Had Sigmoidoscopy yesterday and would need to be dragged kicking and screaming before having another! The hospital staff were lovely, I was given an enema before the doctor came to speak to me about what he was about to do. He was very nice and reassuring so up to then, all was going well. Then I was taken to the treatment room where I was asked to lie on my left side on a bed which had sides on (to prevent escape ha ha) and the procedure started. Boy oh boy, the pain I experienced was terrible cramping all over my abdomen like I had never experienced before (even child birth wasn't as bad as this). The nurses kept reassuring me and asking me to take deep slow breaths but this did not help and eventually having been unable to cope with it anymore, the doctor agreed to stop but did take two biopsies. However, because it was too painful for me to allow him to go any further, he said he was 20cm short of where he wanted to see. Now heres the question. Why on earth don't they just put the patient under total sedation? This way no pain is caused to them, the doctor can look at the area he needs to see and all in all, every one happy. It seems a waste of time to me to put people through such agony when there is a simple solution. The doctor is unable to perform a full examination because it is too painful for the patient so its not cost effective, its cruel and its a waste of everyones time!
Sedation doesnt stop the pain it just makes you too out of it to care. Usually a Sigmoidoscopy is not painful in the slightest 
I have had this same experience - twice now. In ten years I'd hoped that things might have improved. The first time I was given an anaesthetic and the procedure was completed. Last week I could only have gas and air and despite being almost out of it on a high I could not stop screaming! I've never experienced pain like this in any other way.
Anyone who thinks you could possibly be so out of it you don't care has obviously not experienced this pain.
I feel really angry about it and may not return for the barium enema I'm told I must have now since they could not examine the full length required. It is absolutely disgraceful to treat people this way - nothing short of torture!
I went for a flexible sigmoidoscopy yesterday - it was at short notice ( I was offered a late cancellation). I hadn't time to receive the information about it so had looked up several articles online - all describing discomfort & cramps- but unfortunately I hadn't found this site.
The nursing staff were lovely; the procedure worse than I'd ever imagined. I've had 4 children & managed with gas & air & breathing. I couldn't manage this at all.
I think at the beginning of the procedure it was just very uncomfortable as expected but it then became very painful.
When the scope wouldn't get round 1 of the corners ( though she didn't explain that at the time) she got me to move from my left side to right side & onto my back & then back onto my side and then they asked me to rate the pain on a scale of 1-10 (about 9 I reckoned - I really wasn't with it by then); took some of the air out (reducing the pain to about 6); said I was tachycardic and then I guess decided to give up. I had to stay in the recovery ward for a couple of hours - severe stomachpains & very nauseous. Finally got home & had to lie down for the rest of the day. Today I still feel unwell & am seriously concerned about the barium enema scheduled for 3 weeks time as all the medical staff told me that it would be worse than the flexible sigmoidoscopy.
I think I would have felt the pain/feeling so ill was worthwhile if they'd managed to complete the procedure but to go through all of that & then only have a limited procedure carried out with the warning that you might have to come back again isn't good 
.
The doctor also made me feel as though I was at fault in some way -I think her words afterwards were something on the lines that she'd been doing this for x years & this was the first time she'd only been able to do a limited procedure. I asked if sedation might have helped but she said not necessarily - so if they do the procedure again what are they going to give me?
Hi Everyone,
I had one after having 2 colonoscopies, for which I had sedation and didn't feel much pain at all, but these where performed at a different hospital. When I moved I had to go to a different hospital and when I got the appointment I thought it was funny that I didn't have to have any stuff beforehand to empty my bowel like before and when I got to the hospital I found it was for a flexible sigmoidascope. the staff didn't even give me an enema and the pain was dreadful - had a fan on me as I kept getting panicy and afterwards I felt so bloated and could have f***ed and blown myself home on the wind!!! Thankfully I was discharged and have not had to had anything else done.
I think they should give some form of pain relief as not everyone is the same and this can be a very painful experience and also not a pleasant thing to go see a dr about in the first place.
Hope they do something about it soon for all you sufferers out there.
