January Pre-Retrospective
I am feeling 50x better than I was 2 days ago!! Even though I was not deathly ill, even a simple cold can make everyday life feel really really hard and un-fun.
I am glad it is over.
I cannot believe we are rounding the bend to February. I remember looking at January and thinking it would be a nice calm month! The evidence for this was:
- I had no travel scheduled (other than a VERY quick trip with G to celebrate my niece’s bday this weekend)
- I had no call scheduled (except I ended up covering a weekend someone needed, as a gift to my future self, and no regrets there!)
However, it did not feel calm in the least. In retrospect, I sort of forgot about a few things, namely work-related things! I had a lot of book launch activity (so many interviews, big bonus zoom, etc), plus January is Course Prime Time, as it absolutely should be! I LOVE planning with people when they are excited and in a headspace to plan, so January is busy.
ALSO, Josh took 2 weekends of call (disproportionately high, and will have less call later – yay), A was sick, I was sick, and I feel like I ended up doing a great deal of 2026 planning that will pay off later, but was a lot of legwork now.
This is not my official recap post. (That is coming!). But it is a fair dissection of what made this month feel a little bit less ‘regular/calm’ than expected.
(February DOES NOT look calm, either, but it should be a lot of fun! Except the part where I get my first colonoscopy. I am actively DREADING that already. But I will survive).
2026 Goals Series: FUN!
I promised to finish with my 2026 goals posts by the end of the month . . and here we are!
Prior domains:
Last domain: FUN!
I probably could have bundled these in another category, but I think I just wanted to emphasize – well, the concept of FUN taking up an entire domain. And I reserve the right to maybe add more to this category!
Goal #1: See at least 12 long-form performances — must be device free (ie no double devicing while watching a Hallmark movie, and it also doesn’t count if I fall asleep). These could be ANYTHING over an hour — a live show, a movie, a concert, a sports game. Hopefully I will get to more than 12, but so far I’ve had 0 in January so I’m glad I set this goal! (I am in the process of booking theater tickets for Feb!).
I have a page to track these in my Hobonchi and will need to pick up the pace from January’s slow start!
Goal #2: See color-changing leaves in the fall. I hope this will be essentially a permanent/perennial yearly goal. I hope I can do it as long as I am able to travel!
23 Comments
Glad you are feeling better. I had my first colonoscopy last year it really wasn’t terrible at all. I did the Sutab prep which are pills and which I would highly recommend because you can pick which clear liquids you want to drink with it. I felt great afterward and came home and did some work. It really isn’t bad.
he gave me Plenvu which i think is less liquid than some . . .
Honestly, it really wasn’t bad. The worst part was that my anesthesiologist wanted me to give him a full lecture on using spironolactone for hormonal acne, which somehow he had never heard of before…clearly he doesn’t see a lot of young women.
My doctor gave me a prescription for Cologard a few months ago — it showed up on my doorstep and is still sitting there, unopened, in my bedroom. I know it’s “easier” but there’s something so deeply unappealing about it that I think I’d rather just do the whole colonoscopy and have it over with!
I had my first colonoscopy in November, and as another smallish woman, I’d recommend asking if there is a, um, sign that you could stop drinking the prep before you’ve finished it. I feel like I was probably fully cleansed early and just cycling water through my system.
In more fun topics, we have tickets to see Six tomorrow night, which I’ve been looking forward to! I’m really thankful we went with this weekend instead of last, assuming the parking lots will be de-iced.
ughghggh I think I will just . . . stop at some point if i have to stop!?
Only stop if your poop fully looks like urine with no sediment/residue. Otherwise you might not be clean enough and you’d have to go back and do it all again.
that would be TERRIBLE!!!!!!
I had my first scope at 43 in October (I’m an iron deficiency anemia patient and my hematologist errs on the side of caution with early colonoscopies). I was dreading it because of what everyone says. It was absolutely no big deal. Even drinking the prep fluid wasn’t that bad. Be careful with stopping early on the prep – if you’re not down to basically just water coming out, you’re not done! Hahaha.
