Dear Jim, TY for your site.  My story...well here  it goes.  In 1992 I had to have a gastric bypass for weight loss, due to health reasons.  For almost 10 years I did fine, losing weight, over 170 lbs, as was appropriate. But then this past Feb. 2001 my problems started.  I began to have FREQUENT diarrhea. .often 10-15 times a day.  I am a special education teacher and was unable to leave my students this often for trips to the bathroom, and I became so weak that I was unable to work...thus I was put on disability....at 1/3 my normal rate of pay. I went through several doctors and every test and medicine combination they could think of, all with no results.  I was becoming weaker and weaker. Finally in June of 2001 a surgeon went inside to find the cause.  What they found was the worst, botched up gastric bypass ever seen.  The first 3 ft. of my small intestine had been put back in backwards and was necrotic and useless. The surgeon was forced to remove all but 5 ft. of my sm. intestines. The surgery was successful in that it removed the daily, constant pain I was enduring, BUT it didn't solve the other problems. Then about 5 months ago, Feb. 2002, the reverse started happening, my bowels stopped moving and I became so sick from the result of toxins and severe constipation.  Again, the round of doctors and again the round of medication trials...all to no avail. Just this month...in fact a little over 2 weeks ago, I had to have 2 surgeries for a transverse colostomy, as they found my colon is also useless, as the nerves to it were also cut. Thus I now have 5 ft of sm. intestines and less than half of my colon, lge. intestines remaining. The doctors told us this is terminal...due to malabsorption and the gradual loss of muscles, tissues, etc. We are in desperate need of ANY advice for diet, agencies that can help with ostomy supplies, ANYTHING. I am so weak that a trip to the grocery store makes me need to lie in bed for hours to recuperate. TY in advance for you advice and TY for the venue to read about others who live with this. Mickie Everyone has a time to shine...this is mine.