Pretty soon it’s go time. Tomorrow is surgery day, and I’m supposed to be there first thing in the morning. My instructions: do not eat solid foods today, just clear liquids. The goal, I believe, is to clean out the colon. But why?
I think it has something to do with the fact that the prostate gland sits right next to, or on top of, the colon and when your doc is removing the prostate, he needs that nearby colon tissue to be empty and flexible and pliable.
I think cleaning out the colon is also standard practice for any surgery to lower the chances of infection.
So step #1 is no solid food today, and step #2 is start drinking the colon flush solution. Anyone who has had a colonoscopy knows the drill. You start drinking this solution at regular intervals and pretty soon the dam opens up and out comes everything you ever ate since the age of 9 – and it keeps up all day long and into the night.
In my case, I was prescribed something called GaviLyte ™ N with Flavor Pack. According to Drugs.com, it “…induces a diarrhea which rapidly cleanses the bowel…” and has a “…pleasant mineral taste…” Ok, if you say so.
I don’t know about you, but when I start drinking this stuff, it doesn’t taste too badly at first. But as time goes by, and you keep gulping the stuff down, it gets less and less appetizing, to say the least. My pharmacist recommended chilling the stuff in a refrigerator to help get it down.
So on this day before surgery, I proceeded with the colon flush and drank only clear liquids. After midnight tonight, I am to take nothing by mouth – no food and no liquids. Surgery day is tomorrow.
Click to read Surgery Day: da Vinci Robotic Prostate Surgery.
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