CAUTION:
This is semi graphic material, suckas.
If you aren't comfy looking at someone's insides, please shy away now.
As you may know, I recently had a colonoscopy. I was told that the scope couldn't make it all the way through my colon to get the imaging that we needed, so I had an MRI a few days after to figure out what the problem was. My doctor had mentioned scar tissue, strictures, and inflammation. I am familiar with these terms. We figured that the scarring from previous flares was creating narrowing in my colon, which is dangerous and can mean surgery [CAN mean it- I can't say that it always does, or would in anyone else's results].
My doctor had advised me to start thinking about serious medications to help ease the severe ulceration that we had found during what could be scoped during the colonoscopy. Remicade, and 6MP were talked about in the moments after the procedure, but I was groggy. Luckily, we had videotaped the moments after my waking from the anesthesia and caught that conversation, as well Dr. Flier seemed really concerned with the advanced stages of the disease. And I was, too.
Below are the pictures from my Colonoscopy.
[Here goes nothin, internet.]
[Here goes nothin, internet.]
My insides have been giving my the business.
A healthy colon in a scope should look something like this
[via gihealth.com]
For more than the last year of my life, I have been trying to figure out how to deal with being so waist-deep in a flare of my Crohn's Disease, that I had been forced to lose sight of every major plan that I had created for myself. When it seemed like remission was in sight, a relapse shortly followed. When my stomach seemed alright, painful and debilitating autoimmune arthritis shook my world. I lost out on jobs, a few dates, and a Volunteer position at the New England Aquarium that I had been wait-listed months for. I had planned to return to school this year and focus on Veterinary Sciences, but with the chance of relapse being so high, it's hard to sign on to something like that. I have had to withdraw from college twice in the past.
I got the results of my MRI and found out that there just so happen to be NO strictures- which means that if I stay on Prednisone and ONE anti-inflammatory medication, I may actually heal with them. The risky medications that I had to research may not be something that I need to think about anymore [for now, at least]. I told my doctor that I wanted to stay on this lower-risk treatment that I have been on for a while, with the risk of 'endangering myself' in the near future, because I felt in my gut that I would be alright. If I relapse in too bad of a way, I will revisit the other drug options... But I am the happiest I have ever been in my life, and that makes for great healing. I am also being so absolutely taken care of in every way possible, and that also makes remission something that I believe I can reach. She let me follow that strong feeling, reluctantly, but told me that she only wanted me to make serious drug choices when I am ready. I love her for that [plus much more]. And we will taper down in steroids in the coming months. Everything in my future will be as natural as the day is long, and I look forward to discovering ways to keep that up to keep myself healthy. Wow, the words 'myself' and 'healthy'... I don't see them in the same sentence often.
I believe that your body tells you everything you need to know. Listening to it is difficult at first, and making changes that you're uncomfortable with or are not used to are hard, but so totally worth it. Cutting out bad food and stressful situations is something that I laugh about, because the decision to do so is saving my life. [Hopefully] After healing from this flare, which I seem to be doing very well, I will be just fine.
Because it's about effing time.
A healthy colon in a scope should look something like this
[via gihealth.com]
For more than the last year of my life, I have been trying to figure out how to deal with being so waist-deep in a flare of my Crohn's Disease, that I had been forced to lose sight of every major plan that I had created for myself. When it seemed like remission was in sight, a relapse shortly followed. When my stomach seemed alright, painful and debilitating autoimmune arthritis shook my world. I lost out on jobs, a few dates, and a Volunteer position at the New England Aquarium that I had been wait-listed months for. I had planned to return to school this year and focus on Veterinary Sciences, but with the chance of relapse being so high, it's hard to sign on to something like that. I have had to withdraw from college twice in the past.
I got the results of my MRI and found out that there just so happen to be NO strictures- which means that if I stay on Prednisone and ONE anti-inflammatory medication, I may actually heal with them. The risky medications that I had to research may not be something that I need to think about anymore [for now, at least]. I told my doctor that I wanted to stay on this lower-risk treatment that I have been on for a while, with the risk of 'endangering myself' in the near future, because I felt in my gut that I would be alright. If I relapse in too bad of a way, I will revisit the other drug options... But I am the happiest I have ever been in my life, and that makes for great healing. I am also being so absolutely taken care of in every way possible, and that also makes remission something that I believe I can reach. She let me follow that strong feeling, reluctantly, but told me that she only wanted me to make serious drug choices when I am ready. I love her for that [plus much more]. And we will taper down in steroids in the coming months. Everything in my future will be as natural as the day is long, and I look forward to discovering ways to keep that up to keep myself healthy. Wow, the words 'myself' and 'healthy'... I don't see them in the same sentence often.
I believe that your body tells you everything you need to know. Listening to it is difficult at first, and making changes that you're uncomfortable with or are not used to are hard, but so totally worth it. Cutting out bad food and stressful situations is something that I laugh about, because the decision to do so is saving my life. [Hopefully] After healing from this flare, which I seem to be doing very well, I will be just fine.
Because it's about effing time.
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