Diagnosed in 85

[MaskdMarvl]

Hi everyone my name is Scott, and I think its time I tell my story. Introduce myself ! Once upon a time:ylol2: It all started before they really knew what Crohnes was. I went through 6 doctors with my frantic parents at the age of 14. The doctors only solution at that time was pump me full of steroids, it must be an infection is what they thought. Oh how right they were. So I was treated as if I had the flu for 2 years while the disease progressed. Then came the morning when my life changed. I was riding my skateboard with friends, and my colon ruptured. I somehow managed to ride home, and crashed just through the threshold into my mothers arms. I was off to the emergency room when the doctor told my mom he didnt think the outcome was going to be good. She went through the calls to grandma explaining how I wasnt going to make it, all as I lie oblivious open on the table. Skipping some time I made it thruogh. I dont really remember the time between then , and the next relapse. This happened in my 8th grade year. I had a flare up that required surgury again, I think maybe an aggressive doc, but anyways They removed part of my colon which requires that you have a colostomy until the bowel heals. Well that was great news for a freshmen going into highschool. So im sitting in class shi$$ing through a hole in my stomach into a bag. I tried to control the farts I really did ! Same story I made it through, and they put me back together. I was off again with a new gift of life. My next bout was with insurance, see by that time I was working, but they dont cover pre-existing conditions. So I didnt see a doctor, or take meds for years. I let myself get so bad I was self medicating with Morphine 200 mg tabs 3 times a day just to maintain a job. Im not going to tell you how I got them, but its a long drive from Washington DC to Broklyn NY. This time I did myself in almost as if I was trying to commit suicide in some horrible fashion. I was admitted into the hospital for16 months. I faced 4 surguries that year some of them I wasnt even healed before they reopened me because of leaks internally. I had a doctor come to my bedside with 4 RNs, and open me up right infront of my eyes. The feeling of him taking the staples out one by one, and pulling me apart as I watched in horror is a permenent stain in my mind. Eventually it all goes away in time. Ive been in relative good health since then, just recently ive started getting the gas bubbles, the cramps, the signs. Now I have a son thats 22 months, and a loving wife that has no idea of what ive been through, and seen. My son is he next ? Thats the last worry ill ever have. Through all this I take away strength, solitude, and the incredible desire to be the best person that I can be to every living thing. Love thy self, love thy family, show love before anger, and I assure you this my friend. The sun will warm your soul !

 

[MaskdMarvl]

Sure will Pen, but its late now, and I have to watch the new pirates of the carribean movie. Feel free to PM me anytime. That goes for everyone here ! Peace:cool2:

 

[Nancy Lee]

That's quite the story Scott. You have indeed been through a long ordeal.

I want to welcome you to the Crohn's forum...

Your positive attitude will do a lot for yourself...and a ton of good for others.

"Through all this I take away strength, solitude, and the incredible desire to be the best person that I can be to every living thing. Love thy self, love thy family, show love before anger, and I assure you this my friend. The sun will warm your soul"

You show amazing strength after what you have been through and a great deal of compassion for your fellow man, as you continue to embrace life.



Once again, welcome Scott!
Healing hugs~Nancy

 

[Maurizio]

Hi Scott,
I just read through your story. Pretty shitty time you had growing up! I guess it is the same for most of us here!
Let me take the occasion to briefly tell my story.
I'm an Italian who went through the American schooling system mostly outside USA. I was sent to UT at Austin, TX to study and that's where I got SICK. I was not happy to be there, you see; my parents were living in Greece then and I didn't want to leave them nor my girlfriend. But my dad thought that it was necessary to become a man! "STRESS" One the 3rd year in college my health rapidly deteriorated and had to medically withdraw from UT. My symptoms were diarrhea, very strong abdominal pain, no energy. I returned to Greece (parents)for one year but no recovery visible despite taking steroid medication, then moved to Granny's place in ITaly where after IV feeding for 3 weeks I recovered 3 kilos and enough energy to walk decently(I'm 6'3" and had gotten to the record low weight of 57kilos or 125 pounds! This is in 1984. I presently weigh 180 pounds or 82 kilograms. In 1985 doctors were not sure whether it was Crohn or cancer, so I was opened up at the Houston TX Cancer medical center. Stiched up and sent home to suffer more. Medication with the usual anti-inflamatory drugs did not help but I improved somewhat to be able to re-start university in Italy. I weight-lifted and put a lot of body mass which helped my Crohn's a lot. I developed skin problems in the meantime and still have them (the itchy skin + growth). Graduated in 1989, started working and then married in 1992. In 1993 my only son was born and my wife fell ill with Hodgkin's Lymphoma (a blood related cancer) immediately upon child birth. In and out of hospitals until she died in 1997. I was so stressed out in 1995 by all the happenings and work, that I fell seriously ill and had to have over 1 meter of ileum (small instestine) removed. Out of the job for nearly 6 months in 1995. Luckily in Italy they keep your job if you do not exceed 6 months of paid sickness per year. But I was demoted to a humble job(more humiliation). I regained strength and was lucky not to fall again in 1997 when my wife died. It is worth noting here that in 1994 I changed my spiritual path(not religion) from catholic to following an Indian Master. The consequence of this also changed my diet to a lacto-vegetarian one. Just before operating me in 1995, my protein levels were too low for an operation; the doctors insisted to eat at least eggs but I refused. They told me that even if the operation would go fine I could not afford having Crohn's and being vegetarian, since I do not absorb enough protein. The group of doctors then gave me an sentence and said I would be dead within 1.5 years if I kept being vegetarian. What a shock that was! The best hospital in Rome with the best gastro-intestinal team of doctors all were in agreement. I opted to prove them wrong and to show up in 1.5 years much healthier, and I did! This doen't mean I was free from shitting in my pants every now and then. They also told me in 1995 that I was to take 3 ASACOL (similar to salazopirine, pent-asa) capsules a day for the rest of my life. I did for 1 month and then thought that if one needed a drug for the rest of his life then it wasn't working. So I dropped drug medication ever since. I seldom do check-ups, and my medication is moving progressively towards the natural raw bio-foods as much as possible. It's hard to drop pasta and pizza dishes being an Italian in Italy! I am not cured! My intestines are still weak and will have occasional bouts of Crohn's, diarrhea, weakness associated. All I need is 2 or 3 days of boiled potatoes(with a little olive oil and salt) and fresh carrot juice with rest and everything seams to go back to normal. I have almost eliminated dairy products which do not seem to do me good. Cannot drink coffee, milk, alchoholic beverages, eat too spicy foods nor chocolat; these just send me straight to the bathroom. If my abdomen area gets cold it has the same effect as coffee. I believe I can further better my condition with a more vegan raw food diet and with natural dietary vitamin & mineral supplements. **** Hope this can be of help to someone, regards

