- Joined
- Jul 20, 2011
- Messages
- 1
Hi there, my name's India, I am 19 and a Geology degree student at the University of Portsmouth, here in the UK. I was diagnosed with Crohns disease when I was 15 years old.
I guess my symptoms first started on a family holiday to Canada when I was 14, normally one to have a healthy appetite, I found myself not finishing my meals and wanting to rest rather than go skiing or shopping. This behavior continued until the summer of '07 as I was entering my final year of senior school. My parents noticed I had lost an incredible amount of weight, at first they thought that I was exercising more (wasn't the skinniest child!), and then I started involuntary throwing up after dinner and at school, falling asleep after school rather than doing my coursework, and on one highly embarrassing occasion; soiling myself. Even though none of this was my fault, my parents started to believe I was becoming Bulimic/Anorexic.
Eventually my parents found hidden packed lunches for school in my draws, I had also developed intense pain in my lower abdomen, which my previous GP put down to as 'muscle strain', eventually I was in crutches.
My maternal grandfather has Crohns himself, diagnosed when he was in his 50's, as my symptoms got worse and I looked like a skeleton, my dad warned me that I could have Crohns, my grandfather himself had to have exploratory surgery of his bowels, leaving him with a deep scar running the length of his belly. as soon as my dad told me this, I (someone who is absolutly petrified and has a phobia of needles, surgery, blood tests) wanted to go to the doctors. They referred me to my Gastroentreology dept at my hospital. By now I had missed half of my final year at school, was falling behind on my coursework and dropping down in grades which were near perfect.
As soon as my gastro Dr; Dr. Gertner, looked at me and touched my abdomen, he knew what was wrong, I was instantly admitted into hospital with an abscess ready to burst at any moment, and ultrasound confirmed that it was the size of s grapefruit and was putting pressure on the nerves in my back, I had surgery the same day, they fitted a pipe and bag to the abscess to drain it out, it smelt like nothing I had smelt before, it reeked. a week later my drain had been removed and I was able to start walking again, I was have DVT jabs twice daily and physio 3 times a week. Dr. Gertner then requested that I have a colonoscopy and Barium Meal X-Ray, both findings came back that I defiantly had Crohns Disease, I started eating again, and was discharged from the hospital.
2 days later, I woke up in the middle of the night with horrendous stomach cramps, I was taken to the hospital to be told that part of my large bowel had concaved and had caused a blockage, I then was readmitted to hospital and had surgery to remove part of my bowel (and my appendix too, result!). the following two weeks I wasn't allowed any food, had to live off a drip and water, eventually I was told that I wouldn't be allowed any solid foods for 6 months whilst my bowels repaired themselves, instead I was given a diet of build up shakes and soups, I weighed only 6 stone, so I had to pile the weight on again. I was off school for an extra 2 months.
I eventually went back to school in January 2008, still on a liquid diet, I celebrated my sweet 16th with a birthday cake that everyone else ate, but me. I was given Azathiprine and Steroids at first, and then transferred to Pentasa twice daily, which I am still on now. I finished senior school with outstanding grades that someone who had missed most of the academic year wasn't expected to get, thus getting my A Levels and then going to University to study Geology.
At current I am still on Pentasa, I see my gastro Dr once a year with a (highly dreaded) blood test, I have been in remission for 4 years now, though I can't drink beer, eat carrots and have an on/off relationship with dairy products. I look back on my experience as a lesson to myself, that I shouldn't let my fears and phobias come before my own health and welfare, I am never nervous to go to the Doctors now
I am sorry this is so long, I like to babble. I'm here to help anyone who has questions that need answering about Crohns disease, thanks for reading.
I guess my symptoms first started on a family holiday to Canada when I was 14, normally one to have a healthy appetite, I found myself not finishing my meals and wanting to rest rather than go skiing or shopping. This behavior continued until the summer of '07 as I was entering my final year of senior school. My parents noticed I had lost an incredible amount of weight, at first they thought that I was exercising more (wasn't the skinniest child!), and then I started involuntary throwing up after dinner and at school, falling asleep after school rather than doing my coursework, and on one highly embarrassing occasion; soiling myself. Even though none of this was my fault, my parents started to believe I was becoming Bulimic/Anorexic.
Eventually my parents found hidden packed lunches for school in my draws, I had also developed intense pain in my lower abdomen, which my previous GP put down to as 'muscle strain', eventually I was in crutches.
My maternal grandfather has Crohns himself, diagnosed when he was in his 50's, as my symptoms got worse and I looked like a skeleton, my dad warned me that I could have Crohns, my grandfather himself had to have exploratory surgery of his bowels, leaving him with a deep scar running the length of his belly. as soon as my dad told me this, I (someone who is absolutly petrified and has a phobia of needles, surgery, blood tests) wanted to go to the doctors. They referred me to my Gastroentreology dept at my hospital. By now I had missed half of my final year at school, was falling behind on my coursework and dropping down in grades which were near perfect.
As soon as my gastro Dr; Dr. Gertner, looked at me and touched my abdomen, he knew what was wrong, I was instantly admitted into hospital with an abscess ready to burst at any moment, and ultrasound confirmed that it was the size of s grapefruit and was putting pressure on the nerves in my back, I had surgery the same day, they fitted a pipe and bag to the abscess to drain it out, it smelt like nothing I had smelt before, it reeked. a week later my drain had been removed and I was able to start walking again, I was have DVT jabs twice daily and physio 3 times a week. Dr. Gertner then requested that I have a colonoscopy and Barium Meal X-Ray, both findings came back that I defiantly had Crohns Disease, I started eating again, and was discharged from the hospital.
2 days later, I woke up in the middle of the night with horrendous stomach cramps, I was taken to the hospital to be told that part of my large bowel had concaved and had caused a blockage, I then was readmitted to hospital and had surgery to remove part of my bowel (and my appendix too, result!). the following two weeks I wasn't allowed any food, had to live off a drip and water, eventually I was told that I wouldn't be allowed any solid foods for 6 months whilst my bowels repaired themselves, instead I was given a diet of build up shakes and soups, I weighed only 6 stone, so I had to pile the weight on again. I was off school for an extra 2 months.
I eventually went back to school in January 2008, still on a liquid diet, I celebrated my sweet 16th with a birthday cake that everyone else ate, but me. I was given Azathiprine and Steroids at first, and then transferred to Pentasa twice daily, which I am still on now. I finished senior school with outstanding grades that someone who had missed most of the academic year wasn't expected to get, thus getting my A Levels and then going to University to study Geology.
At current I am still on Pentasa, I see my gastro Dr once a year with a (highly dreaded) blood test, I have been in remission for 4 years now, though I can't drink beer, eat carrots and have an on/off relationship with dairy products. I look back on my experience as a lesson to myself, that I shouldn't let my fears and phobias come before my own health and welfare, I am never nervous to go to the Doctors now
I am sorry this is so long, I like to babble. I'm here to help anyone who has questions that need answering about Crohns disease, thanks for reading.
