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Beating bowel cancer together

Bowel cancer treatment and side effects

You can find lots of useful information about bowel cancer treatment on our website. You can also get information and support from our Ask the nurse service.

lily

Post bowel surgery - eating/gas/constipation problems?

Hi everybody, I am 3 weeks post my Laparascopic operation to remove a tumour in my sigmoid colon plus my ovaries and appendix. I am mainly keeping to a low residue diet and I was advised to add other items one by one. I've been walking about a mile a day since about 10 days after the op but haven't restarted my pilates (too nervous with all my wounds still healing).
I am missing my normal Mediterranean diet like crazy and could murder a salad!!
I've tried adding some brown bread and also some carrots but all I seem to do is create gas and not have very much to pass at all. I've needed to take Laxido to achieve that (which I took in small quantities before to keep constipation at bay).
I'd be very very interested to hear your own experiences of eating post surgery and how and when you returned to a high fibre diet if that was your norm.
Many thanks.

Lirio345

Good morning @lily, it sounds to me as if you are doing really well to be honest. Recovering from Bowel surgery can be a long process and it is common for it to take several weeks if not months before eating resembles pre-surgery. There are more wounds having to heal on the inside than on the outside and they therefore take longer.

Penny Brohn website has some really useful information and resources about nutrition and food, and I believe that you can still book a one-to-one phone consultation with a nutritionist, - might be worth having a look?

A food diary is definitely a helpful device as you get used to your new Bowel. I have included a couple of links below that will hopefully be of help 🤞🏻.

Take very good care, and let us know how you get on, Kim :x::x::x:

bowelcancerorguk.s3.amazonaws.com/...ions/EatingWell_BowelCancerUK.pdf

bowelcancerorguk.s3.amazonaws.com/...ingBowelControl_BowelCancerUK.pdf

lily

Hi @Lirio345, thank you so very very much for your reply.
You are so right - I do forget about the wounds on the inside.
Thank you also for the reading suggestions - lots to study.
Much appreciated :x::x::x:

alexking

Hi,

Great to hear you’re on the other side of surgery and walking well.
I had a stoma and ate everything after my surgery. After my reversal I was really scared of running to the loo so ate cream crackers!
Instead I had constipation and went onto little meals of salads, veg etc. chewed really well (like with my stoma) and no nuts or seeds for a bit.
Just go little and often and soft as yes still healing.

Always ask your team for advice. My nurse suggested prunes and dulcoease. And drinking plenty of fluids.

Hope this helps. :)

lily

Good morning @alexking, thanks so much for your reply. Read your bio and thinking of you with your forthcoming treatment. Take care :x::x::x::x::x: