Anyone who has had a colonoscopy...

[jessica31876]

I need to ask you a question. My husband has tried twice now to have one done and both time the prep did not work for him. He was supposed to have one done today but the pills he was prescribed only made him throw up. The dr told him to get magnesium citrate from the pharmacy. It also made him throw up. So Im wondering if anyone else has had this much problems with the prep? Ive talked to a few people and they are all kinda shocked that it didnt work. Now he is really feeling horrible today and has not gotten up or eaten or drank anything all day and I am waiting on the dr to call me back to find out what to do. Reading online (bad idea I know) it says if you do not have a bowel movement after taking the prep there could be a serious problem which really only makes me worry more about him. He has been getting sick alot lately and ended up in the hospital ER from one of the sickness bouts which is why they are wanting to do the colonoscopy to begin with.

[*Celeste*]

i've had one. the first prep didn't work for me either - they were nasty drinks. the second time i had the pills. the pills are quite nasty and make you nauseous. i can see why he threw up. you really have to at the very least have chicken broth with them or even the orange jello. they hit the empty stomach and it's awful. i'm sorry he's having all of this trouble. you should try and get him to drink something. he wouldn't have a bowel movement until he ate or drank something more solid now because there is nothing in his system. he's cleaned out.

[jaylensmom]

i've had one too. i had to drink the nasty drink. it was nasty but it worked...i didn't have any issues when i had mine....

[rochelle789]

I've had one before too. The prep is way worse than the actual test. The nasty drink worked quite well for me. I hope the doctors can find something that works for him!

[jessica31876]

he did the prep last night and was eating and drinking what he was supposed to at that point. His dr had him drinking gatorade with the pills. When he threw up with that he was supposed to do the magnesium citrate with gatorade. He threw up with that too. He has been sleeping most of the day and I just called our primary care dr since the gastro dr has not called back all day even though he was supposed to call by 10 AM. Our primary dr said he needs to go to the ER but he refuses to go. I dont know what to do. He is being so stubborn and I know its not good that he is still sick almost 20 some hours after taking the prep.

[Sharon Kay]

I had one done in December .... oh what a nightmare ... I could't stop with the runs even 2 days after the procedure!!! so my experience is the opposite ... I had to take prescription pills to get me to stop...I woke up from the procedure with the runs starting immediately. Mine was the dulcolax and the mirolax bit ... I used sugar free lemonade with it and it was tolerable. They told me "next time" (10 years) I need to do 1/2 the amount. I asked about the pills originally and they told me that they found it was leading to kidney problems so they quit prescribing it.

I would call that gastro doctor AGAIN ... and if he does not call back right away after this next call ... you better get a DIFFERENT doctor ... because if he doesn't follow through with this ... if there is something going on ... how will he take care of your dh???

Ok if he won't go to the ER ... will he go IN to either of those doctors? Maybe the visit to the ER would end up with the colonoscopy and get it over with!!

[kristijoy]

I've done several bowel preps. The prep for that stuff is horrible. The drinks are just terrible. I have to force myself to drink it everytime. It's like every cell in my body wants to expel it. I would definately talk with the Dr. Hopefully they can come up with a combination that will work for the prep. Sounds like his system sensitive and he might need some special solutions. Maybe there are other ways to do the prep. Like...for example...how about an enema? The home enema's won't clean you out that much, but I had one done in a hospital (in the ER-long story) that really did the trick.

[maryinaz]

I had 3 before I was 30, none since. Back then, there was only the drink, no pills. It always worked for me. Now I'm trying to get my husband to get his first ever colonoscopy because his dad died from colon cancer. But so far he isn't cooperating. What is it with men that they are such babies with stuff like this?

I hope you can get him to go in very soon!!

[iteach3rdgrade]

I had one done about 3 years ago. I took something OTC and mixed it with ginger ale. I just had to drink one glass and then I followed it with a 32 oz. bottle of Gatorade. Very easy.

The next morning I had to do it one more time. I love Gatorade, but it was hard for me to drink it for awhile because I could taste the sodium.

There is no way that I could drink a gallon of something.

I have to wonder how safe this OTC mixture is. I recall reading something about affects on the heart. I'd probably question in next time.

[jessica31876]

the gastro doctor finally did call back and told me to get him to the ER right away. He started the prep last night at this time and he is still vomiting. The ER was crazy busy but after they saw how bad he was they bumped him up some to get him some medicine to stop the vomiting and got him into a bed. So now hopefully the medicine they gave him will help and they can figure something out.

[SeattleSheri]

I've had one too, but I don't even remember the prep. I only remember having to go without food for a long time. I hope he gets some answers and starts feeling better.

[Joy2Scrapbook]

I've had 3 and each time had the natsy drink prep. It always worked for me and was way worse than the procedure itselft. Glad you got your husband into the hospital, sounds like a really different reaction to the prep. Hope the figure out the issue quick!

