Small intestine resection

So sorry for your pesky pain….glad you are seeking medical help and wishing you success at last !

@nycmusic thank you so much!

HI, @fergalicious - welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect.

I'm tagging a few members from around this site who have participated in different support groups and talked about having a small intestine resection. Please meet @kgrear @phyllisden @ericnjeffrey @taneall @siluka. @hopeful33250 also may have some thoughts for you. Although some of them may have had a small intestine/bowel resection for a different reason than the one you had for a blockage, they can tell you if they or their loved one who had this surgery has experienced painful spasms and if so, how they managed them and how long they lasted.

fergalicious - do you have any of the test results back that the new surgeon is running on you currently? If so, what has he found so far?

@lisalucier thanks for all the names! So far, they found gallstones, tiny hernia, some plaque build up, some nodules on the outer edges of my lungs, a small clot in my upper right lobe of the lung, diverticulosis. I still have to have an mrcp test done.

Hello @fergalicious

I am sorry to hear of the spasms you have experienced post-surgery. That must be very uncomfortable. I have had three surgeries of the upper digestive tract for NETs, but I did not experience this type of pain. Does your pain seem to be related to what you are eating?

On Connect, there is a discussion on eating after digestive tract surgery. You might find it helpful. Here is a link to that discussion:
--How do I eat after digestive tract surgery
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/how-do-i-eat-after-digestive-tract-surgery/
Has your doctor made any suggestions for treating this pain?

@hopeful33250 not yet-we are waiting for one more test to be done.

Fergalicious, Hi there. 😊 Welcome to our support group. So sorry you’re suffering so.

I had a resection in which six inches of my ileum was removed. I do get very, very painful spasms that seem to come out of nowhere. They are so sever I find myself curled up in a fetal position on the floor writhing in pain. Luckily, I only get them once or twice a month.

Over time, I began to try to figure out what was going on. I noticed several triggers for the spasms. For example, if I went out to eat and ate a larger meal than usual, the cramps would begin shortly after eating. If I am mildly constipated, my abdomen can cramp hard until I have been able to go to the bathroom. Sorry for the graphics, but what was happening is that further back in my intestines, I might have very loose stool or diarrhea, which could not escape until I was able to release the constipated stool.

Our cancer causes diarrhea at times, and you may not even realize it is churning and churning causing severe pain.

I eat smaller meals. For example, I might eat half a usual breakfast when eating out - because if I eat it all at once, my abdomen can suddenly go into full cramp mode.

This may sound gross, but if worst comes to worst, I give myself an enema. It “clears” things up. lol!

My doctors have suggested meds for my stomach, but I found that by the time a med is digested, the attack is long over by then. I also get very strong heat flashes when these attacks occur.

I leave an outing early if I feel the first hint of an episode coming on. I try to stay calm. This is very hard to do. I just keep telling myself that the episode will end. The pain will end. I need to say cool, calm and try to relax until the episode is over.

Your surgery seems a lot more involved than mine was. I applaud you for continuing to seek medical advice. There are so many things that can cause severe abdominal stress. I don’t think most people can relate to the level of pain we experience. Usual abdominal cramps are nothing like the horrid pain of this.

Please keep in touch, and let us know how you’re doing. Hang in there! ☺️

I had some resection of small intestine along with right hemicolectomy, as my tumor on transverse colon fistulized to the small intestine….only problem I ever had was when the hospital served me the wrong meal 2 days after my open surgery—had a rough 24 hours, but returned to healing after that—earned me extra days in hospital. A reminder to be super careful with food, especially in the days and weeks after surgery.

@kgrear thank you so much for the response. What a subject to talk about heh? I will try eating smaller meals but more often during the day. I take MiraLAX every other day to keep things moving-scary when they do a resection as you don’t want to take the chance of it ripping apart. These spasms do come out of nowhere-mine aren’t as bad as yours though. If I’m walking and I get a spasm, I just have to stop and wait for it to pass. Sitting is the only time it doesn’t hurt but I am so tired of sitting around and doing nothing.
Thanks again!

Fergalicious- I’m so sorry to hear what’s going on with you and I can certainly empathize..
I had 10” of my small intestines removed in 2018 due to a blockage that turned out to be a carcinoid tumor. Then in 2019 they removed 11” of my colon/large intestine due to another tumor (21” total gone and no gallbladder to help). I’ve been through PRRT twice (Mayo in 2021 and UNM Cancer Center in 2025). And I’ve been on Octreotide injections since April 2018.
So the stomach spasms are pretty common with intestinal surgery. I have found that what I eat, how much I eat, and how quickly I eat has a definite impact. I also have Dicyclomine to take when they get bad. Your intestines are cramping so if you can use a heating pad or a hot bath, that might help. And when one does hit, only eat soft, small meals - nothing spicy, hard to digest, no caffeine nor alcohol. And nothing heavy (like no heavy sauces).
Unfortunately, these are part of this disease we’re dealing with but we can find ways to help. I hope you do.