August 2012: The Fight is Done; The War is Won

August 2012

Finally...the post I've been waiting to write since I started blogging! I was so excited for "Celebration Weekend" with my family. Leading up to the big weekend, my grandparents sent me a nice card and a generous check to celebrate with me. They wanted me to buy a cross necklace, and I found a beautiful necklace along with a ring with footprints on the front and the lines "it was then that You carried me" etched on the inside. Since my grandpa introduced me to that poem, I thought it was only fitting that I used his money to buy it.



boating

At church

 Celebration Weekend started on Saturday, August 4. My family and I went to the downtown Farmer's Market and enjoyed ourselves immensely...until the heavens opened and we were heavily rained on! After the Farmer's Market, we went out for lunch at Biaggi's, an Italian restaurant that has delicious gluten-free food. I made sure I ate exactly half of the pasta so I didn't feel too full. After lunch, we hit TCBY for frozen yogurt/sorbet before seeing The Dark Knight Rises in the IMAX theater. After dinner at home, we went bowling. I'm a terrible bowler, but I had fun laughing at myself anyways. It was especially fun when glow-in-the-dark bowling started! I went to bed that night feeling great and very thankful. The next day, Sunday, my parents placed flowers on our church's altar to thank God for the return of my health. I also played a piece on the piano for offering and my pastor read a prayer of thanksgiving that I had written. Several church members greeted me after the service with hugs and kind words. After church, we had updated family portraits taken before going to Big Creek for a pontoon ride. If you've never rented a pontoon before, I would highly recommend it! It's so peaceful and relaxing. The weather was absolutely perfect, and my family and I enjoyed laying out in the sun while lazily floating on the water. Our evening plans included grilling and mini-golfing. After we ate, my mom gave me a Willow Tree figure that she had been saving until I felt better. The figure is called "J'taime", which is French for "I love you". Mini-golfing was really fun! I am surprisingly much better at mini-golf than I am at bowling. It was the perfect weekend; there were several moments where I was shocked at how well I felt. I couldn't believe that I had finally made it to this point.

Willow Tree

The fun continued a few days later with the Tenth Avenue North and Toby Mac concert at the Iowa State Fair. The concert was August 9, and my birthday is August 10 so my parents included my ticket to the concert as a birthday present! It was an awesome concert! It was so great to listen to the songs by both artists that uplifted me and kept me going when I was so sick. The next day was my 17th birthday! I had a fun morning babysitting Lucy and Collin before my mom and I went to a bridal shower for a girl at our church. After the shower, my mom and I got manicures! We had so much fun. My birthday ended with homemade pizza at home, presents, and watching the 2012 summer Olympics in London. I was thoroughly spoiled with presents, but the best present of all couldn't be wrapped in a box: feeling well. I jokingly put a bow on my stomach and took a picture of me with the best present ever....a stomach that feels well! It was still amazing to me how well I felt. All I had known for 22 months was not feeling well. I was practically bouncing off the walls because I had so much energy! Since my stomach had so many problems for so long, it almost felt weird and strange to not feel chronically sick to my stomach. I felt like a completely new human being!

Best birthday present ever!

 I wanted to get back in shape. Walking on my NordicTrack after eating helped me feel less out of the breath, but I still had difficulty carrying my own laundry basket from my room down three flights of stairs. A friend recommended going to see a physical therapist who might have some ideas on how to get back in shape. I met with a doctor who suggested I see the therapist in her office twice a week. The first appointment was scheduled for the next week.


Finally!

 August 15, 2012 was the day that kept me going through my health journey. I think I mentioned this a few times in previous posts, but it's time to elaborate a little bit. Around the time of my surgery (September 2011), I came up with the idea to get a Build-A-Bear after I felt better, dress it in scrubs, and name it after the doctor who got me feeling better. Of course, I should have known it wasn't going to be that easy. For 11 months I dreamed about the day when I would make that Build-A-Bear. I felt sad every time I walked past Build-A-Bear Workshop in the mall, and I was jealous of the people (mostly kids) walking around the mall with the iconic Build-A-Bear box. I had even been saving some of the money my grandparents sent me after my surgery for this bear.This was another "wellness bucket list" day that I was too scared to plan in case "something else" happened but after a whole weekend of celebrating my return to health, I figured it was time. I wanted to drive out to the mall--since driving was something I wasn't able to do when I was sick. Those of you who have been to Build-A-Bear know the routine. I picked out the carcass (what else would you call it?!) of a dark haired bear that was created on August 21, 19-something. I thought that was a funny coincidence since August 21 was the day when I got sick with mono. I stuffed the bear, put his heart in, and gave him an air bath before naming him. It took me a while to come up with the perfect name, but in the end I combined the first and/or last names of Dr. S. (my pediatrician), Dr. D.S. (my first GI), Dr. Di (my second and current GI), and Dr. R. (my surgeon). I added M.D., D.O. on the end of the name to make it sound more official. My mom came up with the cute idea to add black dress shoes with the scrubs in honor of Dr. R.'s sense of fashion. The store carried the black shoes, but I had to order the scrubs online. After it was all said and done, I cried tears of happiness in the hallway of the mall. I couldn't believe that I had my bear! It all seemed like a wonderful dream; my mom said that I had woken up from a nightmare.

