Me: there is no need to overshare every part of your life.
Also me: want to hear about my colonoscopy??
What can I say, modesty has never been all that important to me. In all seriousness though, I am truly driven to share this because I feel like it’s one of the things that people don’t often talk about that perhaps we should. Like annual dermatology visits or monthly breast exams, if there is something I’m doing to monitor or better my health, I don’t want to gatekeep it. So here I am, writing about my colonoscopy on the internet.
Let’s back up for a minute. Why did I choose to do this? Multiple reasons, actually. First, the age of a recommended colonoscopy used to be 50, and then in 2021 the US Preventative Task Force lowered the recommended age to 45 in response to the trend of growing cases of colorectal cancer among young adults. Why is this a growing trend? I don’t know, but in discussions with my gastroenterologist we discussed ultra processed foods and environmental toxins among other things. At the end of the day, whatever the reason for the increase, it is happening and something to pay attention to, especially because a colonoscopy can catch issues early and completely eliminate them.
I have some family history of polyps found before age 50. It wasn’t anything serious, but I still had it in the back of my mind. And then while reading Outlive (read my Outlive book review here) I was propelled into action. The facts clearly state that early detection saves lives.
This took me down the road of scheduling the procedure. It began with contacting my insurance company to find out if they covered an early screening. I learned that they do, but had different copays based on where you go, and some places they didn’t cover at all. I got that list and cross-referenced it with a list of recommended gastroenterologists I requested from my primary care doctor. I had to get a referral from my primary care doctor sent to the gastroenterologist, who spent 10 days reviewing it before calling me in for an appointment to get approval. The appointment was an open and honest conversation and the result was that I was handed a prescription for Suprep and scheduled for a 2:00PM procedure a few weeks out.
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Yesterday was my procedure, but the prep started 48 hours before that. They have very specific instructions about what you can and can’t eat in the days leading up to procedure. I accidentally ate a tomato the day before beginning my liquid fast and called the office in a panic to ensure it wouldn’t mess me up (they assured me it wouldn’t).
The day before the procedure you are to follow an all liquid diet. I had two cartons of bone broth and two apple juices. At 6:00 PM on the dot, as directed, I drank my first Suprep bottle. I have always heard prep is the worst part and I agree, it isn’t pleasant. It’s not terrible, but the liquid tastes pretty gnarly and drinking the full amount (16 oz), plus 32 more ounces of water, in an hour is a lot. It took a few hours for it to take effect. I slept OK that night and then woke up with hunger as my main complaint. I repeated the same prep steps at 9:00 AM with the second bottle of Suprep, which was just as hard, if not harder to get down. However, it did its job of clearing my system (which was not painful, but you just want to make sure you’re home) and my only real complaint was feeling flat (no energy) and hungry.
You have to have a ride to and from the procedure, so David drove me over at 2:00 PM for the 3:00 procedure. The office staff were all SO friendly and explained everything so well. I was put into a gown on a hospital bed and they started an IV. They wheeled me into the room where I chatted with the doctor before the nurse anesthetist told me to pick a happy dream and administered the propofol. I was amazed at how I was asleep before I could count to three. The next thing I knew I was waking up; it felt like I had had a good nap. Easy peasy.
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They warn you about post-op “colonoscopy toots,” caused by the air they insert during the procedure to better see everything, and encouraged you to pass the gas to prevent discomfort. It was slightly embarrassing, but I’m not one to choose physical discomfort over embarrassment.
20 minutes late I was getting into the truck with David feeling fine, just slightly woozy. He told me to pick a food to quench my hunger and while a smart woman would have chosen a simple soup, I went with a buffalo chicken wrap. I could only eat about half of it and it might have caused extra bloating, but I have no regrets. It tasted so good! That evening I rested with a heating pad (to help with the bloating), slept well, and woke up feeling as good as new this morning!
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The results. I got the results immediately, complete with pictures, which was appreciated. They did find two small flat sessile polyps, both of which they were easily able to remove and send to pathology during the procedure. According the the doctor and my google research, both are unlikely to be of any concern, but we will wait and see what pathology says. As of right now, my next colonoscopy should be scheduled for 5 years out.
The takeaway: I’m so glad I had this baseline colonoscopy done. I do what I can to stay healthy but am far from perfect. Staying proactive in caring for my health not only gives me peace of mind, but it further motivates me to remember how important my health is to me. I want to take care of me so I can take care of David, my kids, my extended family, and friends. I want to feel my best so I’m able to extract all the joy I can out of this beautiful blessing called life.
If you have any questions about the prep, procedure, results, or thought process behind me choosing to do this, ask away. I’m happy to be an open book about an area of health that can feel squeamish, but is also so important.
