclonefence]

11. There are alternatives

including one using Miralax and Gatorade. I asked my GI about them--I read about them on the NIH website--and he said his professional association doesn't approve because neither ingredient is subject to pharmaceutical controls--there could be variations in ingredients, for instance. So I went with the tried and true and awful, as you are.

But why can't some manufacturer come up with a pharmaceutical grade Gatorade and Miralax? They'd make a mint!

[Docreed2003]

32. Interesting that he would say that...

Miralax/Gatorade has been used for years and is an excellent prep. I use it for my patients, but I’m a surgeon. I don’t know plenty of GIs that use the same prep though. I’ve never heard the “pharmaceutical controls” line.

[cyclonefence]

40. I asked him what would happen

if I used Gatorade/Miralax but didn't tell him, and he grinned. He asked me to try a new prep that involved drinking about half the golytely crap, and I did. It was easier than the old gallon way, and since I don't need another colonoscopy for five years, I'm hoping that by then there'll be something better. My generation of baby-boomers is a giant balloon in the population, and we're all having to have colonoscopies now, so there's a big market out there for a more palatable prep. I'd invest in it.

[Sedona]

12. Use a straw, helps it go down easier

[mahatmakanejeeves]

13. I know what that's about. The preparation is awful. Good luck. NT

[The Polack MSgt]

14. Oh yeah. The night of a thousand waterfalls...

My first one showed that I had several pre-cancerous polyps, so I had to get a couple more in short order - 18 months after the 1st and 24 months after the second.

But I came up clear on both of those so I'm good for 5 years now.

I asked if "clear liquids" included vodka, alas no. It does not.

Hmmm. an AMA then? OK...

So, do you do candy crush on your phone while camp out on the throne, or are you going old school with a magazine?

[Cirque du So-What]

15. Better than the stuff I had to take 1st time I underwent 'the procedure'

It was a single 8-oz bottle, dark-brown glass. The contents were a viscous, white, chalky, glop that tasted of ether & formaldehyde. The label served as a warning: a cheetah in full stride with the words 'Fastest Evacuant Known to Man' emblazoned below. They weren't lying. The gallon of stuff I took next time around was a walk in the park compared to that evil little bottle.

[treestar]

16. reminds me I have to do that

such fun . . .

[hibbing]

17. Hate the taste

I got the stuff down, but I don't drink sweet stuff and by the time I was done I was disgusted by the taste. The drugs they give you for the procedure on the other hand, I would willingly take any time.

Do you have something in mind for your first meal after the procedure?


Peace

[Nac Mac Feegle]

18. That's the worst part of the whole procedure

The procedure itself is done with some WONDERFUL drugs.

I turn into a comedian when coming out of the drugs. The wife was laughing herself silly and the Recovery nurse just about burst a gasket, trying to stifle hers.


The trick to The Prep is to get the name-brand stuff. The generic stuff doesn't come with the strap you put around the toilet like a seat belt to keep yourself from getting airborne. If you weigh 230 pounds or less, you WILL need it. The term muzzle velocity takes on a whole new meaning.

You're lying there, waiting for things to get going, and you notice this black thing coiled up on the table. It's marked of in 10 cm sections. And you see a 1 m marking on it. About the middle. And you KNOW where that is going. Thank The Flying Spaghetti Monster for the drugs.

[PJMcK]

29. The scope is six feet long! (n/t)

[Nac Mac Feegle]

47. 1 m 1 meter

1 meter = 39.4 inches

2 meters = just a little shy of 6 feet 7 inches


For the sake of accuracy.

[PJMcK]

48. You're probably right

The technician at my last exam told me it was 6 feet. I don't care as long as 1) I'm unconscious and 2) I get a clean bill of health!

[Staph]

19. This recommendation is too late for you this time around.

But I was told (by a very smart nurse!) to start the liquid diet the day before you drink all that nasty stuff. That will partially clear things out and limit your throne-time.

I've had two colonoscopies since last summer and that advice simplified the process for me.

[Lars39]

21. Did that 2 days ago.

I added crystal light mix to it. Helped a little bit. Hope your doc gives you the “all clear”.

[Dave Starsky]

22. Lemonade Crystal Light is the whole key.

Tastes exactly like the yellow Gatorade, if you can imagine drinking a gallon of that.

[hatrack]

23. Did they give you the "Lemon-Lime" or the "Cherry"?

Horrible either way.

Could be worse - I remember my first such - no anaesthesia of any kind.

[Rhiannon12866]

24. Oh no!

My doctor gave me the forms to fill out during my last visit. I've been putting it off. I'll be following your experience closely...

