Jillian, I am going through the same thing right now. My son came over a couple of days ago and made a delicious chick pea curry, and I ate it, against my better judgment. I am paying for it now! Several trips to the bathroom through the night, and the Imodium isn’t having any effect other than making me sleepy. So I know I just have to ride it out. I have to be careful about what I eat, but sometimes I decide that the consequences of a bad decision might be worth it. Best to not plan anything important for a few days.?

Laurie

@tigerlily Thanks for responding! I am hoping to get some answers about why imodium didn't work. However I know that sometimes it's necessary to just let the output occur to get put of my system. I was just stunned at the amount that happened.?

Hi Folks not sure why the Imodium didn’t work! But for me bananas ? really do a great job to thicken output. Mashed up checky bit of surgar and spread on whole meal bread ??

@john68 HI John! I am going to always have a supply of Bananas from now on. It's excellent Potassium to. The imodium has always been successful for me, but in a way, I am glad it didn't work this time. I had so much output for several hours and I think it really had to come out. I am fine now and back to eating foods that agree with me! Of course it had to happen all night...so no sleep!?

@john68 thanks for the suggestion. I have tried bananas, marshmallows - every dietary trick in the book, no no avail. Ordinarily, those are helpful, but when I have eaten something I know I shouldn’t have, nothing works. Sometimes, as Jillian said, it just has to come out. One thing I do to get myself out of this purgatory is to irrigate. Unfortunately, I am at the cottage for a few days, and I didn’t bring my irrigation equipment with me. So, a few days on the BRAT diet will have to do.

Laurie

while uncontrolled diarrhea can be dangerous, stopping the body from expelling what it wants to get rid of is not good either.    i wouldn't think the colostomy in your case or LL's case had anything to do with diarrhea.   bad food reaction is bad food reaction.

Hey folks... Jillian, you & Laurie both travelled some distance to these Grad Celebrations,  thats a pretty awesome event.  Have you Ladies considered the change in WATER to be the enemy at all? 

Evey time we travelled to my parents place 5 hours from my home, I always ended up with the runs so badly it dehydrated me very quickly.  I learned after several visits & the same effect to carry a large jug of distilled water in the car & refilled a smaller one from there for my drinking use.   Everyone else in my family was fine with the water at Mom & Dads.

One day my niece came to visit as well  & she had been drinking from my "hands off"  bottle as my kids knew it.  She told me didn't know why but she would always have the runs by the end of the visit.   When I told her I brought the water bcuz of the same issues she was a bit shocked.   Thru the day she cintinued to drink the distilled water. Ofcourse I sure don't mind sharing to any sensitive tummies as she had 5 little ones & the last thing she needed was the runs for 3 days!!!   I always brought extra water for sensitive tummies after that.   J was so thrilled to go home that night with no upset & a could not believe it had been my parents drinking water all along. 

To this day I still carry that big jug of distilled water & even cook some foods in it when we are there bcuz even that has proven to be a problem for me.  

Ugh!!! 

It's hard to know why Imodium had no effect, although, it may have had an effect that wasn't noticed due to the still high-output you were experiencing.

I do agree with @dogtalkerer in that it may be best to just let the body ride it out if it needs to get rid of something right away. Imodium does work best for slowing down otherwise normal, frequent bowel movements.

That said, sudden diarrhea can also be a sign of a blockage as the body tries to flush out anything that's not moving through. Does this sound like a possibility? Especially since you mentioned that the food eaten wasn't something you'd normally have?

@veganostomy I can’t speak to your question on behalf of Jillian, but for me, this is a regular occurrence that began immediately following my surgery almost 8 years ago. Foods that I could eat without difficulty (pulses, whole grains, fruits, vegetables) I can only tolerate in small amounts. As a person who loves those foods, this is very distressing! White bread was never in my repertoire, but it is now. ☹️ I take various amounts of Imodium every day, and have since my surgery - I wouldn’t be able to leave the house otherwise. My GP is referring me to a GI specialist to try to get to the bottom of this, but I suspect that radiation may be the culprit. I have a sigmoid colonoscopy; I have lost so little colon yet so much colon function.