Jane
I havehad a flexible sigmoidoscopy 2 days ago, in an NHS hospital. The main reason to have it was to examine my haemorrhoids. I had no sedation however when the surgeon saw my prolapsed haemorrhoids, he applied an anaesthetic gel. The procedure itself was more painful than I had anticipated. The air they used to inflate my colon and the liquid they used at some point to rinse it created a tremendous pressure that I’ve felt in my lower abdomen, it brought me into tears at some point. The unpleasant experience was not improved by some inappropriate and idiotic comments made by a second man who was sitting in the procedure room with no apparent purpose other than to chat to the surgeon who was carrying out the procedure. At some point the man said to the surgeon “you look like having too much fun there... this looks like some kind of prostitution”. I didn’t hear any reply to those comments. The nurse was decent and encouraged me to breathe deeply and stay relaxed.
Although I expected to have my haemorrhoids banded during the procedure, I didn’t notice the surgeon doing any of that. Everyone was preparing to leave behaving in the typical mood one has in the end of a working day. As I was pulled out of the procedure room in the trolley I’ve asked the nurse if it was normal to still feel abdominal pressure and pain. She answered affirmatively and said that I needed to “pass wind”. The next moment she left me in the hands of a man who continued to roll me to the changing room and then he left hesitantly after giving me an uncertain look. With my colon filled with the air and the liquid that was introduced during the procedure, I went to the toilet and did what the nurse had advised me to do. Once I had that done, I felt much better. Some minutes later a nurse brought me some papers with the sigmoidoscopy results and asked me to call a phone number to arrange an appointment. Looking at the results I was surprised to read: “Intermittent bleeding and fourth degree haemorrhoids noted. Too swollen and painful for banding.” This explained why the surgeon ended the procedure without any haemorrhoid treatment, which was the main point of the sigmoidoscopy.
The most pain for me though was only about to begin, 15-20 minutes after the procedure when the local anaesthetic faded away. Seemingly the surgeon couldn’t avoid hurting my prolapsed haemorrhoids while operating the device during the sigmoidoscopy. The stingy pain persists to the present moment as I type this, two days after the procedure. Last night I mostly didn’t sleep because of the pain.
Yesterday I’ve called for the next appointment which unfortunately couldn’t have been arranged sooner than mid March that’s in a month and a half time. I am frustrated to have to wait so long and right now in a great deal of pain. I also have a job interview to attend in a week and I feel anxious not to miss it due to my pain, I can hardly walk right now.
If you have to do a sigmoidoscopy, I wish you the best of luck. It will be rather unpleasant but you’ll be fine immediately afterwards. If you are in a similar with me unlucky position to need haemorrhoids treatment, then I deeply empathise with you and I wish you get the right treatment for you and get the best results in the end.
Hi,
Anybody who says this procedure is just uncomfortable, clearly hs never had one done.
I have had two, the first one around 3 years ago, was so painful that I literally screamed for him to stop, the doctor kept saying he knows its not nice, but he just had to get around the top bend in my colon and needed more air. By tis point I was digging my fingernails so hard into the poor nurses hand and sweat ws running down my face and chest, I was at the point of complete collapse, in fact I would go so far as saying that for anybody who had a heart condition, this was enough to cause them to have a heart attack.
There is no exaggeration here, it is the worst pain I have ever endured and cannot imagine why patients are not put out for this procedure,
~Worst of all last year My GP said I had to have another one done as conditon getting worse, I told her NO but she assured me that this time it wouldnt be so bad as only the very lower portion would need air to expand it. WELL IT WAS HELL FOR THE SECOND TIME... and the worse thing was IT WAS THE SAME Massocistic doctor performing it.... again he made me feel I was a baby, and this time I shouted to him, had he had one of these procedures performed, he said no.. and I told him he then didnt have a clue.
I still have the same problens but I would NEVER EVER GO THROUGH THIS PROCEURE AGAIN. and pity anybody who everhas to....
I had this done yesterday under sedation......what can I say it was very very painful.....because I was sedated I did not really know what was happening but I can tell you now I felt the pain...on a scale of 1-10 I would say it is 8-9. Today my insides feel very sore and achy... I am not sure whether this is normal or not has any one else had symptoms the next day?
Ok, it really isn't that bad. I had a rigid sig at my doctors which was much more uncomfortable that the flexi sig. After reading these posts, I was concerned about the procedure as I am a total wimp when it comes to anything. It is standard to be given gas and air which is brilliant, this total relaxes you. It isn't great when they blow air in, but this is because it makes you want to go to the toilet, this passes and a few deep breathes on the gas and air and you are fine. It was over in 10 minutes, which sounds like a lot but it isn't when you are out of it on gas and air. I had two polyps removed and went home after a sandwich and a cup of tea afterwards. Seriously it really isn't painful, it just makes you have a real urge to go to the toilet, which passes. Personally having a blood test or injection is much worse.