[kristijoy]

Originally Posted by jessica31876

the gastro doctor finally did call back and told me to get him to the ER right away. He started the prep last night at this time and he is still vomiting. The ER was crazy busy but after they saw how bad he was they bumped him up some to get him some medicine to stop the vomiting and got him into a bed. So now hopefully the medicine they gave him will help and they can figure something out.

Glad you got him to the hospital. I hope they check for a blockage in the colon (that's what I had...a volvulus) nothing will go through, so it all comes back up. Glad he's being taken care of!

[CA Dreamer]

Glad you got him in. After getting sick with that stuff, his electrolytes are probably all messed up. Poor thing. I hope they figure out what's going on.

For me, the prep was WAY worse than the procedure!

[jessica31876]

I am really glad he finally decided to go in. I was with him for a few hours at the hospital but the kids have school tomorrow and we had not fed them before leaving so he told me to go home because it looked like he would be there for awhile. I called and spoke to his nurse and I guess at this point they are kind of debating on admitting him or not. I kinda hope they do so maybe they can figure this out. I was pretty worried because all the info online and what came with his medication for the prep said if he did not have a bowel movement within two hours he should seek medical attention.

[kristijoy]

Sending you prayers!

[Julie Billingsley]

thinking of your DH, hope everything will be okay!

[lovely1m]

I had to have some kidney work done when I was a teenager, I could NOT for the life of me get that liquid down. Everytime I brought it to my lips, I started gagging. I hope they get it all figured out for him!

[isaacsmom]

I have had two. And I agree with what everyone said. The prep is way worse than the procedure! The first time, I had GoLitely...who ever named that really got that name wrong! There is no going lightly at all!!! That was the gallon of liquid. The second time around, I had the pills. While it seemed like a better idea, I actually ended up throwing up mine as well. I just think the golitely worked quicker and got everything moving and cleaned out faster.

I am glad that you got him into the doctor and hope everything is okay with him!

[4noisyboys]

keeping you guys in my thoughts and prayers Jessica. I hope that they figure this out! Hugs!!!

[Jazz2000]

I never had one but quite possibly in the near, near future.

So sorry to hear about your dh. i can't believe that he was STILL vomiting even when you finally got him into the ER. I'm not sure, but if your gastro dr calls the ER, can he tell them to admit him???? or the dr admit your dr himself???

keep us informed.

[Sharon Kay]

I think I would be insisting they KEEP him until they get this figured out ... I HOPE HOPE HOPE you contact us with good news that they got him stabilized and did the colonoscopy .... {{{HUGS}}}

[jessica31876]

well they debated on whether to keep him or release him and decided to let him go home tonight. He is feeling alot better and honestly looks so much better. The gastro doctor is going to be calling tomorrow after he goes over the CT scan they did tonight to see what we do from here. The ER dr said he believes that my husband has some sort of allergy to something in the preps used for the colonoscopy and told him he should probably stay away from them in the future. I was really so worried about him though. When we got to the hospital his body temperature was hovering at 97 and his blood pressure was like 170/110. He never has high blood pressure. When he was in the bed and I was holding his hand it felt like an ice cube and that was really odd for him too....I am usually the one who has cold hands.

Thank you for all the positive thoughts and prayers though!! I know he can really use them right now. It seems like its been forever since we started dealing with this and Im really hoping whatever is causing it they will be able to figure out soon and fix it so he can start to feel better.

[CA Dreamer]

Praying for you guys. I hope they figure out what it is and I hope he stabilizes. You would think they would just keep him overnight to make sure he is ok. Get some rest, if you can.

[emilyscout]

I have a colonoscopy done every 1-2 years for ulcerative colitis. I've done every prep under the sun. What they may need to do is have him fast for longer than a day, take a laxative and technically they can do the colonoscopy without you being totally cleared out. Think about what they do in emergency situations where there isn't time to do the prep. Its possible, though harder for the doctor. I hope they figure out a plan for him.
Also for anyone who has to do a prep for this I've found that magnesium citrate prep is the least revolting. The lemon flavored kind. Refridgerate it so it cold. And then pop a straw in the drink and sip it slowly. Make sure you drink lots and lots of water. The medications in these preps can be rather harsh on your kidneys.

[CA Dreamer]

How is your hubby today?

[jessica31876]

like he was never sick...he felt a little weak the first day after but today he is back to normal. Thanks for asking!!

Me on the other hand I think I got a cold being in the ER waiting room for so long!!

ETA:He has to go back to the gastro dr and see what needs to be done now.

Originally Posted by CA Dreamer

How is your hubby today?

[kristijoy]

Oh glad he is feeling better! Hope the GI doc can come up with other solutions!