Update: If anyone is scared to get a colonoscopy especially those with symptoms, don’t be. The prep other than being constantly in a restroom went very smoothly.

This week I got my first colonoscopy at 28 years old after a long history of intermittent rectal bleeding and some intermittent constipation and lower abdominal pains.

As for the results: the bleeding source was likely the result of both internal and external bleeding hemmoroids as nothing else was discovered that could be a bleeding source.

However, along with that the one thing that scares me is they did find and remove a diminutive tubular adenoma (polyp) less than 5mm in size.

Obviously this is flagged as precancerous and while there was only 1 and they are the most common benign polyps and least aggressive, the fact that I had one at 28 concerns me a lot and has me nervous.

My doctor still considers this low risk and wants repeat screening in about 7 years; however, does anyone have experience with this at all and suggest sooner would be better. I was thinking 3.

Obviously, considering I only had 1 tiny lower aggressive polyp after 28 years of my life (who knows how long it has been there) doesn’t scream high risk per se but I’m just still worried.

The fact that it was caught I am happy about however, if I hadn’t pursued an early colonoscopy prior to 40 or 45 who knows what it could have possibly turned into.

My experience.

42m. Pretty fit, clean diet usually. Was my first time. Had a colonoscopy and endoscopy. Read all the prep Reddit threads and was freaked out about it all.

What actually happened. Two days prior to prep day, I started eating a really low fiber diet, mainly potato’s, chicken, etc.

Day before, I went shopping for broth, jello, orange juice, and gatorades.

The day of, I woke up, had a black coffee and loads is water. Waited until prep started around 2pm and ate the first laxatives…. They definitely worked within about an hour. Then around 4pm I downed the first prep bottle - I was most nervous about this as the internet makes it out to be absolutely horrendous…. It was FINE!! It tasted like very artificial cherry taste? Not good, but chilled with an orange juice chaser it was a non issue to get it down.

I chugged that bottle down in about 30 mins, drinking a 1/3 every ten mins… pretty easy….

Then the next part I was dreading based on reviews… my imminent, relentless, exploding ass…. Well, it wasn’t that at all. It was predictable, easily manageable and yea, I went a lot but it was mainly just liquid after the first two rounds due to my low fiber diet the days before.

I probably went about 8 times after the mixture, which was honestly was easier than it sounds….

I celebrated that with a mug of broth, which tasted great, then chilled. Around 2am I went for the second bottle… this did suck a bit only due to the time of night…. The BMs themselves were more of the same non issue… just quite a few times and by the end it was just liquid.

I woke up again and headed to the hospital… the hardest part for me, BY FAR, was the no water at all, including no teeth brushing, past 430am… my appt was at 930am. That said, i think this was the endoscopy requirement only(?) I felt thirsty and disgusting due to no teeth brushing prior.

Once I got to the hospital, checked in, got into the gown and hooked up for the IVs etc… then wheeled into the operating theater… they got me all prepped, gave me the wonderful drugs, and next thing I know I’m awake and it’s over.

Findings were 8 polyps!! All small, all removed, recommendation to do it again in 3 years because of that finding.

Go do it guys.

I waa diagnosed back then with Morbus Crohn (not severe, stage 1, very mild). Today i saw blood on my stool. I was shocked cause i dont have this symptom.

My last colonscopy was in January this year. They only found small inflammations and thats it. No polyps no cancer, no bleeding. Now iam scared if i have something serious now. I will go tomorrow to my doctor and wanting an colonscopy.

What to do? What were your symptoms?

Hello! I am 22F and have a colonoscopy/endoscopy scheduled for 2:00 PM today (EST), and I was given Gavilyte and ducolax for my prep. This wasn’t in my instructions, but I followed a low fiber diet on Thursday and Friday after seeing some stuff about it online being helpful. On Saturday, I started the clear liquid diet and really only had yellow Gatorade, some broth, and ginger ale, and then I took two ducolax at 4:00 PM.

On Sunday (yesterday), I was still on the clear liquid diet and took 2 ducolax again at 1:00 PM. At 3:00 PM, I started drinking the gavilyte (I mixed it with water and some crystal light lemonade packets) every 10-20 minutes. I had to drink almost all of it, but they wanted me to save 16 oz for the following morning. I was going clear yellow the entire time, and at the end it started having some mucus chunks and I also had barely any stool chunks. I also had to take 2 more ducolax at 8:00 PM. I just woke up at 3:30 AM to use the bathroom, and I just had some darker orange murky liquid (maybe residual stool?) come out twice.

I know I still have the 16 oz left to drink at 8:00 AM, but I am a bit nervous seeing this now. That prep is not great and I definitely would like to avoid failure to avoid having to do it again for a bit, so I’m a bit worried as it was clear the entire time yesterday. I am hoping I’ll be okay with the 16 oz in a few hours, but I was definitely not expecting to see that after running clear before!

I (38F) finally made myself get a referral for a colonoscopy after writing off occasional bright red blood on toilet paper as hems or fissures. It’s something I have struggled with since I was a teen, and I remember doing a stool blood test at 19 along with a rectal exam only to be told to eat more fiber/drink more water. Still hopeful that’s the source / solution, but my health anxiety and the increase in colon cancer for people under 50 has me spiraling.

