A Year without a Colon!

Happy New Birthday to Me!  A year ago today, at this very moment, I was laying in a bed in a hallway outside an operating room.  They were finishing setting up the operating room where I was having surgery to remove my large intestine.  I looked out the big window next to me at the City below.  It was winter and everything looked cold and grey.  I took a deep breath and surprised myself.  I thought I would be freaking out at this moment, but I actually felt total peace (It may have had something to do with the sedative the anesthesiologist had just given me) but I remember knowing I was doing the right thing.  A few moments later, I was wheeled into the operating room and my life was changed forever.

Over the past several months I had been experiencing an Ulcerative Colitis flare from hell.  The flare refused to respond to any of the traditional medical treatments.  It had left me 30 lbs underweight, having around 15 painful bloody bowel movements a day, some of which would be so urgent, I wouldn’t make it to the toilet in time.  I was wearing diapers.  I was a mess physically and mentally from being on prednisone for so long.  I was existing, but barely.  This UC flare was by far the worst thing I had ever experienced in my life.  It truly was like a slow walk through hell. 

So here I am one year later, and so happy with my life now!  Don’t get me wrong it has been a rough year.  I had one surgery to remove my colon and create a ileostomy.  Another surgery to create a J-Pouch to replace the colon, and a final surgery to connect the J-Pouch once it had healed.  All of them were major operations and required huge amounts of recovery.  I had a stoma and lived with an ostomy for close to 7 months total.  It has been five months now since my final surgery and I am now a bonafide J-Poucher.

 I am still adjusting to life with a J-Pouch.  I’ve been told it takes around a year to fully adjust.  Even after just 5 months, I am really happy with how things are going.  I’m basically doing everything I did before I had UC.  I’m exercising again, swimming, eating most everything I want (still avoiding big salads and anything too spicy because it = VOLCANUS).  I’m making around 6-7 trips to the toilet a day but they are never super urgent -  No big deal.  My trips to the potty may decrease as time goes on but frankly even if they don’t, I would be fine.

Bottom line, the surgeries are really tough, but not as tough as uncontrollable UC.  I would do the surgeries again, no question.

 It’s good to be Back!