Hi I am twenty two and let's just say my world has been completely turned upside down this year, well mainly this month.
For a few years now I have had severe abdominal pain off and on but never got any help when I went to the doctors so I played it off and ignored it....stupidly.
For perspective I will fill in some back story. A year ago I decided to travel to Europe and caught wanderlust, I came back to my full time job and was unsatisfied. I decided I was going to work my butt off, save, give up my place and quit my job to move to Australia. And I did just that and planned to be away for a year if not more... just wanted to go with it. However, some things changed and I decided to go to asia to de-stress for a bit. BOOM...the worst back/abdominal pain and constipation ever. I couldn't handle it and booked to come back to Canada only to keep being stubborn and not go into the doctor for another week. (Didn't feel like being told nothing was wrong again.)
It took only a barium swallow test and blood results to say I was having a severe flare up of Crohn's, I was put on prednisone, imuran and antibiotics right away and booked in for a colonoscopy. They found a abscess but didn't send me into a ct scan right away to save me from radiation. At this point they said they would be able to avoid surgery and I was so relieved. However, I finished the antibiotics and my pain got way worse. Into the ER I went and they found I had a tear and a leak in my ileocecal valve. After 6 days of being admitting (and told no surgery needed) and treated with antibiotics and iron transfusions they told me I wasn't responding to any medication and onto surgery it was even though the inflammation was out of control. A week ago they did a open resection of just under a meter of my small intestine/ small portion of large and removed my appendix as well as a fistula. I do feel better but, I am having trouble dealing with incision pain and loss of control over everything it seems. To go from hiking mountains and traveling to being knocked on your butt, cut through the stomach and forcing meds down on your parents couch in a month is a little bit of a overwhelming reality check. I know it will pass and hopefully remission will come soon enough but I just wondering how other people deal with recovery and diagnosis? Fear of complications, not responding to treatment, needing more surgery, the future??
I hope I didn't overshare or anything... looking forward to being part of this community.
Thank you for reading.
For a few years now I have had severe abdominal pain off and on but never got any help when I went to the doctors so I played it off and ignored it....stupidly.
For perspective I will fill in some back story. A year ago I decided to travel to Europe and caught wanderlust, I came back to my full time job and was unsatisfied. I decided I was going to work my butt off, save, give up my place and quit my job to move to Australia. And I did just that and planned to be away for a year if not more... just wanted to go with it. However, some things changed and I decided to go to asia to de-stress for a bit. BOOM...the worst back/abdominal pain and constipation ever. I couldn't handle it and booked to come back to Canada only to keep being stubborn and not go into the doctor for another week. (Didn't feel like being told nothing was wrong again.)
It took only a barium swallow test and blood results to say I was having a severe flare up of Crohn's, I was put on prednisone, imuran and antibiotics right away and booked in for a colonoscopy. They found a abscess but didn't send me into a ct scan right away to save me from radiation. At this point they said they would be able to avoid surgery and I was so relieved. However, I finished the antibiotics and my pain got way worse. Into the ER I went and they found I had a tear and a leak in my ileocecal valve. After 6 days of being admitting (and told no surgery needed) and treated with antibiotics and iron transfusions they told me I wasn't responding to any medication and onto surgery it was even though the inflammation was out of control. A week ago they did a open resection of just under a meter of my small intestine/ small portion of large and removed my appendix as well as a fistula. I do feel better but, I am having trouble dealing with incision pain and loss of control over everything it seems. To go from hiking mountains and traveling to being knocked on your butt, cut through the stomach and forcing meds down on your parents couch in a month is a little bit of a overwhelming reality check. I know it will pass and hopefully remission will come soon enough but I just wondering how other people deal with recovery and diagnosis? Fear of complications, not responding to treatment, needing more surgery, the future??
I hope I didn't overshare or anything... looking forward to being part of this community.
Thank you for reading.