[Lars39]

25. Please dont put it off...

Small polyps are nothing compared to colon cancer.

[Rhiannon12866]

41. Thanks! I'm not aware of any issues, just that I've never had one

And I guess it must be time. Seems like we see a lot of DUers who are having these recently, a lot of us must be around the same age.

[Lars39]

42. Within 5 years I went from nada...

to having 2 very small benign polyps.
I may joke about the prep, but I’m in awe of the technology, even though it’s not quite a Fantastic Journey.
Nice to be aging with DU.

[Rhiannon12866]

43. Ah! I remember that my Dad had polyps

Though I don't know if the tendency is inherited. But you're right, I need to find that paperwork. My doctor said it doesn't make sense, nobody wants one, yet they require so much paperwork that makes it as difficult as possible.

BTW, he's also "one of us," politics usually comes up. Nice guy.

[FarPoint]

26. I think this prep....

Borders along the lines of clinical abuse....

[Thor_MN]

27. On the day of the biggest Powerball drawing, I won the wrong lottery.

GI bleed from one of the 5 polyps they removed. Trip to the ER, multiple units of saline and eventually a transfusion and a night in the ICU. Blood pressure at one point was mid 80s over mid 50s, which for me is monstrously low. Never was light headed or any pain - the worst was like the prep, but blood instead of liquid. Nurses were surprised that I could stand up and walk, but other than being very pale, I felt OK.

Doc said out of tens of thousands of procedures, I was the sole exception. Fortunately, I had good insurance at the time and had a $2500 max out of pocket. The followup a year later was clear, so I'm good for the next 5 years.

I had the gatorade/miralax prep. That wasn't bad, but the AM chaser of Magnesium Citrate tastes awful.

You are past the hard part by now, now just a drive, short nap and it will be done.

[Freddie]

28. DH has Crohn's

Has to get a colonoscopy every 2 years (used to be annual!). He's an old pro at this. They keep changing the prep. Last one was designed to do it in less time so you can work the day before. Pills and then drink the stuff around 2 am, "cleaned out" by 5. Ugh. He says it wasn't too bad and could sleep all day after the early AM procedure.

[Historic NY]

30. My guy has some newer stuff..

not as bad. Pro-tip from my ex- a nurse Vaseline is your friend.

[CentralMass]

31. If i recall the stuff that I had was called Golytley or something like that.

I'm guessing thst they. derived it from the term "electrolyte".

I'm highly sensitive to laxatives.I call it Soylap ($hit Out Your Liver and Pancreas)

[chia]

33. Best wishes for an uneventful procedure. I woke up halfway through mine...

... the rest is kind of a bad memory for me...

Hoping by the time you read these responses you're enjoying a nice meal and your favorite beverage.

[beveeheart]

36. I woke up 3 times in terrible pain.

In the discussion with Dr. after the procedure, told him that years ago Drs had opened my stomach cavity to look for burst intestine. Fortunately that hadn't happened, but intestines must not have been replaced correctly. Not looking forward to next colonoscopy.

[Turbineguy]

34. But first...

https://vimeo.com/24340828

You gotta follow instructions!

[beveeheart]

38. Can't stop laughing.

[Turbineguy]

39. I'm the guy who walks up to the desk...

"I'm here to see Doctor Samson and his pet cobra!"

[geardaddy]

35. I feel for you.

I've had to do that three times already in my life and I'm only 52.

[NRaleighLiberal]

37. The sad story of me today - updated above in the OP. Thanks for all of your commentary!

My grandfather had colon cancer, hence my 5 year plan that started at 50. This is my 4th year on the merry go round (one prep didn't go well so had to repeat the following year).

It doesn't improve in fun factor, that's for sure.

[curlyred]

44. we call it the "poo-cedure"

[lindysalsagal]

45. The worst is really the empty feeling. It actually scares me. I'm so relieved when they finally

jab the tub with the sleepy stuff......

Keep sipping the yellow gatoraid type of drinks: Keeps the electrolytes and salt and sugar up. You need that. I made lots of chicken broth: Helps as long as your stomach doesn't reject it.

[NRaleighLiberal]

46. The sad and frustrating update....

THE PREP DIDN"T WORK!

I ended up spending 48 hours fasting - the facility/doctor never did get back to me until 5 PM on the day I was supposed to go in - I told him I was really annoyed and we are doing a reschedule...hopefully with a prep that will actually work.

But - that first meal a few nights ago tasted so good (Trader Joe frozen Chicken Tikka Masala - it was FAST....and I did microwave it first!).

So back to the drawing board. But the thought of spending another day fasting and drinking that stuff.....ugh. Next week perhaps?!?!