It turned out that I leaked oil when I, um, flatulated. Such a polite word. I should just say "farted".
I continued to leak oil in the next three mornings. I don't know why there was nothing in the afternoons. After that, nothing until 9 March when I had oily poop. I continued to have oily poop for the next three days but only one episode of leaking oil when farting.
I went to the polyclinic on 2 November coz this was such an inconvenient bodily malfunction! Imagine if I were in the office?! Did an amylase test but all was fine. When I went back for a review one week later, I was referred to a gastro specialist at Alexander Hospital.
During the specialist appointment on 13 February, I brought up four issues - might as well!
- Oily gas and poop
- Cramps just before passing gas/poop sometimes - first instance after delivering Kai
- Tummy ache with cold water
- Gastric pain despite eating
Doc sent me for a CT scan and recommended gastroscopy and colonoscopy.
Had my CT scan on 20 March. Was injected with dye via an IV line. Nothing complicated. Doc called me two days later to say things look fine but my womb looked swollen so she would refer me to a gynae. I told her I decided to proceed with the scopes so she arranged those for me (I tried calling but the wait!) and postponed consultation until after that.
And now, I'm going to give a detailed breakdown of having the scopes. I hope someone who is anxious about getting these procedures may find it helpful...
So I finally had the scopes done on Friday, 7 June. Right after our anniversary lunch on 3 June, I had to stick to a restricted diet - from 4 June, I could not have vege and fruits, milk and soy products and red meat. I was given a brochure with the list of oks and not-oks when I went to collect the laxative - oh yeah, laxative, keep reading...
The diet was torturous!
Now, I'm not such a foodie. But I felt awful that I couldn't have the usual things. It's one thing if I decide to not eat. But you know, when you tell me to not think of a lizard, I'll keep thinking of a lizard *.*
So I had bread with butter, chicken noodle soup without vege, kosong instant noodles, mee hoon kway, hardboiled eggs and chicken rice. For drinks, I had only water and plain tea. I'm glad I like my tea kosong. I can't have my usual coffee without milk. Everything else, I feasted with my eyes by watching short reels on cooking...
Actually 6 June was pretty sad. I wanted chicken rice like for 5 June but the stall was closed! Luckily I had kosong instant noodles in the pantry and hardboiled eggs in the fridge. Must eat by 5 pm that day coz I had to clear my bowels from 7 pm. How?
With these!
I was supposed to finish four packs of the Fortrans with four litres of water from 7 pm to 11 pm. I had to "save" water from the afternoon so that the water could all be at room temperature - this was the only time I thought a water filter would be useful, no need to keep boiling water!
I also had to dissolve the Fortrans laxative in batches in my 500ml measuring jug as it was tricky pouring the white powder directly into the tall flask with its small mouth. These Ikea flasks have 1L capacity so just nice for one pack of Fortrans.
But four litres are really a lot of water to drink in such a short time. I'm not used to drinking even two litres throughout the day! The drink tasted like flat 100 plus but less sweet so not terribly nice too. Worse, from 8.20 pm, I started pooping madly, like every 10 min for the next hour before the frequency began to reduce, partly coz I was lagging behind in drinking...
By 9.30 pm, I was seriously falling behind in drinking. Eventually, I finished 3.5 litres by 11.30 pm. JY told me she skipped one whole pack of Fortrans. And I figured my bowels looked clear by 9 plus anyway. I'm not sure if water going through the intestine would just look yellow or if it was the Fortrans - but later when I wiped the table, I found that the wet powder was a little yellow on the cloth.
I managed to go to sleep at midnight, but woke to poop a few times. Even in the morning, I had to poop before I left the house. By then, I had poop some 20 times! Really 屁股开花 already...
Btw, I had no anxiety. The desire to eat what I wanted filled my every braincell. No more cells to consider the risks, which are minimal anyway. That and the poop made me just want to get it over and done with.
My appointment was 10.30 am but I had to arrive at 9.30 am for preps. I changed into a kimono covering a surgical gown in a handicapped toilet - I wish they had a proper changing room... I was given a big plastic bag to keep my clothes and bag. I read an e-book until the nurse came to get me and cable-tied my bag, leaving me with only my reading glasses and slippers. My hair remained tied up, no hair cover.
Then they gave me Fliumicil to clear bubbled in my stomach, and inserted a straw in my right hand which would be where they gave me the sedative later. But the nurse warned me - my blood pressure was too low to be given the full sedative so I might not be knocked out!
Indeed, I couldn't be knocked out.
My plastic bag and slippers went under my trolley bed. A nurse removed my disposable underwear and another sprayed a numbing solution at my throat. I was to keep it there and swallowed only when told - bitter. I'm connected to a blood pressure reading machine. A mouth guard kept my mouth open while I lay down on my left. A nurse held my head still.
We started with the stomach scope. The scope was a black tube of maybe 1.5cm diameter. I felt it a little but it wasn't painful. But as it moved, I could feel it going through to the stomach.
And I could see the inside of my stomach! At one point, I saw lots of folds. Gosh, I could eat a lot and the stomach could take it :p Then I saw a thin orange tube going into the black scope. It emerged again on the screen and I saw the metal clip at the end. It pulled at a cute little blob in my stomach.
Next, my bed was turned 180 degrees as my bum would now face the machine with the scope. I couldn't see but I trusted that they changed the scope? Haha!
Doctor said she would apply some gel first. I didn't really feel it. Also didn't feel the scope until she started pumping air inside to open up the colon. That was painful! It was like the cramps I feel sometimes when I need to poop/fart but this time, I couldn't!
The doctor had told me to just fart before she pumped the gas but I couldn't. Had to bear with the pain. A nurse held my belly to help manipulate the scope from the outside. Another nurse came to pat pat me and encouraged me to fart.
But finally, it was over. No more gas. Doctor sprayed in water instead to remove remnant poop (I could see on the screen - yellow mucousy stuff) so that she could see better. No pain.
Then the nurse put back my underwear and led me out to the resting area. As I was wheeled out, I could see a big cylinder of yellow solution - probably sucked out when doctor was spraying water inside.
At the resting area, I saw the uncle before him sipping Milo and eating biscuits. Strangely, I wasn't hungry at that time. When my drip finally finished, the nurse sat me up and gave me the same food. So nice to sip on hot Milo coz it was so cold there!
The nurse went through the scopes with me and showed me photos taken. So I had a polyp in the stomach - yes, the cute little blob - from which the doctor had removed tissue for testing. There was also an inflamed part. Colon all ok. Then I could go.
But I had to make a trip to the toilet - last watery poop! But I continued to feel the peristalsis of the colon until the night...
At the follow-up visit this morning, I recorded 56/48 blood pressure - crazy auto machine! Anyway, doctor said the histology of the polyp had not come back but at the size of 1 cm, she recommended removing it regardless of the result. She couldn't remove it that day coz it would take more time, with a slightly higher chance of bleeding given the size, and I wasn't knocked out.
While waiting for her to schedule the scope to remove the polyp, the histology report came back - ok but may not be representative of the polyp given the small sample. I was reading that a small % of stomach polyps may become cancerous so ya, better to remove.
Waited a while more and got a date - subject to changes as they had to coordinate with an anaesthetist as well coz must put me under. Asked them to avoid PSLE dates :p
Now to tie back to the original reason for seeing the doctor? No conclusion, sighs... Everything looks fine except for the polyp. Maybe it's destined for the polyp to be discovered like this? Hope I don't get the oily farts/poop anymore...
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