It is one of the things I dislike most. Following the death of my father via Lung Cancer then bowel cancer a regular colonoscopy is part of growing older. The actual procedure is nothing, as drugs take care of any discomfort. It is the lead up and the anxiety that bothers me so much.

For three days prior to the procedure one can only eat dull white things. White bread, pasta, nothing with skins on like tomatoes and beans, in fact no vegetable unless its mashed potatoes and no fruit unless it is clear in a bottle like apple juice. Then there is the drinking of two litres of disgusting cleanse mixture that means ten feet from a bathroom is nine feet too far away, for about four or five hours.

Then there’s the water. I hate the stuff. It’s, well frankly, its watery. Litres of the stuff is required to make up for the fluid loss. Don’t bother suggesting I could do it with red wine, I have already asked and it’s not suitable. So I drink more water in the lead up to this than I would the rest of the year I reckon.

Then there’s the thinking time. I don’t like that at all. This time is a little bit different from the others, as it’s symptom driven and not a regular scheduled visit. I toyed with the idea of discussing this with Anna and for a range of reasons I thought I would just keep it under my hat for the time being. We have a few things going on, with trying to get our new house underway and Tom and Amanda’s recent engagement announcement, this would only get in the way. Obviously if I don’t get the all clear then we will have plenty of conversations about it, but for now it is just me and my brain in over-rotation.

I normally have quite low blood pressure but i am informed today, with a few minutes to go before the test, my blood pressure is a little high. Go figure. Pretty much the next thing I remember is sitting in a chair with a cup of tea and a biscuit. It feels almost naughty eating the biscuit. Around the same time I am given the all clear from the doctor. Phew. I am super glad I kept my concerns under my hat. Now I’m looking forward to a good meal and a glass or two. Cheers.