Bowel preparation and colonoscopy can take a temporary toll on the body, so feeling tired following the experience is to be expected. In addition, it is not uncommon to experience some slight discomfort related to bloating and gas due to air that may still be trapped in the bowel, following the procedure.
In the first few days after a colonoscopy, you may feel slight discomfort and tiredness, so allow yourself to take it easy. Avoid strenuous activities like lifting heavy objects or exercising until you get clearance from your doctor.
You will probably feel a bit tired or groggy even then, so you cannot drive yourself home. Your doctor will not release you unless there is someone there to bring you home. The effects of the sedation could last up to a day, so you should not drive or operate any machinery until the following day.
After the test, you may be bloated or have gas pains. You may need to pass gas. If a biopsy was done or a polyp was removed, you may have streaks of blood in your stool (feces) for a few days. Problems such as heavy rectal bleeding may not occur until several weeks after the test.
You may feel tired or sleepy and have difficulty concentrating. Once you get home, relax for the rest of the day. The air we placed in your colon may cause you to feel mild pain in your abdomen (stomach area) for a few hours after the procedure. This is normal.
Recovery from a colonoscopy , an examination of the large intestine used to screen for colon cancer, takes about a day. While the procedure itself takes only around an hour to complete, you'll need an hour after to recover from the sedative and the remainder of the day to rest and replenish fluids and nutrition.
Complications related to colonoscopy include, but are not limited to, the following: Continued bleeding after biopsy (tissue sample) or polyp removal. Nausea, vomiting, bloating or rectal irritation caused by the procedure or by the preparatory bowel cleansing.
This is a rough way to do it, but yes, you will have a very temporary weight loss of one to three pounds typically. But, just as with your bowel habits, these few pounds will return as well once you resume your normal diet.
After the exam, it takes about an hour to begin to recover from the sedative. You'll need someone to take you home because it can take up to a day for the full effects of the sedative to wear off. Don't drive or make important decisions or go back to work for the rest of the day.
Bleeding is one of the most common complications of colonoscopy, accounting for 0.3-6.1% of cases[35,36].
It's important to note that it's typical for people to feel sad or vulnerable after surgery. After-surgery symptoms can affect your appetite, sleep, and energy. However, if those feelings last longer than two weeks, it could be depression. Whether small or large, surgery is an invasive procedure that can be traumatic.
Remember, preparing for a colonoscopy requires clearing out the colon, which typically means you will experience some level of sleep deprivation. Additionally, lingering effects from anesthesia may be present. Therefore, it is safest to avoid any high risk or important tasks the entire day after your colonoscopy.
A. Preparing for a colonoscopy requires clearing the bowel with fasting, a laxative drink and, in some cases, an enema. While such preparation can alter the microbiome, the rich array of microbes that are present in the gut, research suggests that the microbiome bounces back in about two to four weeks.
It's common to feel bloated or have stomach cramps after an endoscopic examination of your large bowel. It's also normal to see some bleeding from your bottom. This guidance should help you to care for yourself after your colonoscopy and understand what to do if there's a problem.
So, the more polyps you have, the higher your cancer risk. Someone with just one or two small polyps is generally at lower risk of having or developing colon cancer than someone with three to nine, or more.
In a prospective evaluation of the effect of bowel preparation for 50 colonoscopic examinations, patients lost an average of 2.1 pounds.
It is normal to lose some weight after this surgery. Soon it will level off and slowly you will start to regain some of the weight you lost. Try to have a good calorie intake to keep up your energy. Your bowel actions may change after your surgery.
You may pass liquid and/or liquid stool after your colonoscopy but, within one to five days, your bowel movements should return to normal. If you've had a biopsy, it's normal to experience anal bleeding or bloody stool after the procedure. Delayed bleeding may also occur for up to two weeks afterward.
FAQ #3: “Can I Exercise After Getting A Colonoscopy?” It is recommended that you abstain from heavy lifting or strenuous activity for at least 24 hours after a colonoscopy. This way, the anesthesia has time to wear off, and you can resume properly fueling your body before expending energy.