Welcome to the 45-year-old Club, Now get your colonoscopy asap!

I wanted to share my experience in an attempt to help anyone else in a similar situation and to just help give information to those thinking about or scheduled to have their first colonoscopy. So, here is how it went for me.

Have you seen that commercial with the talking box, Colonguard? That commercial never really made any sense to me except I knew that when I turned fifty, I was going to need a colonoscopy.

Well fast forward a few years and it turns out that the guidelines were changed from 50 to 45. When I went to my doctor this year for my yearly physical, I was first congratulated and welcomed into the 45-year-old club and immediately told to get one.

As someone, who by that point, had be doing enemas for 3 years, I was chomping at the bit to see what the results would be. My appointment was made on October 19th 2021.

I had read from other articles that it is suggested to prep your body a few days earlier and to acquire a few essential items to have on hand in the house before, during, and then after the colonoscopy. You are not going to want to leave the house during this process. Not to worry, you get a detailed handout, and you can always ask your doctor any questions.

*Here is a tip I can pass on: stock up on flushable wipes.

Now when you are prepping for the colonoscopy, you are fasting from eating solid foods. You can, however, have clear liquids (apple/ white grape/broths). Stay away from anything with red, blue, or purple color or food dye.

Prep for colonoscopy:

• A container that can hold a gallon plus of water

• 1 gallon of water

• MiraLAX (238 mg)

What I did was pour the water and the whole bottle of MiraLAX into the container and put it in the refrigerator. Then when it was time for me to start drinking at 2 pm. I had 6 hours to drink the gallon of water. 8 oz of water every 15 minutes. Not going to lie, it was brutal. The laxative did not start to kick in until about 4:30ish. So not only did I have to pee because I was drinking a whole lot of water, but I was also going to the restroom because of the MiraLAX. I ended up finishing this process by 6 pm, however I was still peeing non-stop. Then my stomach spent the rest of the night, recovering from the process.

I did not think I was going to get much sleep because I had to get up at 1 am to drink a whole bottle (10 oz) of magnesium citrate and arrive at the hospital early the next morning but I did fall asleep just fine around 7pm. I was not expecting the magnesium citrate to taste the way it did. I want to say it was super sweet and then some sourness because it was lemon flavored. Whatever it was, I could not go back to sleep after that. I slept approximately 5-6 hours at a least.

I arrived at the hospital on time at 6am and got checked in. I was asked all the necessary questions from the nurses and anesthesiologist. Never have I ever been a patient at a hospital other than when I was birthing my kids, so it was strange being wheeled in a hospital bed into the procedure room. I was awake long enough to do a quick survey around the room, answer any questions, and the last thing I remembered was counting backwards 10, 9, 8 -lights out. Even though I did not sleep well the night before, I had the best cat nap ever during the procedure.

Results: The included PDF link contains medical graphical content of a real surgical procedure, and my results thereafter the procedure, viewer discretion is advised.

The colonoscopy went well and with the positive results found, I will not have to go back for 10 years. See attachment if you would like to view the details and my results

Colonoscopy Results.pdf

Download PDF • 2.13MB