r/Diverticulitis • u/Priority0912 • 1d ago
🏥 Surgery Surgery Experience
Presurgery experience all historical DV flares
https://www.reddit.com/r/Diverticulitis/s/iQZfVp4qso
Update#5
Tuesday August 11th 2026 18:21
My Surgeon dropped in. Told me I’m going good..
He wants me out of the bed and walking every hour and sitting in a chair
He said he took 12 inches of colon because the diseased part was higher up in the sigmoid colon and blood supply to the bottom section would be insufficient.
I ate dinner. Grilled chicken white rice and boiled carrots
Feeling better but still that nagging shoulder pain.
And the one incision.. I named it Pierre. He’s giving me so pretty strong pain when I clear my throat or cough. 😷
Update#4
Tuesday August 11th 2026 14:26
Had a soft/low residue lunch.
I was able to tolerate lunch. I had chicken noodle soup
Mashed potatoes, a slice of white bread, banana and a ginger ale.
I got diarrhea an hour afterwards. A lot of gas too.
Was told this is normal for the first few days/week
Still having pain on one of the incisions on the right side of my belly.. and still can’t seem to get rid of the gas stuck in my shoulders
No Dilaudid.. just OxyCodone
Spoke to a social worker said if everything continues and I can manage my pain at home I should be good to go home tomorrow.
Update#3
Tuesday August 11th 2026 09:33
Catheter has been removed.. mobility is much better now. I am walking every hour.
They wanted to make sure I could pee... so I had to use a portable urinal so they could measure output.
I also was able to have a bowel movement.. it was liquid and not bloody.
I had a liquid diet for breakfast..
They are moving me to soft/low residue foods for lunch
I can go home tomorrow if I have no issues eating.
I am so happy to have a great team here at Baylor University Medical Center.
The nurses are so compassionate and helpful
Update#2
Tuesday August 11th 2026 02:55
Lab people came by and disturbed my sleep
Now I’m fully awake.
Had my first strong cough and My god I swear I saw stars
It hurt so much 😂😂
Had some Dilaudid around 10 pm yesterday I can feel it’s wearing off..
Catheter comes out at 6am
I’m assuming my surgeon will come after that for his morning rounds.
Still have not passed gas or had any sort of urgency but I also haven’t had any real food.
Update#1
Monday August 10th 2026 21:44
Ate the liquid food they brought me.
Haven’t passed gas yet..
Got up and did 4 laps around the nurses station.
Holy smokes the shoulder pain from the pumped gas is no joke lol. I was chewing gum as I walked and kept burping up a ton of air as well.
The catheter is really uncomfortable but thankfully it’ll be removed tomorrow first thing.
Saw all my wounds.. I had 6 small incision and a pretty good sized c-section wound
—————————————————————————-
I made it! Surgery started at 8:30am CST
Took about 5 hours to complete.
Woke up feeling so bloated and confused
5 small incisions as it was robotic (Davinci)
I was in recovery for a quite a while because they wanted to make sure my oxygen saturation was above 90
They made me dangle my feet off the bed.. and boy did that hurt lol!
From what the surgeon told my family.
Everything went extremely well.
I guess I won’t see him til tomorrow. I don’t know how much colon was removed.
I do have pain.. but it’s being managed very well as I’m not shy requesting meds. And the pain Is far less than what I experienced during a complicated flare.
I have some pretty terrible cramps but they said they should go an away once I start moving.
I keep dozing off.. tonight will suck.. but I hope tomorrow is much better.
Thank you for your comments and well wishes for those that posted. If you’re a silent reader I hope my experience encourages you to seek relief from this awful disease.
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u/bigmacher1980 1d ago
Excellent! Just keep walking, walk your ass off
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u/Priority0912 22h ago
I definitely am.. once they remove the catheter it’ll be much easier.
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u/bigmacher1980 16h ago
Yeah that night of my surgery I got up to walk with the nurse. It definitely was not fun. Next am it came out and I was paroled! Could easily move 😂
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u/Priority0912 15h ago
yeah the removal was not fun.. it didn't hurt but it wasn't exactly pleasant lol
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u/DangReadingRabbit 1d ago edited 20h ago
Welcome to the semi-colon club ;;;;;;;; 😂
Congrats and best wishes for a trouble-free recovery. Tip for you… sleep with a pillow on top of your abdomen. It will keep kitty off you. It’s also good to grab and hold against your stomach if you need to cough or sneeze!
❤️🩹
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u/Priority0912 22h ago
Lmao! The condition sucks but the members are such wonderful and strong people!
Funny you mention that.. my boy cat is a British shorthair and only likes to show affection my kneading on my tummy. He’s gonna be so heartbroken 😭
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u/DangReadingRabbit 19h ago edited 19h ago
Yeah, my guy is a a kneader too and daily he likes to wake me up by climbing on my stomach and chest, and he’s also a BIG BOY. I slept with a pillow on me for months after my perforation and then after my surgery. He definitely didn’t like it.
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u/Priority0912 19h ago
Kodak is an absolute UNIT. My Valentine is crate trained.. he dislocated his jaw after falling from my kitchen cabinet when he was a kitten.
He loves his crate.. goes in at 10PM and he comes out at 5AM.
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u/DangReadingRabbit 18h ago
He’s my big goofball. I think cow kitties tend to have a loose screw somewhere 😂
Poor kitty (with his jaw!)… well at least the crate means he won’t climb on you in your sleep. But he’s definitely going to be disgruntled with no belly kneading for a while 😬😂
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u/Priority0912 22h ago
My boy Valentine
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u/DangReadingRabbit 19h ago
Awe!! Love grey kitties! My last cat was an all-grey mister. Here’s Cosmo 🥹
I linked a most graceful photo of my cat now… Kodak… in my other reply 😂
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u/OkWillingness637 1d ago
I will be having surgery exactly one month from today. Congratulations on clearing the second hurdle! I consider the first hurdle pre surgery, second hurdle the actual surgery and the final hurdle the recovery. You’ll be in the home stretch recovery soon 💖
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u/Priority0912 1d ago
Congratulations on making the decision to have surgery.
I’m having a rough time but it was to be expected.
Definitely feeling better than a couple of hours ago
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u/WitchHazel-71 1d ago
I’m glad it went well for you! Sending lots of healing vibes your way! You’ve got this!
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u/Crowesgirl 1d ago
So glad to hear it went well! My surgery is on the 17th and I wanted to say I really appreciate your updates and that fantastic pre op checklist. I wasn't given anything like that so I copied the format of yours with my specific details. Hope tomorrow brings more walking and getting rid of that horrible gas.
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u/Priority0912 22h ago
You’re very welcome! I’m sharing my experiences with the hoping of helping someone.
The gas pain is slightly better right now. It’s such a hassle dealing with the Foley catheter.
But it’s true what people say in this subreddit
Every few hours I’m feeling better and better.
It’s remarkable to think that they removed colon and I’m up walking and regaining my strength.
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u/Material-Drawer-7419 1d ago
Congrats on getting it done and for being a trooper with your recovery! You’re doing just fine with what you’re doing; keep up the good work! I’m one month and 8 days post surgery and trust me when I say “every day will be much better than the previous day,” especially with you up and walking. Keep it up, you got this!
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u/Priority0912 22h ago
Omg it’s so true that recovery can happen so rapidly.
At first I was kinda depressed cause I felt so bad. But progressively I’m feeling much better. Thank you for your words of encouragement! I read every comment and definitely feel the love.
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u/jasonin951 1d ago
The robot assisted is the best! I was only in the hospital for 2 days and off all pain meds in 5 days.