I had flexi sig today, after 2 home births (2nd baby nearly 10lb) with no need for pain relief I was not prepared for how horrible this would feel. I was okay at first, relaxed, but I think I may have been more tricky (maybe anatomically?) than some patients as 20 minutes after starting they hadn't even got as far as they eventually wanted to, with trying to get around the 'loops'. It got more uncomfortable as it went along, then it just felt so bad and I had to take the Entonox I was offered. The staff were wonderful, I wasn't scared of the procedure at all and was very keen to see it on the screen, but my flexi sig had to be abandoned because shortly after starting Entonox I almost passed out with the feeling/pain and my saturations dropped and they gave me oxygen for about half an hour.
Afterwards I was pretty uncomfortable with loads of gas and right shoulder pain which took a couple of good 'releases' before it reduced.
I'm glad it was easy for some people but if I have to have it repeated (due to it not being completed) I will take the conscious sedation!
I am so happy to have read these posts. I had a flexi sig a couple of days ago. They told me they don't use sedation because it's not a painful procedure. WRONG! I was absolutely horrified. The pumping in of the air was the worst thing. It was like I was giving birth to a stomach full of broken glass. I nearly wrenched the nurse's hand off! They told me to look at the screen and tried to get me to take an interest, but I was concentrating on just staying alive!. Never will I have another! They found a polyp, so I'm having a colonoscopy tomorrow, but that doesn't fase me cos I've had one of those before and they sedate you. Why the hell they can't give you at least gas and air for a sig, God only knows. I left thinking there must be something dreadfully wrong with me because normally this is a 'painless procedure'. Now I know I'm not alone.
I WANT EVERYONE WHO IS GOING TO HAVE THIS TO KNOW THE TRUTH. I HAD ONE DONE THIS MORNING. I WAS ABSOLUTELY TERRIFIED, HAVING READ ALL THE 'PAINFUL' COMMENTS, I WAS EXPECTING IT TO BE AWFUL. I WAS WORRIED IT WOULD GIVE ME HEART ATTACK, THAT IT WOULD PERFORATE BOWEL. THESE THINGS JUST NEVER HAPPEN. BUT I WAS WORRIED ABOUT PAIN. IT IS UNCOMFORTABLE, NOT PAINFUL. THE MAIN REASON IT FEELS UNCOMFORTABLE IS BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS. I PROMISE YOU, IT'S NOT PAINFUL AND YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS. WHEN I SAW PEOPLE ON THESE FORUMS A FEW WEEKS AGO SAYING THE SAME AS ME - THATS IT'S NOT PAINFUL - I DID NOT BELIEVE THEM, THINKING THEY WERE ONLY BEING NICE. SO PLEASE BELIEVE ME SINCERELY. THIS DOES NOT HURT. IT FEELS WEIRD. FUNNY STRANGE WEIRD. YOU CAN SEE YOUR BOWELS ON SCREEN, WHICH IS SUPER INTERESTING. THE WEIRDEST PART WAS THE ENEMA WHICH WASN'T EVEN THAT S***TY TO BE HONEST (PARDON THE PUN), WHICH JUST FELT CHALLENGING TO HOLD YOUR GUTS FOR A FEW MINUTES. AGAIN, NOT PAINFUL. BUT THE PROCEDURE ITSELF IT TOTALLY WORTH IT. I WAS TOLD I DIDN'T NEED IT, AND I PUSHED FOR IT ANYWAY. A FEW DAYS BEFORE IT, I STARTED SAYING 'SHOULD I CANCEL IT? I'M SCARED!' BUT IT TAKES LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES AND I PROMISE YOU, YOU WALK AWAY WITH TOTAL PEACE OF MIND. NOT JUST THAT YOU'RE FINE, BUT THAT FOR TEN YEARS YOU'RE FINE. IT IS PRICELESS. REMEMBER THE VAST MAJORITY HAVING THESE TESTS HAVE NOTHING WRONG AND IT IS PRECAUTION. TOTALLY WORTH IT FOR THE PEACE OF MIND. MORE INTERESTING THAN SCARY, IT'S A VERY INTERESTING EXPERIENCE. YOU LAY DOWN ON LEFT, AND SURGEON SAYS 'ARE YOU READY?' AND JUST STICKS SOMETHING UP YOUR BUTT. IT'S COOL. IMAGINE YOU LIKE TAKING IT THAT WAY (IF YOU'RE INTO THAT) AND IT'S PRETTY ENJOYABLE. THEN JUST KEEP LAUGHING. IMAGINE YOU'RE KIM KARDASHIAN. SERIOUSLY WHEN YOU ARE HAVING IT DONE, JUST IMAGINE YOU ARE LYING THERE AND YOU ARE HAVING A RAY-J-OSCOPY. BUT SERIOUSLY GUYS AND GIRLS... PLEASE DO NOT EVER HAVE A SLEEPLESS NIGHT. THIS IS TOTALLY A FASCINATING EXPERIENCE, NOT AT ALL PAINFUL, AND THE PEACE OF MIND AFTER IS SUCH A GREAT FEELING. GOD BLESS YOU ALL, WISHING YOU ALL GOOD HEALTH. REMEMBER, IF ANYTHING IN ANYONE IS EVER FOUND YOU ARE IN THE VERY BEST PLACE!!! BUT VERY VERY VERY RARELY IS ANYTHING USUALLY FOUND. PEACE OF MIND IS A GREAT THING, AND IT STOPS ANXIETY WHICH IS THE CAUSE OF MANY PROBLEMS. GOD BLESS YOU ALL.
