A few weeks ago I started getting a bit of tummy ache with nausea after my evening meal ( it honestly wasn’t my cooking), this was on and off until earlier this week. I had made a yummy shepherds pie but with swede mash, my plate was completely empty it was that nice.
I went to bed and can’t remember if I had that weird tummy ache thing again, but anyway I went to sleep. I kept waking in the night with quite painful colicky spasms, but tried to manage some sleep. When daylight came I had a look in my bag and the stoma was swollen and I had very little output. Usually I have a fullish bag and need to empty a couple of times in succession. The pain was coming in waves so my husband said to ring the stoma nurses or GP. I changed my bag first because I needed to cut the hole much bigger to accomodate the alien trying to get out of my tummy. Then I rang the GP first, that was fun, ” You are number 22 in the call queue”.
When I finally got to speak to the receptionist to ask what I should do, she went off to speak to someone and then said A&E. Now I don’t mind this but I do think the GP should have maybe got me into the surgical triage unit at least. Anyway I tried my normal stoma nurses at the hospital but had to leave a message, so tried the stoma team at NAMS, which is where we have to order our stoma supplies from and where there are stoma nurses, they said A&E too.
So we decided we should go there, hoping that I don’t have to sit in the waiting room for ever and a day. I was in a lot of crampy pain still with virtually no output. When I went to the reception window I said I have a stoma blockage and he could see I was in some pain, and the lady next to him said, straight to majors. Thank you thank you.
I was getting upset with my situation and they were really nice to me, put a cannula in and gave me intravenous paracetamol then saline.
I kept being wheeled around the busy majors department a bit like a car park, one in, move one, move back etc. They kept me next to a nightmare patient who kept threatening to remove the cannula that was giving vital meds, the doctors and nurses kept explaining that she had a very fast heart rate and could go after the drip had finished, she wasn’t happy with that and kept going on and on. In the end they said take it out then go ( knowing full well that wasn’t going to happen). Meanwhile I was trying to relax to keep my pain at bay to no avail.
Next they decided I should have a CT scan, and off we went, when we got there they said good I have a cannula. It then dawned on me that I can’t have CT contrast otherwise this would happen, and I forgot to mention it.
CT with contrast allergic reaction
So off we wheeled again to majors.
They then decided it would be best that I see the surgeons, and they would arrange for them to see me.
We waited……and waited…. 4 hours so far for them. Ok I think we need to get you to the surgical triage unit and wait there.
Off went again. At the door to the unit, they more or less chucked me off the trolley saying trollies weren’t allowed in there ????? weird I had been taken in before on one ( and I saw many a patient come in on them too). So they sat me on a chair with others who had been waiting years by the looks of it. I had my obs taken and after about an hour I decided to ask if I was back of the queue again. No there was one more in front, would I like a bed?
Yes please I would like a bed, it was now 5pm and I had been at the hospital since 10am. I was put in a side room with my phone barely charged and waited again. My husband had been back just to see how I was doing and waited with me for another 4 ish hours. Finally a junior doctor came in and asked what was happening with my stoma. I explained how it was swollen and not producing much and I had pain. He was debating whether to see it but decided we should wait for the registrar. It shouldn’t be too long but you never know. He seemed to think i would be staying in anyway. I sent my husband home and waited again. The nurses kindly charged my phone for me.
The registrar arrived, actually fairly speedily in the scale of hospital time. and asked if he could take a look. The bag came off and the small amount of fluid that had managed to get out smelled like nothing I have ever smelt. I apologised but he didn’t flinch, good lad.
The swollen stoma was still swollen and the output during the examination was zero. He had a feel around and told the junior doctor what he was looking for and how the fistula was the only part that had any output. ( This was the case for about a year I explained). I think deep down they were fascinated, and he said he would get a rubber catheter to see if he could unblock it. So in went the tube through my fistula, and he prodded it around up and down ( It reminded me of having your fat sucked out) He said he couldn’t really get anywhere and tried the stoma itself, this showed that it was only going down a couple of inches. He tried again and to my ( and definitely his) surprise, the other end of the catheter came out the fistula. I have tried to recreate the image just for you, you lucky things. ( I am no picasso I’m afraid, the brown bit is the catheter, and the stoma was much fatter than this)
He then said he didn’t think this blockage would resolve by itself and that I may need surgery, but would see a colorectal surgeon the next day.
I stayed in overnight in that room. Extremely boring as it was just four walls and a clock, I did have a bathroom of sorts to myself though. The tap on the basin was a bit weird, you turn it on and a jet shot out all over you, very interesting. My husband said that’s because it is actually a bidet tap not meant for there at all.
A few saline drips later and I tried to sleep,I had no pyjamas as we didn’t know I would be in. But they gave me one of their mini toothbrushes and micro mini toothpastes.
I slept in my top but decided to take off my bra, I got it half way off then realised I had my drip on the other arm and couldn’t get the bra off any further. Just in time a nurse popped her head in and saved me from embarrassment.
So far I hadn’t been sick, just nausea so no NG tube for me this time, phew. But I was super tired.
Next morning I still wasn’t allowed to eat, it had been 24 hours by then, but it was ok I knew that I might need surgery. A nurse arrived a bit later and said I needed to move again to green bay, I had no idea where that was and had an awful feeling it was back on those chairs, but luckily it was a proper bay of four beds. I settled down there saying hi to my fellow patients, and waited for my husband and daughter to bring my belongings, I couldn’t wait for my pyjamas, body lotion ( I was so dry since being in here) and my charger. Although I sent a much longer list these were my main items.
I finally got to see the colorectal surgeon who had a quick look in the bag and said I may have a kink in the bowel, and there was some output so we should watch and wait as these things often do resolve. I could eat and drink and I was happy with that, and spent a better nights sleep.
I woke the next morning with the colorectal surgeon back. He asked how things were and I said maybe some improvement, and he said I could stay another night to see or go home to wait how things went. I asked that if I went home does that mean if things were not right, would I have to go back through A&E, but no I didn’t as they would give me a 72 hour access to go straight to the unit if I needed. Ok then I will go home, and here I am writing this from my sofa wrapped in a blanket hoping I am healing.