 

[Nancy Lee]

Hello Maurizio, and welcome to the forum!!

You most certainly have had your share of health problems.
I am so sorry for the loss of you wife. Such a sad thing to have happen.

Please make yourself at home here
and thank you for sharing your story.

Again, welcome to the forum!
Healing hugs~Nancy

 

[MaskdMarvl]

Thankyou for sharing you story. Welcome to the forum you'll find it very entertaining.

 

[Maurizio]

Greetings

I thank you all for your support.
PEN: To answer your question... my son's 15 and doing quite well without his mom... his grandparents of his mother did a lot of parenting until he turned 15 and now he tends to avoid them; probably because they are too suffocating-like. He and I have had a very close relationship, I mothered him a lot when he was younger.. We gave each other lots of hugs and kisses and he needed to be comforted with hearing that I loved him every day, until this year where he seams more independent and growing up.
Nancy-lee: Thanks for the welcome and good to share with you our experiences.
Cheers to all...

 

[MaskdMarvl]

Wow, you are truly a gift from God... :smile:

AHH Men!

 

[Maurizio]

Wow, you are truly a gift from God... :smile:

PEN: And so are you and everyone. We are all sparks of the Allmighty whether we believe it, accept it, or not.
In my quest to find out what the meaning of life is and why am I here on this Earth, I have come to the conclusion that I am here to find who I am and who sent me here and why. I know that volumes have been written on these subjects and I have read some of them, but the more I go on in this life the more things and concepts I'm discarding. There are so many things in our lives that just are meaningless, useless to follow, empty, a waste of time. This sickness we have has really been a boon for me because it shook me out of my empty existence. I'm sure all of us have become more mature due to Crohn's or Colitis affecting us. I'm sure most of us have come close to even think of suicide when in those excrutiating moments of abdominal pain you wonder if life is worth living?! I know I thought about it a couple of times when it didn't seem I would ever get any better. Luckily I kept going, and now search in life the question "who am I" (Socrates advice to all was 'Know thyself') and also the other question "who is He that sent me and why". The last question is answered by many present and past Eastern Masters.
Well I think I've gone too far in this philosophical subject, but since it helped me out a lot I wanted to share it.
Maurizio

 

[Maurizio]

Yes, I too wondered why I am here and my purpose... I have a 20 year old daughter, who is the centre of my life. I still learn from her, she is so intelligent but a hyper dude LOL... The S word has come to my head when I was puking so bad in the hospital from pain of the crohn's and kidney stone blasting... thank God there were no meds or anything beside me in the room. I look back now and I am grateful to be alive and content with my lifestyle. It isnt perfect for me, because I have to take things day by day and watch what I eat. When you get over the worst ...the best is yet to come. I have struggled all my adult life and now I am in the calmer seas. Yes, in the long run ...it was worth it. I am still here!

A-men Pen, A-men.
Well said.
Children often are a God-send.... they help us keep going in life, my son has given me a reason to pick myself up and not to fall into deep depression. I couldn't since he was so lively and so full of life, I couldn't let him see just how sick I was.
We definitely have to watch what we eat, regardless of what doctors say. One Crohn's gastroenterologist told me I could eat whatever I wanted; he said it was all in our heads this sickness, and from our heads it affects our intestines.
oh well, got to go now