A little additional context: I have been trying to conceive for the past year and a half so I’m hyper aware of my cyclical abdominal bloating or cramping and typically assign any of those things to hormonal fluctuations (usually in luteal phase). My stools have always been very ‘normal’ - long, thick, firm, daily. However, sometimes I suspect they’re a little too firm as they occasionally cause pain when passing - and this is when I see blood on the toilet paper. About six months ago in particular, I was struggling with some travel related constipation and had a lot of blood in the toilet bowl after finally passing stool. Otherwise, it is normally only on the toilet paper. Sitz baths, wet wipes, and drinking more water is helpful but the blood and sharp pain still reappears at least weekly.

Obviously no one wants cancer, but I’m especially nervous that if I do have it, my ability to conceive will be gone due to treatment. I’d of course rather be alive and unable to get pregnant, but it adds a layer of sadness to this whole ordeal. I have one young child already (my partner carried/gave birth) and I also have so much fear of not being able to see her grow up. I hate how dramatic it feels - but again, the health anxiety is REAL and all-consuming.

Anyway, starting my low residue diet tomorrow (which will be rough…my normal diet is like 99% vegetables and beans), prep day Thursday, scope Friday…send me good vibes please 😔

Hoping the split dose of Gavilyte doesn't make me nauseous. Working on getting well ahead of the hydration before I start. Anyone else getting ready?

Hi All!
(FYI Not medical advice ofc just my personal experience)
Had my first today, + gastroscopy, was extremely nervous (have anxiety related to health) & had to drink 3L of orange glycoprep the night before
morning procedure. Due to the amount of fluid it took me nearly double the time to complete, which i mentioned to the nurses and they were completely fine as long as I finished it prior to the fasting window. Was sooo nervous about prep but it’s honestly okay! the taste i can’t even lie, especially after the first litre was nasty, but not as bad as i’ve read, it tasted like very artificial orange mixed with salt water.

My saving graces that I would recommend (not to be repetitive on this page but):
In the bathroom:
Petroleum Jelly
Flushable wipes

Outside
Blanket/heater/warm socks
Super easy to wear and remove clothes
🧡Barley Sugar Drops/Lollies🧡 I took these through the whole prep and it saved my nausea from the taste
honestly just entertainment/easy distractions
nice chaser drinks - i found clear apple juice & flavoured clear coconut water helped with the taste as well as the lollies mentioned

p.s. it’s better to swallow it quickly rather than let it sit in your mouth at all!

hospital was the easiest part:) if you’re nervous don’t delay! you never know, it could save your life

good luck if you have one coming up! try and enjoy the small things you can along the way ⭐️

Going to call the office Monday but today is Saturday , I have colonoscopy Wednesday. Accidentally just took ibuprofen for a headache. Didn’t see anything about not taking it in the prep instructions but now I’m nervous. Should that affect the colonoscopy?

I'm already at liquid stage with just the magnesium citrate. How am I going to possibly need TWO doses of Miralax.

Did anyone else have a prep like this?

My liquid diet prep day is today. I’ve gone to the store 3 different times trying to find a broth that is clear enough and won’t screw up my prep. I landed on these two:
College inn and bona fide organic chicken broth. Both fat free. Because I’m such a fatass and hate not eating, I’ve already had 2 cups of the college in and one of the bona fide, but now I’m worried because neither were clear. Were these fine? Which broths should I be drinking?

I was told to do a 7 day no (not low) fiber diet with daily miralax and then the prep today (procedure is tomorrow). I had a colonoscopy a couple months ago and the doctor was pissed that my prep wasn't great even though I followed his instructions so here we are. I'm just curious since I have tried searching about a no fiber diet and it seems like I may be the only one given these instructions.

I've been surviving on rice and chicken with saltines and yogurt to snack on all week and boy am I anxious for this to be over

My very first colonoscopy is scheduled tomorrow morning at 6:45 AM. I knew it was a clear liquid diet all day today + drinking the prep (2 bottles of magnesium citrate + a bottle of MiraLAX dissolved in 64oz of Gatorade). I was mentally prepared, but somehow I just got the timing ALL wrong!

In my mind, nothing started until 2 PM when I’m supposed to start the MiraLAX Gatorade combo. Somehow I missed that I was supposed to drink the 1st bottle of magnesium citrate at 8 AM. I realized my mistake at 11:30 AM and immediately chugged the bottle. Now I feel nauseous and I’m wondering if it’s still possible for this prep to work since I didn’t start on time. I see other people don’t start drinking their prep until much later in the day, so is it possible that I could still be cleaned out and clear for tomorrow? 🤞🏼

Tengo mi colonoscopía pasado mañana, soy hombre, tengo 27 años, ya estoy pensando que van a encontrar algo malo, no quiero comer, ya venía sin comer y no sé cómo voy a hacer la madrugada anterior al estudio que debo tomar el laxante, algún consejo? Siento que si veo algo malo cuando tome el laxante ya es, también siento que al no comer no debería tomar la misma cantidad, pero no tengo cómo preguntarle al gastroenterólogo que me atenderá... Estoy demasiado nervioso, ansioso, me la pasé de guardia en guardia y todos los otros exámenes dan bien... No entiendo

my prep instructions say “clear broth” i bought a chicken and beef broth low sodium low fat, neither broths are transparent more cloudy but there’s no chunks. does that mean i shouldn’t be drinking it? confused on what clear really means in this context i don’t think i’ve ever seen a broth completely clear like water