Has anyone on here had an abdomino-perineal resection of the lower bowel and what have their experiences have been please? It's such a radical procedure....scared.
Hi osb1984 and welcome to the board. If you type APR in the search box at the top of the page then it will bring up quite a few posts. There’s also an Ileostomy, colostomy and stoma support board where there’s lots of help and advice
I had an Abdominoperineal resection of the rectum and removal of the lower part of my bowel in Feb 2021. I had my rear end stitched up and now have a permanent Stoma (Eddie Stomart), who I have a good relationship with as he is very manageable and predictable.
The op saved my life, and I now feel fit, strong and positive. I write poetry that varies from defiance to humour and this helps me maintain my focus.
I won't lie, the op is major, the recovery, testing at times and certainly is life changing. However, the live amd support of the team around you amd your family and friends will see you through.
Each day gets better and life is definitely worth living!!!
Thanks so much for such a positive response to my message. It will be most helpful in the coming days and I hope it is ok for me to get back to you if I feel there is something in your experience of the op and its aftermath that will help to me to fill in some of the blanks.
I had APR back in 2020 and I can absolutely remember how I felt prior to the the op, it's very much the way you are feeling.
Try to keep in mind that without the surgery, you won't survive, as simple as that, and that this surgery will save you. Prior to surgery, they'll give you what they called "champagne" which makes you feel incredibly happy, then they'll anesthetise you and you're out. You'll wake up and it's done. You will then start a journey, and it will be a mix of knowns and unknowns and things you learn, until it all becomes absolutely the norm. The stoma, (which I had the biggest fear of having) became very quickly nothing to worry about. I now hardly think about it and it hardly impacts on my life. During the first month of dealing with it is hard as it's new to you and you don't want it... you begin to think how you're going to cope, and ask questions like should it look like it does, and why is this or that happening, and you will no doubt get angry... it all changes once you understand it, it's ok. BIG ADVICE - DON'T LIFT HEAVY ITEMS OR DO ANYTHING THAT CAN CAUSE A HERNIA... Talk your people about this and what belt you can wear and what you can and can't do...
The bottom being stitched up - You'll no doubt have issues with this, it's uncomfortable and you need a special cushion. Just go carefully about.
I had times when I was fearful that something was wrong, should it hurt the way it did, or something didn't look right and 100 times out of 100 in the end, it was ok, or it was easily treated. I now swim in the sea, go on holiday, do very normal things.
Just be good to yourself, let people help you, enjoy and recognise the beauty in small things. Take one day as it comes and soon, all the discomfort and fear becomes a thing of the past as far as the APR is concerned. I had a tattoo done, and I'm not one for tattoos, and it says "Don't look back, you're not going that way"... I only look ahead!
Thanks very much for such a positive message - you have described pretty much exactly how I am feeling in the run up to the op and its aftermath. I'll draw much comfort from your message in the next little while. Thanks again and I'll be as brave as I can!
