Partial obstructions, other issues 9 weeks after bowel resection

Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Thank you for sharing your experience. That’s what helps to make this community great. Everyone sharing their experiences and what worked/didn’t work.

@st150799 Wow, I don’t blame you for being frustrated. First , you have Crohn’s, then the surgery to fix things came with its own complications. From what I have read, adhesions and scar tissue can be part of the problem. Here is the link to the Digestive support group where you can go through any interesting discussions and see what others have to say.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/digestive-gastrointestinal-problems/
And let’s ask @alisonether @lisag03 @stef20 what information they may have. And also a thank you to @sbrown293 for welcoming you to Mayo Clinic Connect!

I’m sorry you are going through this. I have Ulcerative Colitis (25 plus years) and in 5/2019 an obstructing tumor was found. I had a bowel resection, and then had to be reopened due to a leak. I started chemo therapy but it caused me so much diahrrhea and spasms that they stopped. A few days after stopping, I woke up with severe stomach pain. My husband was out of town m, so I had to be transported to the hospital. I had a small bowel obstruction, and it was caused by adhesions. I spent a week with an NG tube and trying to clear it with various methods, and it didn’t work, so they removed 15 cm of small bowel. I was very paranoid about another one because it was so painful. I just made sure to over chew my food and also just didn’t eat for awhile due to the trauma. I have not had another blockage since, but if I ever feel like food isn’t moving, I lay down and really massage my abdomen with firm presses in a clock wise way. I push down hard enough to cause pressure, and I can hear the air and bubbles start moving. Initially I did this quite frequently because I was so scared of getting another. Adhesions form quickly and I’ve had multiple surgeries since then (after the bowel obstruction, the surgeon realized he may have knicked my small bowel because I had a leak. I ultimately developed an enterocutaneous fistula and dealt with that drainage out of my abdomen for two months. Ultimately, the fistula broke loose and I had a full perforation requiring emergency surgery and turned septic.
It’s now been almost 5 years since the initial cancer surgery, and my stomach is doing good and I have pretty much gotten over the PTSD. I have identified food that I can’t eat (asparagus, celery, big quantities of steak) and am somewhat managing my UC with Entyvio

Hi. I had left hemicolectomy about 15 years ago due to repeated diverticulitis. Recovery went well and no further bouts of diverticulitis until... A couple of weeks ago I began having pain in my left side just below my waist. There were no other symptoms so I gave it a few days to, hopefully, return to normal. I was concerned that I'd have to see a doctor, get a CT and go on antibiotics, URG. When symptoms did not return to normal I put myself on a low residue diet. Two to three days later things were back to normal. What a relief. Hope you get the answers you need without any bad problems.

Thank you so much for sharing. You’ve been through so much. What a warrior.

Thank you for sharing. I have a little ptsd for sure with everything I eat. Hope to get some answers soon,

Hello could someone please help me...I had ten inches of my small intestine removed 9 weeks ago from the top of stomach to navel and in that area I feel a lot of pinching and pulling sometimes it feels like it's burning it does come and go is this normal??? I also have pain in my low left side sometimes I feel little air pockets move through and then the pain will stop but if I get up and move around too much it'll get really sore..... I've had CT SCAN done and they say they don't see anything but I know it isn't normal I did have a hernia repair done in that area but it didn't help that problem at all still feels the same....I had hernia repair last May....Could someone please help me with any suggestions I feel like I'm screaming for help and being told everything is ok.

@mindy78 - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. That sounds highly uncomfortable to have pinching, pulling and burning symptoms after a bowel resection, plus low left side pain.

I moved your post here so that you could connect with others who've talked about bowel resection, such as @st150799 @fdixon63 @becsbuddy @lisag03 and others:

- Partial obstructions, other issues 9 weeks after bowel resection https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/partial-obstructions-9-weeks-after-bowel-resection/

The CT scans did not show anything abnormal, then? If so, how did your doctor account for the symptoms you've been experiencing?

@mindy78
I have had 3 linguinal hernia repairs with mesh. With my first bowel resection (sigmoid and cecum), some of the mesh had to be removed as it was connected to the tumor. I later developed a leak at the reconnection site near cecum so needed additional repair. A few months later, I developed a SBO obstruction, due to adhesions. They needed to remove a bunch of adhesions to clear it. I still have a hernia in that area, and another near by. I often feel pulling and burning pain, and sometime aching if I over do.

I’ve had a total of 4 colon resections and abdominal wall reconstruction so I do not want to do anything else surgery wise. So I live with occasional discomfort

I've had 6 surgeries since 2002 for bowel obstruction caused by scar tissue wrapped around my small intestine. I was treated with radiation for prostate cancer in Nov. 2024. Since then, I have been in the hospital for partial obstructions every month. All my doctors tell me the radiation damaged my bowels. I've had accidents where I've messed my pants both at home and when I go out for long rides. All my doctors at the Veterans hospital tell me that they will only do surgery if the gastrograph dye test doesn't go all the way through me. The last time the gastrograph test showed that a part of my bowels was moving slowly. The doctors said that part is where the blockages start. And that my intestines have unusual twists and turns in it. The doctors will only remove any part of my intestines if there's dead tissue. I've been on a soft food diet of microwave dinners and yogurt. But not matter what I do. I end up in the hospital. I'm lucky. Sort of. The Veteran Administration pays all my medical bills. Even if I go to a non VA local hospital.

My bowels have been driving me crazy with all kinds of pain and weird noises that other people near me can hear. And diarrhea is the worst. I wouldn't wish it upon anyone.

I took care of my wife for 30 years who had multiple sclerosis. I wish I could be like she was. She never complained. She went through hell.

Thank you for listening to me.

Dave