Laurie

@tigerlily Yeah, with a colostomy, I can understand how that must be frustrating and distressing.

I hope that the GI specialist can shed some light as to why this is happening, and hopefully be able to provide you with solutions. ? 

@tigerlily     i found that as my UC progressed,   imodium stopped working for me and i think it actually made the flyin hawiians worse.     towards the end,  i was taking 6-8 imodium a day and still sprinting to the baño 50-70X.         its definately not supposed to be a long term daily solution.

@tigerlily I don't think irrigation is very useful with diarrhea. I was told not to irrigate with diarrhoea. If it's some kind of bug, it just has to run its course.

@cat-momma if it was a bug, I think I might have made the Guinness book of records by now, because it has been almost 8 years. ? Actually, I have been checked for an infection or bacteria, and it’s neither. Irrigation is often the only way I can get a few days of relief, especially when the Imodium isn’t working. 

Laurie

@davidinthailand I have never had colitis; my ostomy is the result of colorectal cancer. But I’m wondering if colitis can be caused by radiation. I had the first of several diagnostics today; an ultrasound. My GP wants to rule out gall bladder issues. I will have a colonoscopy in July (SO tired of those!?) and am waiting to hear about a consult with a gastroenterologist. 

I strongly suspect that radiation enteritis is the problem. I saw a dietitian a year ago, and while it was somewhat helpful, it didn’t resolve the problem. Some foods exacerbate it, but I don’t think it’s caused by food alone. Something is definitely wrong; hopefully I will get some help figuring out what it is.

“Flyin Hawaiians” made me laugh out loud.?

Laurie

@tigerlily fingers crossed they figure it out

Laurie ... I'm so sorry your going thru all of this.   You know you made the right choice of getting "things" checked out & agreeing to the testing which is always a hard thing to do. I applaud you for being so Brave! 

A few things I've learned about you over the 3 years since you've joined is that your not just smart & kind your also patient,  and your BRAVE!    I think if I were in your shoes I may have left the country & joined those flyin' Hawaiins just to avoid dealing with the waiting game for tests & results.   The waiting alone can be rediculously hard on a persons thoughts & nerves & time schedule!  

I know I lost my "brave" some time ago & when I needed to haul it out I become a bundle of emtions. A Nurse said to me, that its okay to be emotional & crumble into tears, bcuz what your going through is a valid reason to not be strong all the time, your situation sucks  & until all is resolved go ahead & cry, shake, whatever way your body needs to  respond to the stress of the situation, let those emotions loose! It does'nt mean your loosing a battle or your weak it means your Human & going through something very difficult & not fun at all.

In rough times I try & remember the joy I have in life.  My now 7 Grandchildren, My kids, my dog, my flower beds & veggie garden, just to name a few. Family that I love & how they love me just the way I am & for who I am. 

Laurie, your strong, anyone who has gone through cancer once, is stronger &  so very brave too.   Easy for me to say but until you have an actual diagnoses, dig up your brave & give it a run for your energy, show it who's boss!! Lol!!  If it helps you & if its okay, I'll be keeping you in my prayers regularily. Stay YOU! If I could hug you now, I sure would, so consider yourself hugged! ? 

@dlkfiretruck thanks Linda, for your kind response. I’m fine; as you said, I’ve faced adversity before.  When I was in the midst of cancer treatments, I found a quote that really resonated with me: “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is that small voice that says I will try again tomorrow.” I think most of us on this site can identify with that, regardless of what brought us to having an ostomy. There were many days that I had to try again tomorrow, like everyone else who faces their own particular challenges. I know you’ve been there too. ?

Laurie

@tigerlily... yes, I ageee. Most have likely had to try again tomorrow! Thats a rather fitting qoute for ostomates.

Keep us in the loop on any results! 

Linda