Hard Few Weeks

[mr-blonde]

I got really sick about a month ago but just assumed it was a bug but after a week and a half went to a doctor. Was told that I was probably a coeliac which was way off. Went to hospital and ended up getting colonoscopy and I had to do prep even though I had barely eaten for weeks because I couldn't hold it down. The prep left me sick for days and I was diagnosed with crohns. I went on iv steroids and now i'm stuck on steroids orally for 8 weeks.

Emotionally and physically this has literally taken everything out of me. I'm due to start college in 3 weeks and i'm really not sure if I can deal with it at this point, so i'm tempted to defer for a year, has anyone done similar and what would ye reccomend.​

 

[Guest]

hi mr-blonde - welcome to the forum, i'm glad you found us

so sorry to hear what you've been going through, and how it's all left you feeling right now.

on the plus side - you got a super-quick diagnosis, which is always a good thing. some of us suffer for years before we get an answer and appropriate care/treatment.

i would think the steroids are your doc's standard first port of call regarding getting your flare settled down... it may well be that in time he will change your meds to something else. how are things now regarding pain & eating?

i don't know what to advise you with college.... i know when i was at my worst with Crohn's there's no way i could've attended a course with any success.. it all depends on how bad you're affected physically i guess, and whether you can get the symptoms well under control before college starts.

 

[Rebecca85]

Your diagnosis sounds very like mine. Although it's good that you got diagnosed so quickly, it's a huge shock to the system.

In my case, I returned to work about 10 days after being discharged from the hospital on oral steroids. My symptoms were much improved, but found that I got tired really quickly.

Like ding said, a lot depends on how you are feeling at the moment. With me, once the steroids kicked in there was a huge difference in how I felt and I had very few symptoms while on Pred. And most of my symptoms appeared in the evenings, which didn't affect my work but could affect college.

I would suggest speaking to your college, and find out what help they have in place. For example, you may be able to have a reduced class schedule for a while, and make it up later if you feel well enough.

 

[Genio]

Most colleges have a disability policy and may allow you to reduce your load or take some classes from home or half and half. I have been in school the entire time I have been ill and occasionally have to skip but I can usually at least keep up. My personal rule is I can watch tv I can study. LOL

 

[Jennifer]

Its possible that you may be feeling a lot better 3 weeks from now but since you just started on meds there is the trial and error factor about finding out what meds and at what dose works best for you. When I was in college I always made a point to speak with my professors about my condition whenever I thought it might affect my school work. Sometimes the school can help for people with disabilities but sometimes they may just turn you away (like my first college did). Get to know someone in class or even ask your professor for notes when ever you miss class (they may have someone in the class take notes for you like they do for deaf students). If the professor has a certain number of days that allow you to miss class, you really need to talk to them and let them know that you want to take their class and you will get your work done but you may have to miss class more often because of your illness. Most professors are very understanding and will let that rule slide for you. Also keep in mind that you can drop the classes after a couple weeks without penalty, just pay attention to the drop date that your school has. Also, speak with a counselor at the school and they can help you with your schedule and your schedules for the rest of your time there.

Good luck. Share your story with us in the Your Story section of the forum. Welcome to the forum.

 

[redward]

I began to present symptoms after I had started grad school and moved in with my girlfriend. In hindsight, it is now very apparent that the stress from one or both of these was the trigger, or at least a major contributing factor.

Once I was diagnosed, I decided to take a semester off. I immediately felt about 80% better.

I should also add that the semester I took off became a year, and then I never returned to grad school. In my case, I realized that it was something I didn't really want to do, and the Crohn's helped me come to that conclusion.

I'm not saying that deferring is the right choice for you, and I'm certainly not saying that if you do defer, you risk never going. But it was the right choice for me.

If you can arrange a reduced workload for the first quarter/trimester/semester/whatever, you may find that the extra peace of mind will help with your recovery.

No matter what, realize that being healthy is the best thing you can do for your education and your social life.

Best of luck! Try to relax and just take care of yourself.

 

[mr-blonde]

Thanks for the advice, think I'll just take the year out to just get back to myself. It's been a hard month. Will post my story later on.