Questions for my surgeon...

I've been doing TONS of research in preparation for meeting with my surgeon/having my surgery. I've put together a list of questions to ask my surgeon when I meet with him on Wednesday. I know I could find the answers online, but it's hard to make sure you're getting the information from a reliable source sometimes, plus I want to hear it from my surgeon. Anyway, I wanted to post the list here in case anyone had any ideas of questions I was missing. Any help is much appreciated!

-What are the differences between the different surgeries? IPAA vs IPDRA
-What are the pros and cons of each?
-What is the normal length of time between colectomy and take-down?
-How long is the recovery period for each stage? (getting up and around, and getting completely back to normal)
-How long will I need to stay in the hospital for each stage?
-How long will I need someone to take care of me for each stage?
-What meds will be required after surgery?
-For each surgery, what is the likelihood of recurrence of UC in remaining bowels?
-How often do your patients develop fertility issues?
-How common is loss of bowel control? (day and night?)
-I know that I'll be going to the bathroom much more frequently, but will the same urgency be present (as there was with UC?)
-How many incisions and where?
-How many of these surgeries have you done?
-Would you be able to operate in late December or early January?
-I was told there are medicines that can be taken that make the waste in the ileostomy bag odorless/colorless, is this true?

I'm also allergic to tape/bandages/etc. so I'm hoping they have some sort of alternate method they can use for my IVs and such...and using surgical tape for my wounds after/instead of stitches is probably going to be a no go as well...


I'm so incredibly nervous. This is such a huge step!