I have diverticulosis that was discovered during my colonoscopy. Thanks for the link.
Hats off to you, @flutesinginglady, for finding a silver lining. We all need to claim our victories where we can.
There is a local chiropractor clinic called Golightly. Every time I see their name i think colonoscopy. What were they thinking!
I have not read absolutely every reply in this thread, but wanted to add one more hint that really helped me with the prep: chill the glass you drink the the prep out of. My prep kit came with two bottles of “stuff” and a 16oz plastic glass. I chilled the bottles of prep for at least a couple of hours in the fridge, froze a double walled glass in the freezer, mixed the prep as directed, then poured the whole mess into the chilled glass, straw at the ready. Had a glass of cold water ready to wash it down as well. A few chills from all the cold liquids, but that passed fairly quickly (sorry for the pun).
Good news of 10 years when it was all done.
My prep was refrigerated for 10 hrs. I also got the chills and after starting to drink I took it out of refrigerator. Sipping was fine, no straw needed. Used frost white Gatorade and it tasted pretty good.
As I mentioned already, the stuff tastes gross no matter what, so sipping it cold would have just prolonged the agony. I just gulped it down lukewarm. No chills, minimal suffering, same desired effect. 
Now the mag cit I did gulp down room temperature , that preceded the Gatorade mix.
It really was helpful to read this thread before time. Comforting in the least and informative in the best.
^^^ I am used to take more gross medicine by the mouth, Chinese herbal medicine. The stuff for colonoscopy is nothing compare to those black “goulash”… VERY acceptable.^^^
When I had CAT scans in July, I had to drink two bottles of stuff that was like liquid Tums. I think each bottle was almost a quart. Keeping it down was a challenge, and the aftermath was not pleasant either. Up there with drinking colonoscopy prep in Gatorade, because I loathe Gatorade.
Oh yeah… the contrast agent. It is very gross, and you have to drink it sloooowwww… yuck.
Took two bottles of Supret and lots of water and abstained from eating for one day, which caused around 6 to 8 flushes within 4 hours. Had no problem. Woke up feeling refreshed actually. Did endoscopy at the same time just as a bonus. I survived a probing investigation.
Funny thing is I woke up in the middle of the procedure and saw on a computer next to me something long traveling in my colon and said “I think you guys have to knock me out more.” And they did and I feel asleep again.
They did find two small benign growths which they snipped (no, they were inside me lol).
Does anyone know how often they recommend you get colonoscopy for a 50+ guy?
@websensation, this depends on your family history of colon cancer, your personal history of colon polyps, and the type of colon polyps you have. Not all non-cancerous polyps are the same. Some would never become cancer, others are pre-cancerous, and depending on type, would indicate the need for more frequent colonoscopies.
Typical colorectal cancer screening protocols for those age 50-75 with no special circumstances (e.g. family or personal history of colorectal cancer or precancerous polyps):
- Colonoscopy as primary method every 10 years.
- FIT (stool sample test for blood) every year as primary method, with colonoscopy if FIT finds something.
More: https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/Page/Document/RecommendationStatementFinal/colorectal-cancer-screening2 (different screening protocols described at the end, after the references: https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/Page/Document/RecommendationStatementFinal/colorectal-cancer-screening2#tab )
A friend of mine’s DH had a precancerous polyp, with complete removal of said polyp. Guidelines for this type of polyp recommended a 3 year follow up. My friend’s DH did exactly as recommended, and presented for a colonoscopy at 3 years. He had a stage four cancer, and died two years later.
I keep wondering if the FIT would have helped here. There was no reason to suspect he would have such an aggressive cancer, based on the pathology of his previous precancerous polyp.
Very sad situation. His 3 year follow up was done at my facility, and his wife told me that the doc said he had NEVER seen such a quick sequence of events. I told her I had never seen it either, in my experience.
My husband is very lucky to have survived his stage three cancer, diagnosed by the same doctor at the same facility. I feel very lucky, while my friend is now carrying on without her DH.
Wow. That’s really scary.
At my first, I had two precancerous polyps, and I had another one at my second, three years later. Since then I’ve been on the five-year plan and during my third and fourth procedures I haven’t had any more. But I have no problem (well, maybe a tiny problem) continuing to follow the guidelines. It appears I’ll be doing it every five years for the foreseeable future, even though I’m about to turn 70.
@Nrdsb4
Things can happen, when someone is doomed.
Thirty years ago, SIL returned from overseas with a flu, she took few Aspirins and went to bed. Few days later, the flu never went away. She went to a doctor and the doc said nothing to it and gave her some antibiotics. Two weeks later she was in hospital and drop into a coma, never woke up.
Would it be reasonable, if you are using colonoscopy as the primary screening method but are concerned about a colorectal cancer that grows faster than the interval between colonoscopies, to do FIT every year between colonoscopies (and bring the next colonoscopy forward if the FIT finds something)? That could add some increased detection capability for those fast-growing colorectal cancers. Of course, there is small extra cost of the yearly FIT, and potential larger increased cost and medical risk if a false positive results in an extra colonoscopy that does not detect actual colorectal cancer or dangerous polyps.
Ummm… antibiotics for the flu (a viral infection)?
Pay extra for the prep that is smaller where you take 5 ounces at 5 and then 5 ounces at 10 the night before. Know that it is awful and you will have to use the restroom about 25 times. Fasting the day before is ok but only do yellow Gatorade no blue or red. The actual procedure was pretty easy. I had an endoscopy at the same time and I am glad I did it all at once. The peace of mind this brought me was good. I luckily do not have cancer or an ulcer. I am changing my diet for other reasons but I am thankful I now know the results.