You were very lucky, as the majority posted here and me had a shocking experience when having this procedure performed. Even with sedation I was in excrutiating pain. I had no biopsies or haemorrhoid removal but the Specialist nurse was rough and heavy handed and performed it really fast which I think made it worse. I seriously think a short lasting anaesthetic ought to be given to avoid patient distress.
Nothing seems to have improved as I had the nightmare of having a flexible sigmoidoscopy yesterday and it was excrutiatingly painful. The staff were busy and barely 10 minutes following the procedure and a cup of tea and toast I was pushed to get dressed and leave although I was still in extreme pain. I got dressed in the loo and let go of masses of wind but also had diarrhoea. The nurse came over 3 times while I was in the loo to ask what I was doing and shouted that I had
diarrhoea. "Are you dressed you"? she shouted through the door and I said yes but was so upset as the pain was awful. I had to finish my cup of tea in the waiting room before I left as they were so busy and did not care about how I was. I may need more investigations but I know a barium enema is not so painful, just messy and would have that anytime over this.
Hi
firstly, on reading through the replies here I think it's worth noting that to say that this procedure *is* or *is not* painful is nonsense. All anyone can do is post their own experience and hope that others will show respect and not be dismissive.
For those whose sigmoidoscopies went well, I am really very pleased for you and, given that all of the leaflets and advice is that the procedure isn't painful, it certainly gives hope that anyone else waiting for this shouldn't have anything to worry about
When I was told I needed this I was asked during my consultation if I wanted sedation. As I was being repeatedly told that the procedure isn't painful, I declined.
Two lovely ladies that I work with have both had it done and neither experienced any pain whatsoever, which made me feel really confident about the procedure being simple and pain free.
I had read up on forums and could see that some people experienced pain and, I'll be honest, I thought the posters were drama queens and maybe a bit of crank, because I was so assured that it was painless. Which makes my posting this difficult, because I am sure some people reading it will think I am a drama queen or a bit of a crank!
On the day of the procedure I walked down to the room with a nurse and, again, was offered sedation, which I refused. Why would anyone need sedation for a pain free procedure?
The nurse then said that they would give me gas & air. It was at this point I realised that, despite all assurances to the contrary, this procedure was not going to a walk in the park.
I have given birth twice and pride myself in the fact that my son was born in two hours and my daughter in one hour- and that's from the START of labour. Yes, it was painful, but I coped on gas & air, so I don't count myself a person with a low pain threshold or someone who likes to create a drama where one doesn't exist.
To be offered gas & air was confusing.
However, the nurse told me to take ten breaths on the gas & air before the consultant was even ready to begin. The consultant 'corrected' her and said I needed to take at least fifteen breaths before he began.
Despite the fact I was feeling confident that the procedure would be painless and despite the fact I was high on gas & air, this was extremely painful. Enough to make me cry and cry out. At one point the consultant paused until I could stop crying out.
I don't know what the cause of the pain was. The pain was not for the whole twenty minutes, but at certain points, so I don't know if it was he hit a bend in the bowel or what, but it hurt like hell.
