Dreams DO come true

[M West]

Hello friends! Glad to be a member here.

I am 63 years old and have "been married" to CD for 45 years. At that time there were 2 treatments-- Prednisone and surgery. I went the prednisone route for 3 years until fistulas, strictures, and abscesses forced surgeries (eventually 9).

I completely lost my 20's due to health and believed that I was destined to suffer for the remainder of my life. Or die!

At 31 years of age I had my last surgery and my health completely reversed. It was as if I had never been sick. Crohn's disappeared from my life except for the Short Bowel I was left with. I was able to work, raise a family, travel the world and in short live as only I had dreamed of while laying in the hospital bed for the majority of 10 years.

I write this as to all of you who are in the midst of the fight with this vile companion. Dream and dream big! Don't be afraid to pray for your dreams. Miracles are possible! I firmly believe that our fight is won by the heart. The new meds are certainly nice but the positive energy that runs through our body that is generated only by the heart is proven medicine.

My prayers and best wishes for all of you.

P.S. My Crohn's has again flared and I am now taking biologic and prednisone
Because of short bowel, my GI has advised Gattex. What gut I have left is wearing out. But I give thanks every day for the 35 years of peace I received.
It has been a wonderful ride!

Miles

 

[Donjh]

hi Miles
I've also had, have crohns for about 45 years, surgery right off the bat as really no med's back than as you mentioned. And I agree even with crohn's, ostomy most of my life it has been a wonderful ride and continues to be.
"positive energy that runs through our body that is generated only by the heart is proven medicine." Totally agree..

 

[M West]

Thank all of you who posted your support.

Donjh. Glad to hear that you have traveled the road this far. I missed an ostomy by about 3". So says the surgeon. Sometimes I look back and can't believe my good fortune.

I hope today is better for all of us than we expect.

Peace

Miles

 

[worriedboy]

Miles,

Thank you for your inspiring post. I hope with the meds you get back into remission soon for more long healthy years, Crohn's free.

I got 2 questions, basically 2 sides of the same coin:

1. Have you got any ideas of how you got into a such deep and long remission ? have you done anything that you believe has helped you to maintain your health?

2. Have you got any ideas of what caused this current, sudden flare up ? Have you changed something in your life ? diet ? living place ? stress levels ?


Hope you feel well soon.

 

[araceli]

Miles. Thank you for such a positive and inspiring post. I hope you get in remission soon and forever.

 

[Jessi]

Hello Miles, and welcome to the forum.

Were you being treated at all during your long remission? I have been in remission for three years and counting, using Remicade and Lialda. (And of course, optimism)
I love your amazing success story and very glad for you that you enjoyed so much of your life. Keep enjoying it, sick or not. :hug:

 

[M West]

Jessi,

Thanks for your post and words of encouragement. I wish you well in your remission- however you achieve it- and hope your result longterm is better than you can dream of. Thank you for moderating this site.

During my many years of remission, I took no drugs EVER! Hard to believe isn't it? I lost my terminal ileum on the first surgery so, yes, I have taken B-12 injections twice a month for all these years. Nothing else. I had an excellent GI, in fact was one of his first patients after he set up his practice. He believed in minimal drug exposure which suited me just fine.

Worriedboy above asked some of the same questions as you so I'll address as best I can.
1) Had it not been for CD, I would have never have met my wife. When we were married, we started having children immediately like bang,bang,bang and bang. After all the procreating was done, we were so busy with our children that we had time for little else. For me, it meant that I completely forgot to think about myself and illness. To this day, I believe the power of the mind is a great medicine, even if it's only "forgetting" for a while. Hard I know when your gut is on fire, but possible for short stretches to begin with.

2) The physical part of how I took care of myself did not nor has it changed much. My diet has always consisted of a lot of meat, eggs and good cheeses. Very little wheat or sugar products as I do not like or crave either. But I cannot attribute remission all these years to diet since I ate pretty much the same diet pre-Crohn's and up to now. If my body craved a particular food, I ate it. One Summer it was watermelon and I could not eat enough. I think your body guides you if we are quiet enough to listen to it. This goes along with #1 above. While forgetting--listen.

3) The spiritual side of my remission, I briefly spoke to in an earlier post. I do not want to proselytize here, but God (however you see him/her) is at work and will answer prayer particularly for others if we are thinking in that direction. Forget and listen,

Certainly now, one of my questions is will active CD now be with me for the rest of my life? I am prepared for that eventuality if so.

Some of this post sounds goofy, I know, as we all would like to have the silver bullet that rids us of this disease. Sorry, I don't have one. I look at Crohns a part of my life and not my life. I have 6 grandchildren to chase after now and I don't have time to waste.

I wish you fellow travelers well.

Peace
Miles

 

[Jessi]

Jessi,

Thanks for your post and words of encouragement. I wish you well in your remission- however you achieve it- and hope your result longterm is better than you can dream of. Thank you for moderating this site.

During my many years of remission, I took no drugs EVER! Hard to believe isn't it? I lost my terminal ileum on the first surgery so, yes, I have taken B-12 injections twice a month for all these years. Nothing else. I had an excellent GI, in fact was one of his first patients after he set up his practice. He believed in minimal drug exposure which suited me just fine.

That is amazing!! And kudos to you for having such a great doctor.