Experiences with LARS and bowel irrigation

Hi Dorrie

Good post !

I just found this article https://www.livestrong.com/article/306563-herbal-supplement-for-nerve-growth/  

How effective this info is I do not know but it may help 

I suffer from LARS too and have found the Iri Sedo hopeless as the rectal pouch is up too high for two stupid pumps of liquid and the water just oozes out of the anus like someone above complains of too.  I think i too need Peristeen but i cannot face yet another epic waste of my time and explanations to an nhs repeater who is not really listening but reading from their script.  I was seeing a so called  biofeedback nurse at a specialist london hospital and my local hospital continence nurse specialist and after wasting my time and energy getting nowhere with nobody listening I gave up.  Im told to only use two pumps.... that .. is like throwing a sausage up an alley.... pffft... but nobody listens.  They do not realise that my rectum is so far up my butt and a pouch and a little squirt of water comes out quickly without the blockage.  It just slides over and washes the sides of it down.

I just take Movicol and drink plenty when i remember and have cooked greens and carrots and take magnesium citrate to keep it moving as well.   I;m not happy as I still get LARS episodes no matter what I eat or dont eat.   I have an episode at the moment where my pouch is blocked and irritated and I have been clustering and fragmenting all weekend and in pain now and may have to resort to self administerd enema of olive oil to shift the pouch impaction.   I feel bloated and lethargic and dont want to eat.   I can feel that days of food are backed up my intestines.  Ive had juices today to no avail... Cancer.. the gift that keeps on giving grrr.

Hi Carolkent,

I've posted before about how my LARS has been completely sorted by daily use of the Qufora irrisedo cone system. It maybe that my new bowel configuration is such that the irrisedo works well - but the procedure is important. I use 700cl of body temperature water and use gravity (not the pump) to induce the water into my bowel - which now takes about 2 minutes. I do have slight leaks but i feel that the most important step is that immediately after the water has been injected i lie on my side on the floor, and then on my back, and alternate every 30 seconds or so for maybe 5 minutes. This has the effect of moving the water around the bowel (I can hear it gurgling etc). When I feel any potential leakage or the urge to go while lying on the floor I clench my buttocks until it settles down. After standing up I do a little twist-like dance and the urge starts again so I then pass some stool & water mixed. After a quick wipe I then jig again and repeat the jig/poo procedure about 5 or 6 times until I don't feel any more urges.This stage may take up to 20 minutes. The whole procedure takes about 40 minutes and I'm then ready to go for the day - in fact I'm toilet free for 2 days but on the second day I get trapped wind, feel bloated etc. so daily is best for me.

I hope this might help you.

jayarrscott

I'm also using the Qufora Irrisedo cone system. I haven't been able to get it via the NHS as my local CCG has a moratorium on bowel irrigation systems at the moment although my surgeon is pressing them. Consequently I've not really got much backup on using it apart from a chat with a Diagnostic Physiologist at the local hospital who works with the Qufora Mini system.

I have had contact with the local Macgregor Healthcare rep/nurse (who supply Qufora) and she told me that they advice LARS patients to keep to 300ml or below because of the reduced bowel capacity. Before I spoke to her I'd worked my way up to about 600ml but have dropped down to 300 as per her advice.

The regimen you have obviously works for you, I'd just like to know if the quantity of water you're using and the retention period etc. was as advised by the Qufora  people or it's just something you've worked out for yourself.

The lower quantity does seem to be working reasonably well for me and I'm just curious as to whether we're seeing different advice in different regions because nobody really has a clue and it's up the patient just to try and work things out for themselves.

In my last post I incorrectly stated 700cl (it should have been 700ml) !

I worked up to that volume from 400ml, and it works for me -  so I haven't reduced it since.

As I said earlier, it seems very important to me to lie on my left hand side and then my back, each for about 30 seconds, alternating, in total for about 5-7 minutes, to allow the water to move though my lower colon (as I said I can hear gurgling etc. as it percolates).

So again - it works very well for me - I feel very lucky because my life is now back to pre-operation days, playing squash, golf, holidaying, wining and dining. I'm also lucky that my local health authority enables me to obtain the system on prescription monthly.

The only thing I have contemplated, and might try in the next year or so, is to discontinue the irrigation for several days and see if LARS returns.

I hope this helps.

jayarrscott

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