I am more upset that it hurt after being assured it would not, and the girls I work with insist that they did not have sedation and they had no pain. The only difference that they seem to have in their procedure is that they were on a moving table that tilted and I was not. I don’t know if that makes such a marked difference in the reduction of pain experienced, but surely if it did then the powers that be would have cottoned on to that and we’d all have magical tilty tables.
Another important thing to note is the hell of the movieprep. I started to drink this at 5pm as instructed and, going by the leaflet, expected it all to be over by 11pm. However, the ‘movement’ began at around 8pm didn’t end until around 5:30am, meaning I had no sleep at all. By 11pm it was like shards of glass ripping me open and I was bleeding, so for 6 ½ hours I was in a lot of pain every time I went to the loo. THIS you are not warned about. On the day of the procedure another lady was having the same thing done, but she hadn’t taken her movieprep (not her fault) so the hospital gave her an enema, which was all over in an hour. I wish I had been given the choice of an enema rather than having to go through so much with the movieprep.
From the start of taking the movieprep, which is also a thick salty vile thing to drink that makes you baulk, to the moment the scope was removed was the worst and most traumatic experience of my life- and that includes childbirth.
I am upset with myself I feel there is something mentally wrong with me to experience such extreme pain where other people have had none. I have asked the nurse why I felt such pain, but the answer that ‘everyone is different’ is hardly satisfactory.
The reason I am posting this is so that anyone reading this BEFORE their procedure makes the ‘safe’ choice and accepts sedation, and for anyone reading AFTER a painful procedure to know that you’re not alone and others have felt the same pain.
Hi, I'm really glad you shared your experience and hope it does offer people peace of mind.
However, it's unfair to 'promise' people that it will not hurt. The only promise you can make is that it did not hurt YOU.
Imagine the most traumatic experience of your life.
Now imagine someone dismissing it by saying it's not true.
I really appreciate that this procedure was not painful for YOU and I am glad about that. However for some people it is really very painful and what they need is the TRUTH that some people find it painful and therefore they should consider ways to avoid experiencing that for themselves.
Also, this procedure takes around twenty minutes and, from the start of the movieprep, more like 13 hours, so that is also misleading.
Wishing you continued good health x
I am so sorry to hear someone else had a diabolical situation with flexible sigmoidoscopy. If it is any consolation I had an enema at home before the procedure and at the hospital I had sedation and was still in absolute agony! I have been advised recently that it can depend on what bowel condition they find which is crucial to the level of pain. I have diverticular disease which I knew before the procedure but had no idea that this is one of the conditions which can cause extreme pain. Had I known this prior to having the sigmoidoscopy I would have asked for sedation which knocks a person out during the awful procedure which has scarred me considerably. The staff can give strong sedation but the recovery time mucks up the schedule of patients to get through in the day. So basically at my local hospital numbers of patients through the system is more important than individual patient care. I was rushed out of the building even though I had diarrhoea after the procudure and was told to get a cup of tea from the cafe! The cramps were awful after but the worse thing was the actual sigmoidoscopy and apparently it should be stopped if the patient is in extereme pain. The sedation I had was so little it would not have touched a mouse let alone me and there was no gas and air. The nurse at my side was lovely but the specialist nurse who did the procedure did not care about me and barely said anything except to tell me where the diverticuli were, which I did not care about one iota as the pain was like a knife twisting inside me. No way with I have any bowel examination without being knocked out in future. I too felt a woose taking sedation but I would have asked for heavy duty stuff had I known how bad it would be. "Life of Brian" in no way were you a woose and neither was I or the others who have posted nightmare scenarios. This is a dreadful procedure for many and if your GP has an idea of your condition they should warn you before having this barbaric procedure performed and as in my case request to be given stronger sedation which makes you unaware of the whole thing - as it can be done! I hope you are now well and nothing too serious was found, if anything that is the only blessing. In this day and age patient comfort should come first over hospital targets.
Thanks Dor. I'm sorry you went through that, hopefully we'll never have to again x
Thank you. I hope neither of us nor others have to go through this in pain again. At least we are now forewarned as to what to expect and request to be knocked out if we require this or a colonoscopy in future.
Many best wishes, Dor x
I went for a sigmoidoscopy this morning, I was looking forward to the lead role in my own movie, being told it was possible for some minimal discomfort I had hoped to watch the lot. After about 2 minutes I was shouting for the gas and air, I had some acute bends which did not help but jeeebas I was not expecting that sort of pain. It was really unbearable. I managed with gas and air but there were still some moments of excrutiating pain. Hopefully never again.