There he is!

 A few days later, I started on the next item on my wellness bucket list. I had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Di the next week. When this appointment was made, I had just been hospitalized. I was amazed at how far I had come in four months. I made it a goal to take cookies and handmade thank you notes to the doctors and their staff who got me feeling better. It just so happened that I needed a TB test and a physical for my job at the daycare. Nurse T. squeezed me in Dr. S.'s busy schedule the day before my appointment with Dr. Di. This would be the perfect opportunity to give Dr. S. his thank you note. I set to work on crafting beautiful cards for my doctors. I also wanted to make cards for Nurse. T. and Dr. R. As a little reminder of me, I wanted to insert of picture of me with a sign saying "Thanks Dr. _____" in the thank you note. On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, my mom and I went to the lake (the same lake that we had walked around countless times when I was sick) to take pictures.
 August 21, 2012 was a special day. Not only was it my sister's birthday, but it was also the second anniversary of me getting sick. Last year, I was crushed on this day because I had been sick for one year. This year, however, I was thankful and excited about how great I felt. I may have been sick for 22 months, but I would take 22 months over 24 months.


End result

Very messy table!

 The next day was the big cookie bake for my doctors! In three hours, my mom and I baked chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, chocolate cherry cookies, rice krispies, and three giant chocolate chip cookies for my doctors. The house smelled amazing! I had been looking forward to the day for a long time and it lived up to every expectation! After baking cookies, we went to my first appointment with the physical therapist. It turns out the therapist specialized in visceral massage therapy, especially targeting the stomach and colon. The therapist was hopeful that some massage therapy would naturally help my stomach and colon move more. I was unsure of the whole concept at first, but the massage actually felt really good!

Cookie delivery day!

 Thursday, August 23, was labeled Cookie Delivery Day. My mom and I packed up Dr. S.'s thank you note and big cookie, Nurse T.'s card, and the tray of cookies for the staff. I also made a tray of cookies for the third floor (where I was hospitalized) and a special cookie for Dr. R. I drove the very familiar path to Dr. S.'s office. The receptionist recognized us, as always, and we briefly waited in the waiting room. I've never had that much fun in a doctor's office before! Nurse T. was thrilled with all the cookies and she had S., my favorite lab tech, come over and say hi. While we were waiting for Dr. S. to come in, I marveled at the fact that we were in the same room that we usually are when I visit my pediatrician but this time was different. When I was in this room for the past 22 months, I was beyond sick. I was exhausted, nauseous, pale, in pain, and I just wanted to feel better. This time, I was bouncing with energy, my stomach felt great, I had a healthy glow, I wasn't in any pain, and I felt a million times better! Dr. S. was so excited and happy that I was feeling better. He was also very touched by my giant cookie and card. He kept repeating, "you are too kind!" I wasn't expecting him to read my heartfelt thank you note in front of me so I was surprised when he looked up at me with tears in his eyes and gave me a huge hug. My mom took pictures of me with Nurse T. and Dr. S. before we left. Cookie Delivery Day wasn't over yet though; next we walked across the street to Dr. R.'s office. There was some extreme deja vu going on as I walked through the waiting room to the front desk. I flashed back to September 2011 as I sat, freezing cold and in so much pain, waiting to see the surgeon. I was amazed at how much progress, and how much I had been through, since the last time I was in this waiting room. I dropped the thank you note and cookie off with the receptionist and left the eerily familiar waiting room. I was impressed at how well my mom and I knew our way around the hospital as we made our way to the pediatric floor. I had another deja vu moment when the elevator doors opened to reveal the colorful and welcoming entrance of the pediatric floor. It was almost hard to believe that I was hospitalized on this floor just five months ago. As my mom and I drove home, I was filled with so many emotions. Usually on our trips home from the hospital, both of us were upset and my mom was on the phone with either my dad or grandpa. This time, we had actually made wonderful memories at the hospital!
 Day Two of Cookie Delivery Day came the next morning, August 23, when I had my follow up with my GI doctor, Dr. Di. Once again, I drove the familiar path to the hospital. While waiting in the waiting room, I thought of everything that had happened in the year (almost to the exact date) since I had first seen Dr. Di. I had been referred to him last August after my first GI doctor ran out of ideas. I had a second endoscopy and my first colonoscopy. I had my gall bladder removed. I went to hell and back-also known as the University of Iowa hospital. I had colonic constipation. I was hospitalized. I was diagnosed with IBS and gastroparesis. Now I was healthy! Nurse J., the nurse in the office, was happy to see me and hear that I was feeling better. He was also overjoyed with the cookies.
He said, "I've talked to your mom so much that it's kind of like we're family." I couldn't agree more! Shortly after Nurse J. left with the cookies, Dr. Di came in. He told me that I looked great, especially since I was always very pale whenever I came in. As for my medicine, he wanted to keep everything the same. He was very grateful for the tray of cookies and joked that I could come back every week with cookies. I would gladly do that! He was also grateful for his special cookie and card; he said that a lot of their patients and parents complain that he isn't doing enough. Both my mom and I repeatedly thanked him for everything he has done, but he humbly told us that we did all the work. After the appointment we made a follow up with the receptionist, who can always recognize me and knows my
 name, Nurse J. was looking over her shoulder and telling her to make the appointment when he was in the office.
"Sarah....you are beautiful. I know I'm not supposed to tell a lady to gain weight, but you should." Nurse J. complimented me. We all said goodbye and another round of thank you's before leaving.

