next »

[tenured_feminist]

Hello, friends. I am thrilled to have remembered finally to schedule my first ever baseline colonoscopy. I have no idea why I kept forgetting.

There's lots of info on line about preparing for it and stern admonitions to get a ride home afterward. But realistically what can I expect for the rest of the day? I have to do it in the middle of the week, unfortunately, and ideally I'd like to be able to go to work for about half a day afterward and run a soccer practice that night. Is this insane?

[macaroon]

Hello, friends. I am thrilled to have remembered finally to schedule my first ever baseline colonoscopy. I have no idea why I kept forgetting.

There's lots of info on line about preparing for it and stern admonitions to get a ride home afterward. But realistically what can I expect for the rest of the day? I have to do it in the middle of the week, unfortunately, and ideally I'd like to be able to go to work for about half a day afterward and run a soccer practice that night. Is this insane?

Don't plan on it.  You might need to take a long nap after.

[treehugger1]

After his colonoscopies (relatively frequent due to Crohn's), Mr. Treehugger gets a ride back to school, then goes about his normal routine*. The only difference is that he sits down instead of standing up while he lectures.

Hope this helps.


*normal routine doesn't include supervising soccer practice. :-)

[lizzy]

I wouldn't plan to do much of anything afterwards, mostly because you can't know how your body will respond.

I know people like Mr. Treehugger who do go back to work the same day. When I had one, however, I needed to rest and would have been both useless and uncomfortable at work.

[paddington_bear]

As the veteran of three or four colonoscopies (I have UC), I've felt fine afterwards. I always scheduled them for a non-teaching day, but my afternoons - always get colonoscopies in the morning! - have been normal. I don't even think I've been tired due to the sedation. Obviously, YMMV.

[hulkhogan]

The answer, as always, is, "It depends." You will be heavily sedated, so driving after the procedure is definitely negatory. Depending on your tolerance of sedatives, you may be somewhat alert, but your impression of how alert you really are can be deceiving. Eventually you may just want to sleep it off. I'd cancel the rest of the day and plan for some zzzzz's.

[readandwept]

I'd also get a second opinion before sending any emails. When my husband had one, he thought he was perfectly lucid afterwards. But he was wrong.

[macaroon]

I'd also get a second opinion before sending any emails. When my husband had one, he thought he was perfectly lucid afterwards. But he was wrong.

Haha!  I drove a colleague to and from frequent colonoscopies, and this was very true for her as well. 

[tenured_feminist]

Of course, I could send all the emails I've always been wanting to send, see what sticks, and then just blame the procedure if anyone complains . . . the possibilities boggle my mind.

[nanoputian]

Nanospouse also gets frequent colonoscopies, and I had my first one this year. Judging by our two experiences, I think a lot of it has to do with how you respond to the anesthesia.

Nanospouse is always nauseous and weak afterwards, and needs a long nap right away. He's okay by the afternoon, but still low energy. I expected to require a similar recovery time, but was surprised to discover that although I was decidedly uncomfortable for a few hours afterward, I was able to work from home at about 3/4 of my normal brain power.

Soccer practice? Probably wouldn't have been up for that until at least 12 hours later, if not longer. YMMV.

[zuzu_]

Yes, beware of the false lucidity.

When I had one in the morning, I was fine in the evening, but not OK in the afternoon. I woke up feeling great, but then a few hours later, I couldn't remember the ride home and some of the other stuff I did in the few hours following the procedure. I also needed a long nap.

[juvenal]

My innards are probed early in the a.m.  My friend drives me; picks me up...

And afterwards we stop at a "Friendly's" for a lavish breakfast.  Nothing like a bit of drug hangover to make food really engrossing, and this after a day of effective starvation.

[michigander]

I agree with all of the others in that YMMV.  I've found that I don't have much of a reaction to the anesthesia, but I still always need to sleep for several hours after we stop for breakfast on the way home.  The process of emptying my colon takes so long (no matter how early in the previous day that I start the prep) that half of the night is gone before I feel secure enough to be able to fall asleep, and then I have to get up at the crack of dawn to go for the procedure.  I'm pretty OK by evening.

[infopri]

The answer, as always, is, "It depends." You will be heavily sedated, so driving after the procedure is definitely negatory. Depending on your tolerance of sedatives, you may be somewhat alert, but your impression of how alert you really are can be deceiving. Eventually you may just want to sleep it off. I'd cancel the rest of the day and plan for some zzzzz's.

This, especially the boldfaced part.  Our proctologist not only insists on having someone to drive the patient home, but also insists on giving the discharge instructions to the driver--because the patient won't remember them.  And he's been right, every time.  You think you're alert, but you're not; one of the side effects of the sedative they use is the permanent erasure of memories formed immediately after the procedure.  They never make it out of short-term memory into long-term memory.  (This effect will wear off fairly quickly as the day goes on, but you won't get those lost memories back.)

I would strongly urge you not to drive for the rest of the day; you'd be endangering not only yourself but also anyone else sharing the road with you.  In addition, I suggest that you don't make any plans that you can't easily break--so I don't recommend committing yourself to going to the office or the soccer game.  Most people I know have been grateful to have a good meal afterward, and then go home and take it easy for the rest of the day.  (Or, of course, go home, then have the good meal--prepared by someone else--and then take it easy.)

[pathogen]

Eat. Then rest. I have done this many many many many times. Afterwards, I tend to ask the doctor the same question about 10 times because I speak clearly but do not recall anything that is said to me. Depending on the level of sedation, you may have a sort of weird, disconnected feeling, like you're not quite awake. Nothing really works for that except to sleep it off. I suggest starting with something like gatorade and then progressing to food if you can keep it down. Mostly, though, you will just want to go home and sleep.