Colectomy

[AnneM]

I have been away for awhile as I had a diverticulitis attack and was hospitalized overnight. My dr said I needed a colectomy. So on June 5th I had the operation and he removed my appendix also. When I was in the hospital and they started me on solid foods, I was very scared of being glutened even though hey I was in the hospital and they of all people should know what gluten is all about. They were very kind and even sent up 2 dietary specialists from the kitchen to talk to me. The one woman said to me " you probably know more about this than I do "....I laughed and said yes probably do! I couldn't believe she said that, it really scared me hearing her say that, and she is a nutritionist! All in all this was my first experience with food away from home for more than a meal,I was hospitalized for 5 days, the food i could order was awful and tasteless I hardly ate 2 bites of anything they gave me. I wanted to share my experience with everyone, just goes to show that just because someone has the title "nutritionist" doesn't mean a heck of alot.

[AMQmom]

I am so sorry to hear about your experience. While I was in the hospital recovering from my j-pouch surgery, my daughter was diagnosed celiac. I am not celiac, but I find eating glten-free without my colon makes life soooo much easier for me. I hope that your recovery is swift. There is a site to visit if you need advice - j-pouch.org. Even if you have an illeostomy bag and not a j-pouch, it is helpful. I worry about my girls (both celiac now) and medical situations. Cross contamination is so easy! Again, I hope that you heal well and quickly. - Julie

[AnneM]

Thank you so very much, but i still have my colon, dr removed the diseased part and reattached it, he took out 12 inches. I guess my hospital stay wasn't all that bad, just the part about the nutritionist, it is rather scary when someone who is supposed to be an expert in food nutrition says that to you, it's an eye opening experience to say the least. I have learned more from this site than anywhere else.

I hope you and your daughters do well, and my advice about cross contamination is to always be diligent about everything, including hospital stays, you can't always trust that they know about celiac. I spoke to the head of the department and i told her my concerns about cross contamination and she said she would stand there watching when they prepared my food, so that helped alot! You just have to be vocal about it, and make them understand how important the situation is.