Most of us who are in the range of 50 are familiar with the fact that doctors recommend a colonoscopy at age 50. A rite of passage, if you will. I don’t know of anyone who runs out to get that test the day after their birthday. We all deal with some procrastination with it, including Dr. Oz, and he’s da man.
I was no different. Sure, I had a good excuse…I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 50. Come on, it was a good excuse, right? Now, 3 years after chemo, I finally had to face the fact that it was time for this test. I also discovered that people who have had breast cancer have a higher risk for colon cancer. If that wasn’t enough to move me to schedule, I thought about a beautiful woman in my life who lost her battle to colon cancer nearly three years ago. So finally, I scheduled my appointment.
It’s not that bad. The worst of it was drinking 2 liters of prep-mix the day before. The procedure itself, took about 20 minutes. You can elect to have twilight sleep or some people are awake. I elected to have the Versed/Fentanyl twilight sleep, and am glad I did.
I think a colonoscopy is a lot like getting ready for Thanksgiving dinner. You prep for days in advance, cook all day, and dinner is gone in 20 minutes. When it’s over, you’re glad you did it.