# Colon Shortening for IBS-c?



## smooth (Feb 11, 2012)

Anyone have their colon shortened?
Im really tired of severe constipation and hurting and limping around.
Feeling like #### and not eating.


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## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Usually it isn't so much a shortened, as mostly removed. They leave the ends so they can hook it up, but taking out a foot or two usually how it goes. They take it almost all out.

You can see this for people who have severe transit time issues. If you have outlet issues (can't relax the pelvic floor) you may not be a candidate as it doesn't fix anything to have it get there faster and still can't get it out normally. So you need testing to see if the problem is you can't move anything along (usually a sitz marker test and you fail with all the rings begin mostly in the first part of the colon) or things just can't get out.

Generally this is "last resort" kind of thing as they can't put it back and there is a risk of the scar tissue and adhesions that are likely from any abdominal surgery becoming as painful or more painful than the colon they removed.


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## smooth (Feb 11, 2012)

Ya unfortunately i have is all, pelviv floor wont relax, last and only real colon surgeon said id probably be in a bag the rest of my life. Which im sure will make dating and finding a wife much easier







.


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## Maegwin (Nov 11, 2012)

I've wondered about this too. I had a friend who had had most of his colon removed when he was a child. Not for IBS, something else, like an infection. I envied how fast food moved through him. He was as skinny as a rake and had to eat constantly as the food would move through him within a half hour. However it was hard to tell if his skinniness was from the shortened bowel or the various drug addictions he suffered from (mostly weed). He also smoked a lot. I want to be optomistic and think that a shortened bowel could work if I maintained my healthy diet. I don't do drugs or smoke either.

I hear ya Smooth. I am so sick of feeling like sleeping all the time, not being able to stand up straight or exercise because of the sheer volume and weight of the #### in me, and having to frequently starve myself just to have a slightly more functional day. It's no kind of life. I used to dance and compete in races, now I'm lucky if I can do sit-ups without feeling like puking and all of my clothes are two-three sizes too big so as to accomodate my bloated, distended belly. It's impossible to dance with.

I was on senna for fifteen years and at least I had some functionality and was able to dance and be active. Recently my doctor told me that senna addiction will cause problems in my senior years so I'm trying to get off of it. But now I'm back to where I was before I started taking it 15 years ago. Massively constipated and barely able to eat or move. Whether I'm on senna or not I think I'm going to have problems when I'm older but at least with senna I can intermittently enjoy life while I'm still young. Until these f***ing doctors start taking this disease more seriously I feel like I should take whatever I need to to go so I can enjoy my life.

I'd love to hear from people who have had their bowels shortened.


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## Sean (Feb 8, 1999)

I had a surgeon recommend colon shortening to treat my colonic inertia. This was about ten years ago and I just have not been able to make myself go through with the operation. I would appreciate hearing from someone who has had it done about their quality of life. My life is bearable because of heavy doses of stimulant laxatives, but I worry that the practice will eventually become a dead end street and my bowels will no longer move at all regardless of what I do.


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

i have colonic inertia. my colonoscopy monday revealed that my colon is long and twisted.

after the procedure my gastro said i could look into surgery if linzess, which is supposed to come out in december, doesn't work for me.

i don't want my colon shortened. i want it removed. i do have outlet problems, though--pfd. so i more than likely will be told i can't have a total colectomy.

i've read stories about colectomies and ileostomies on another board and many people say the surgery gave them their lives back,. .i would much rather have a total colectomy than an ileo, though.


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## oceannir (Mar 6, 2012)

Annie how long and twisted?

I tried to get my doctor to quantify these terms for me, she wouldn't apart from saying 'slightly'


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

gastro didn't say and i didn't ask. this was after the procedure and i was still quite a bit woozy-lol. he did say it was a long colon jammed inside a small body.

i have a follow up in janurary when i can find out more but i actually don't really care how long or how twisted. the point is, as he said, it doesn't work anymore.

this was obvious from the prep. i had a two day miralax/dulcolax prep and although i doubled the amount of the dulcolax i still couldn't even get all prep out in time for the procedure nor was i running clear. it was sloshing around inside of me when i went in. gastro had to suction me out before he could start. thank goodness for anesthesia!!


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## oceannir (Mar 6, 2012)

I suspect you knew this already. Is there any 'next step' to getting help? I assume you've gone back so that you can move forward with surgical options?


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

no i've not gone back yet. my follow up appt is jan 8. i always have to wait 5 or 6 weeks for an appointment. and then i'll get a referral to a surgeon.

i will be going to the gastro office in december to pick up my linzess samples once they are available but i won't be seeing the doc til jan. and of course if linzess works--fingers crossed-- i won't be needing surgery.


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## AIRPLANE (Mar 15, 2004)

Annie,

Is this new information- as far as having a long and twisted colon? I'm guessing you've had colonoscopies before. Anyway, good or bad, I guess it is good that an explanation has been found for the slow transit and that the doctor agreed that there is indeed a problem.

I have wondered myself about colon removal. But unless they can make a definitive diagnosis like in your case, I doubt that most of us would be allowed that option since we can't prove how bad things are or that we've genuinely tried many things for relief with no success.

Since I've never been given that option I haven't really researched colon removal so don't know what it would really be like on a daily basis or whether there have been any improvements to it. When I think of it I remember an elderly customer that used to come in and you could tell that they had a bag and it was pretty odorous. I know that there were chlorophyll tablets to put in the bag that were supposed to help with that but they didn't help enough.

But yes, I sure do wonder if I could get some quality-of-life back if I could get rid of it. I'd still have pelvic floor pain and issues but it'd be one less thing to deal with anyway.

I seriously doubt I'd ever be given that option though because I don't get way backed up for days- my IBS is all over the place though it is certainly miserable. I suspect that they wouldn't be as likely to do it for IBS-A or D.


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

Hi Airplane--yes the long and twisted colon is new information.

i had my first (screening) colonoscopy about nine years ago. all the doc mentioned then was that i had diverticulosis and some hemmies. and back then i didn't have the big problems with the prep that i had this time. back then it all went quite smoothly. this second colonoscopy was done because my constipation has become so much worse.

you're right--bag odor problems would not be good...and there are other problems as well...

and yes you're right. i think they pretty much use this type of surgery for people with severe colonic inertia who have become refractory to everything else--laxatives, enemas, meds like amitiza, etc.from what i've read, i don't think they do it much for people with ibs. like Kathleen said, it's a last resort kind of thing.


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