FWIW, I found the hunger from fasting to be worse than the prep! Not sure if that’s reassuring or not 🤣
My colonoscopy was at 7:30AM, so for me the worst part was starting the prep at 3PM the afternoon before, going to bed while still pooping a lot, and then waking up at 1AM to do round 2. The colonoscopy itself was fine though. Also fyi you will not be able to trust a fart for some time after the procedure.
If you are really dreading a colonoscopy, you could always talk to your doctor about doing a screening with Cologuard. Then if that’s positive, you need a colonoscopy and if it’s negative you’re good for three years.
I want the reg one for various reasons but i want it to be over!
Fasting was the least pleasant part for me. The drink definitely tastes grosser than you can possibly imagine. I have a mortal dread of pretty much all medical encounters. Illogical I know. I can honestly say getting my teeth cleaned is way higher on the dread scale than colonoscopy. I did insist that they put me to sleep. They called an audible the morning of and said they didn’t have enough anesthesia people that day and I said no no no that was not our deal. I said it very very nicely. I don’t remember a thing after that which is as it should be.
My colonoscopy tip is make sure you get the soft toilet paper! We usually use fairly thin toilet paper since my kids are notorious toilet cloggers, but you need the really soft kind for the prep time 😬😉
oh wow – good to know!
I apologize for the TMI nature of this comment, but before my colonoscopy, someone recommended using Desitin proactively, and it did help 😉
Honestly the whole thing is SO MUCH EASIER than it used to be even 20 years ago. And the taste is NO WHERE near as nasty! Relax and don’t dread it so much. Eating soft and not red things and being well hydrated for a day or two before the prep makes that story simpler too. I hope you have no finding that are other than good.
I had mine done yesterday. It was great! I feel so lucky to have access to preventive screenings, so I tried to think about that during the prep. The prep wasn’t too bad because I ate lightly 48 hours prior and honestly, I don’t think there was a lot to clear (lol) out. Apple juice was my friend to keep my energy up with some simple sugar. Because Kaiser defaults to the cheaper options, it was a large volume prep and the lemon flavor packet was horrific. I wish I hadn’t used it.
I did it without sedation because I’m a control freak and didn’t want to be a blabbermouth under IVCS. I had IV access in case I changed my mind, but there was really only one brief point where I questioned my decision. I definitely think it helped to have an excellent GI doc who was fast and facile with the scope.
Anyway, good luck! Here’s to being 45!
all excellent tips – ty! (except I am def not going sedation free!).
I have a lower volume prep (Plenvu) prescribed so maybe maybe that will make it more doable.
I am on the one-year plan for colonoscopies due to previous polyp removals and honestly it is NOT that bad. I find that I can’t survive the day on juice alone but clear chicken broth makes a world of difference in getting some calories in. The hunger is worse than the prep, for sure, in my opinion. Keeping the prep (or liquid mix-in) cold and drinking through a straw helps me. But the nap! How delightful!!!!! And I typically don’t feel groggy the rest of the day. Just a note about Cologuard since I saw it mentioned in comments (and I realize you aren’t going this route) – it can detect cancer, but is mediocre for detecting pre-cancerous polyps…and that’s the stage when you want to get them out! So it’s a great option for someone who is unwilling / unable to do the actual procedure, or a nice fill-in at 5 years for people who are clear and told to come back for 10 years (such as my husband, lucky duck…) but it really doesn’t replace the screening colonoscopy for early detection. Good luck!! Hope you get good snacks after! (Cheez-its were my personal fave!)
Your mention of a colonoscopy tempted me to become a first-time commenter, lol! But I highly recommend the colonoscopy episode of the Ologies podcast – it got me laughing and feeling much more relaxed in the lead-up. Link here: https://www.alieward.com/ologies/colonoscopy
Also, if there’s a book that’s so absorbing that it distracts you while you’re drinking the prep, that’s super helpful too. I will say, in the end, the colonoscopy itself wound up being the best sleep I’ve had since becoming a parent, I think! 😛 Hope it all goes well.
aww thanks so much! I will TOTALLY listen!!!