Did you use Colace and do Low Fiber Diet before Prostatectomy?

My husband started using Colace before surgery to see how it will effect his guts and stayed on it after surgery (never stopped taking it) for a week or two just to be on a safe side.

I would just like to say that his bowel movements are always regular (at least twice a day, morning and night) because we eat a lot of veggies and fruits. He was not advised to go low on fiber at any point. I do not see how it can help since there would be nothing worse than getting constipated before surgery or even worse first day after : (.

You really have to make sure to keep your BMs soft and regular since any straining post op can effect your belly muscles (read formation of hernia) or your anastomosis ( the place where urethra is re-attached) . For that reason my husband was prescribed to have Miralax on hand in case that he does not have BM in the first 3 days. He panicked second day and used it and it was an overkill for him 😵‍💫 but he was happy to have that hurdle behind and not worry about it.

During his recovery he took only one pain pill because he did not need more but if you happen to be in pain and take those "real" pain killers make sure to take extra Colace and extra fiber since those meds are VERY constipating .

So much helpful information; taking notes.

I'm super regular, like clockwork. I think that's probably due to my morning smoothie routine (which includes oats, flax, chia). So, going low fiber seems like a really bad idea to me....but saw what they suggested. Candidly, when you get a colonoscopy, they want you to go low-fiber for prep to clear you out. However, I didn't stop my smoothie routine and all was fine. I followed the rest of their directions.

I can only imagine waiting for that milestone of BM post surgery would be nerve-racking if it's been days. Don't blame him going Miralax, but probalby not much fun.

Really good to know about using extra Colace/fiber if you do take a pain pill.

Thanks so much!

@surftohealth88
Just to report back, this site seems to indicate Colace is safe to use before surgery as long as you make sure you don't have drug interactions and stay hydrated.
https://farmaciacanfora.com/is-it-safe-to-take-colace-before-surgery/

My surgeon recommended Colace after my surgery. It did nothing. After doing some research I used Senna and it worked wonders. I purchased
Equate Senna-S from Walmart. Inexpensive and effective. Best of luck🤞

@kjacko Ahhh...that's really good to know. I looked up the active ingredients. It looks like Senna is a stool softener and a laxative.

"Active Ingredients: Docusate sodium 50 mg - Stool Softener and Sennosides 8.6 mg – Laxative"

The docusate sodium is 1/2 the dose of the normal Colace, but looks like you get a boost from the laxative.

I will file this away in case I need to go that road-thanks for sharing!

@fritzo Glad to help. Stay “loose”!

@kjacko
ha ha - good one lol

@fritzo

That combo is good also : ))) - Senna as an option was suggested in my husband's pre op papers too.

Fiber - for colonoscopy it is a no brainier that guts should be clear from any debris, but I have no idea how it could help RARP - it would be interesting to hear their reasoning. 🤓

All in all - since you are very regular, I am sure that you will have no problems. Just keep Miralax on a standby ; ) , just in case you get nervous like my hubby. And use one quarter of suggested dose ! I warned my husband to take a half but even half was really too much.

Whatever you do - do not strain under any circumstance.

@kjacko Hah! But only for a short while...hopefully!

@surftohealth88 Ohhh, that tip on taking a 1/4 dose of Miralax is brilliant! Would not want a geyser https://tenor.com/bcqHb.gif