Mix it up with some broth. I got so tired of sweet drinks! I also enjoyed some jello when i got tired of drinking my meals 
I did get really, really sick of anything with a lemon or lime flavor. Good chicken broth was fantastic. Good luck, surfcity.
I canāt tell you how pleasant the procedure was this morning. I know that sounds weird, but it was. Prep wasnāt too bad last night. Itās like drinking seawater - I can see how some might gag - and there is lots of it: 16 oz followed by 2 x 16oz watersā¦ thatās 48 oz. and it totaly liquifies your insides. Then you do it again (another 48 oz total) 4 hours later. But unlike food poisoning, there was no pain at all. Pretty much done by 10 pm so I slept fairly well. Then this morning, I walked in and didnāt pay a dime. We will see if I get a bill later. Everyone is so nice and pleasant and really put you at ease. The IV for anesthesia was a tiny needle. I have been donating platelets which involves a large needle in each arm, so this was nothing. Then the very sweet anesthesiologist told me I would be getting drowsy and next thing I knew they were done.(actual time was 15 mintutes) My doc, who I remembered from 5 years ago, is a super nice guy who briefed me before, and then after on the findings (2 noncancerous polyps) and answered all my questions. Seriously, I find it more unpleasant to get my teeth cleaned (Sensitive teeth and gums really donāt like scraping inside lowers!!!) One thing I actually liked was not having any food from Tuesday night until today, Thursday at noon. I went from 181 lbs after downing the liquid to 174 lbs this morning! I am going to try fasting maybe once a month. Any questions?
Wow, have my first colonscopy prep tomorrow night and then procedure on Thursday - Iām overdueā¦by a few years but hey, itās happening now! Yikes, how does one catch up on 61 pages of thread!!? Is there a SparkNotes edition!!!
Yes and here it is:
Donāt skimp on the prep. Keep hydrated.
The procedure itself is a big nothing.
Enjoy your nap afterwards.
I only know of Cliff Notes, so here is the Cliff notes version of this thread:
- itās important to get a colonoscopy, stop screwing around
- the procedure itself is a piece of cake, so just do it
- the prep is the worst part, donāt do the one that requires you to drink a gallon of gatorade
- it might make your prep easier if you cut back on food the day before your prep
- really, itās important to get a colonoscopy
- if they find polyps, or you have other factors, you will need it every 5 years or less. If you are clear, 10 years
- if you arenāt sure whether to get a colonoscopy, see #1 and #5
- discussions of various conditions that may or may not interest you.
Many thanks.
My prep is 4 little pills to take all at once at 6pm tomorrow followed by the powder in 64 ounces of liquid - Gatorade or Crystal Light suggested (Iāll do Crystal Light lemonade or something). Liquid diet all day tomorrow. Procedure Thursday morning at 11am.
Tips Iāve seen on the few pages I looked at:
- baby wipes
- no red drink
- the nearest bathroom is your friend.
- eat lightly the day before prep - glad I saw this - I was thinking of indulging tonight, but second thinking that!
How about sleeping the night before? Will the bathroom business be over after a few hours (if starting the stuff at 6pm?)
You might be up in the middle of the night. No worries, though ā you can sleep the next afternoon.
I think the prep type may affect your experience. I had Prepopik which I read on this thread and elsewhere was an easier type. My instructions were to avoid nuts and seeds and corn for three days prior. I followed a low residue diet for three days and I think that helped.
I was not constantly in the bathroom. It was not pleasant but it was doable. In between I just lounged around on the bed and read.
New drugs at my Dr.
Propophol only. I was awake, alert and chatting with everyone until the final two minutes. Woke up alert and coherent about 20 minutes after IV was discontinued. Much much better than the groggy stuff.
It is scheduled, and I am scared. I met the Gastro MD today, and will do,procedure on Oct 16, being there at 6 am. I wanted the afternoon, but then Iād lose 2 days of patients. Doing this on a Friday. This doctor uses moviPrep. I couldnāt recall reading about that on this site. I did ask about clear chicken broth, and that was fine.
Now, I will re read this thread.
Thereās absolutely no reason to be scared. You drink some crap, you have diarrhea for a few hours, and when you get to the facility, they put you to sleep. The worst part of the whole thing is when they put the IV in.
Really. I promise.
I agree with VeryHappy! I have my third one scheduled for December, and Iām not worried about it at all. A little inconvenience is worth the peace of mind. As I said many posts ago, the one I had three years ago probably saved my life, because they found a polyp that probably would have turned cancerous at some point.
Thanks for all the reassurance. Iāve waited until Iām on Medicare, and Iām just plain scared. Not of the prep, but the findings.
Does anyone have experience with the prep my doctor uses? MoviPrep?
As I reported a little upthread on this page, I had my first colonoscopy earlier in September at age 55 - I was TERRIBLE about putting it off! Everyone is right - it is really just an inconvenience for a night - nothing more! For me the worst was not being able to eat the day before - I like my food!
I mixed my powder with Crystal Light lemonade - it didnāt taste that bad but Iām just not a big drinker so towards the end I was getting a little waterlogged! But I just sucked mine down quick each 20 minutes or so.
I will say that for me, it took awhile for things to start to āworkā - that made me a little nervous - what if I was drinking all this crap with no results!? Would I have to repeat? (no!) I started drinking at 6pm and didnāt visit the bathroom till around 8:30 - I expected it to be sooner. Because of that, I found myself getting up a few times during the night - but no problem.
I was awake when they wheeled me into the procedure room and remember turning on my side andā¦thatās about it!
Best of all, I got my 10 year ticket at a follow up visit a couple weeks later.
Iām a chicken when it comes to getting medical procedures taken care of - this really was no problem!
Oh, and baby wipes - GREAT idea!
@bookworm, you might be scared of the findings, but not knowing whatās going on in there is much, much worse. If they find something, they can usually deal with it right then and there, and then you can go on your merry way.
VH, I am scar d of the prep. But I will try to put everything out of my focus for 2weeks, then report back.
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Mine was 2 months ago and I paid nothing at the clinic and I havenāt gotten a bill for anything, so it is looking like a zero patient cost sharing as it should be. And my deductible is $5,500 !!!
āVH, I am scared of the prep. But I will try to put everything out of my focus for 2 weeks, then report backā
@bookworm, Donāt be scared of the prep, just be ready for it!
My husband had the moviprep, and that was very easy for him to get down. He was paranoid after my experience (golytely), so he sucked on a lemon, held his nose, and swallowed it. Not much liquid to get down, and I heard that it just tastes like 7up, no big deal. But he never even tasted it.
However, some important things to consider. Try really hard to not have hemorrhoids when you start this. I had small ones, that turned into large ones that were very painful and took a month to get rid of. I had never experienced that before. For my job, I was in torture trying to just sit down, and really didnāt want to describe my problem to the other guy. So be really careful that everything is flowing well through your system before this, if you can. Whatever it is you need to do. My stupid thought was, oh well, Iāll get hemorrhoids anyways, so whatever. Not!
Have plenty of things to drink/eat during that time. You MUST keep hydrated, because you lose so many fluids, you can feel really terrible. Things with salt or potassium in them, like chicken or beef broth. Gatorade, popsicles, jello, and fluids besides water. That will help so much, and keep these things near your bed, so you donāt have to attempt to walk downstairs to get them, you could be weak.
Just be prepared for it, read the good advice here, and youāll be fine!