Hello Steve67,

                     welcome to the fellow reversal travellers from uranus club, you are still a novice a few weeks out and have still to attain full statearse. it helps to have a sense of humour since it will be tested over the coming months.What you describe is perfectly normal, and will improve with time,all that is at question is how much and for how long ?, since we are all individual and the only way to find out is with hindsight.Your bowel is surrounded by muscle that works in a continuous sequential wave motion interacting with the brain to expel waste.By your own admission you have just had a chunk removed,disrupting the sequence,which needs to re-establish a working understanding.Further complicating the issue is a period of inactivity whilst the stoma was in situ.l personally feel the length of time can have a bearing on recovery.Mine was in for 14 months and l feel l suffered from muscle memory fade.Think of a newborn who arrives with no programming ,just expels as needed,and gradually links bowel and brain to work in unison.

                                                                                                                                       l am back to my "new normal" of one to two visits a day,with usually a second quick secondary visit in the evening.My record was fifteen in 45 minutes,stand up and rapidly sit again,so if you can go an hour between you are well ahead of my curve,which was complicated by gallbladder removal leading to no control of excessive bile production and proctitis from radiotherapy.

                                                                                                     Fear not you are on the right road and as long you stay WC,well connected and close by, things will improve and you get back on the move,but in the right direction!,

                                                  in the meantime just keep practising the Linford Christie method of movements

                    David,

Hello David,

I'm Steve's wife and just wanted to say how very much we appreciate your reply.  It was a sudden impulse last night to try googling forums when Steve was in despair.  The only time I ever went on a forum was when I started keeping chickens 12 years ago and it helped then - and certainly has now!

We will hang on to what you say and wait patiently - and I'll keep thinking of the newborn analogy.  I was going to ask what the Linford Christie comment meant (wondering about exercises) but just now the penny suddenly dropped!!!

So cheers and thank you again

Frankie

Hello Frankie,

                     thank you for such a lovely response,its always good to hear that you have helped others in a small way. So l guess your penny might have dropped as Steve went dashing past on his way to fulfil an important mission.l hope everything continues to gradually improve for both of you,theres never just the one hit hard by this nasty invader.if l can ever be of further help you know where to find me,which thankfully these days is not so much in the little boys room, l am only too pleased to be of assistance,

                        David

                                      Ps  --got rid of my chickens and became more ambitious with sheep and belted galloway cattle                                                                         

Hello Frankie,

                     thank you for such a lovely response,its always good to hear that you have helped others in a small way. So l guess your penny might have dropped as Steve went dashing past on his way to fulfil an important mission.l hope everything continues to gradually improve for both of you,theres never just the one hit hard by this nasty invader.if l can ever be of further help you know where to find me,which thankfully these days is not so much in the little boys room, l am only too pleased to be of assistance,

                        David

                                      Ps  --got rid of my chickens and became more ambitious with sheep and belted galloway cattle