I had Picolax for my bowel prep in March.
I bought it over the counter at a chemist and did the prep at home according to the instructions that came with the sachets.
My doctor advised me to stay home whilst doing the bowel prep.
Two days before the surgery I was instructed to begin a diet with low fat & low fibre plus lots of fluids:
NOT ALLOWED:
Stop iron-containing medications, fibre (Metamucil, Fybogel) and constipation agents (Imodium, Codeine, Lomotil). No fatty or oily foods. Do
not eat red meat, brown bread, rice, noodles, cereals, eggs, milk, soy, fruit or vegetables. Do
not have anything with seeds in it. No alcohol. Do
not have yellow cheese. Do
not have margarine or butter.
ALLOWED:
You may eat cottage cheese; steamed or microwaved white fish; white bread (plain or lightly toasted); plain biscuits; well cooked,
peeled pumpkin and
peeled potato. You may add salt and pepper, to taste. You may have jelly, and drink plentiful Approved Clear Liquids.
APPROVED CLEAR LIQUIDS:
Water. Strained fruit juices without pulp or seeds (apple, white grapes, orange). All of the following that are not coloured red or purple: Jellies, carbonated or non-carbonated soft drinks and clear, fruit flavoured cordials. Lucozade. artificial sweeteners are permitted.
Sugar or honey or CLEAR jam and CLEAR marmalade if permitted by doctor. Black tea or coffee (no milk, no whitener). Cup of soups (strain away the noodles and solids). Vegemite or Bonox in water, to taste.
Clear soups, broth or
clear bouillon. You may suck barley sugar, if permitted by doctor.
The day before the surgery I was advised to have a good breakfast from the "allowed" list and then have ONLY Approved Clear Liquids for the rest of the day.
I was to take my first sachet of Picolax in a glass of water at 7:30am, and my second at 3:30pm.
I was advised to drink at least one glass of Approved Clear Fluids every hour, or more if possible (I found this difficult to keep up with).
On the day of the surgery, for a morning op it was nil by mouth (including chewing gum) starting from midnight the night before.
For an afternoon op it was Approved Clear Liquids for breakfast and nil by mouth for 6 hours prior to the op.
I was only allowed paracetamol for pain relief (and not during the nil-by-mouth period).
I was advised to have someone else take me to the hospital, and to wear loose comfortable clothing & stay close to the toilet.
There are warnings on the info sheet suggesting not to take the prep if you have abdominal pain, hahaha.
I did OK with the food limitations of the first day of the prep, even though it was boring.
The next day, I had awful period pain and I missed my drugs more than I missed my food.
When I started the laxative, my pain eased up a lot and I actually felt much, much better for it.
I was on the loo more than usual but not ridiculously so. The diarrhoea wasn't really painful like proper diarrhoea, and aside from the fact that it's strange to pee from your butt I would almost call it comfortable. Beats straining.
The lemon flavoured drink was not too foul.
The next day I was getting lightheaded and headachy from the hunger, but that was probably because I wasn't wheeled into theatre until 4pm. Also, I only managed a small breakfast the day before on account of my horrendous pains.
Overall I was happy with my experience with Picolax and I'm not worried about doing it again for my next op next month.
I didn't eat a huge meal the day before the whole prep started. Personally I find that if I eat a huge meal I am hungrier the next day, and likewise if I am eating small meals I don't get as hungry.
I'm sure you're aware that you are to stop things like aspirin, alcohol, smoking, Vitamin C and herbs for something like 2 weeks before surgery.
All the best -xx-