My best friends :)

 I had the greatest feeling ever after two successful cookie delivery days. I felt like I was on top of the world. It still didn't seem possible that I had finally made it. I was 100% healthy and checking things off my wellness bucket list. Another item on my bucket list was to have a sleepover with my two dear friends. We had been planning a sleepover for over a year, but I was never healthy enough for it. I decided this sleepover would be my birthday party for the year, and we had a blast! We walked at the lake, and stayed up late watching movies and gossiping. The next day, we went to TCBY for frozen yogurt/sorbet and did some shopping. Both of my friends were so loyal while I was sick, and it was great to celebrate with them.
 August 30, 2012 marked my first day of my junior year of high school AND the start of my first year of high school that I was healthy for!

You might be expecting a big finish for the end of the my healthy journey. Of course, now that I'm healthy and done all these fun things to celebrate, why wouldn't it be the end? Alas....

TO BE CONTINUED.....

July 2012: "Finally Turning Around"

July 2012



Great day!

As the summer days became hotter, I became closer to feeling 100% better. The month started off a little rough with the 4th of July. My brother, his girlfriend, and her parents all came to Des Moines for the holiday. We ate out at P.F. Chang's one evening, and the meal made my stomach very upset. Not like a gluten ache, but still upset. The next day, the barista at Caribou Coffee put regular milk in my tea latte instead of soy milk. That caused a dairy ache that lasted all day. Before the milk incident, my mom and I went for a paddleboat ride on the lake. My stomach had settled down from the previous night's meal, and I had no nausea! I felt much better the next day, July 5, when my mom, sister, and I went swimming. I brought lots of water along to keep cool and hydrated, and I was able to lay on my stomach while reading! I felt well most of the time, but I still felt sick and bloated after eating. I was still dividing lunch and dinner into two separate meals, but I was getting really sick of feeling full and bloated after eating. I had noticed that the feeling went away if I walked around after I ate. My aunt suggested that I make it a habit to take a walk every time after I ate. Walking would help move the food through my stomach and help me feel better. My grandparents gave me their old NordicTrack to use if it was too hot or raining to walk outside. I started using the NordicTrack after eating, and the result was miraculous! I "walked" on the NordicTrack for the length of one song of my iPod, and I felt tremendously better after doing that. Not only did using the NordicTrack help me feel better physically, it helped me mentally and emotionally also. I was usually crabby after eating because I felt sick, but the release of endorphins while exercising took the crabbies away along with the bloated feeling. It also helped me get back in shape physically. I was still out of breath from walking up the stairs, and I couldn't carry my own laundry basket. A few weeks after starting the NordicTrack routine, I noticed that I wasn't out of breath and my chicken leg like calves actually had a tiny muscle on them! I also went on bike rides with my mom, which helped me feel more positive, hopeful, and happy. On July 12, I was supposed to meet a friend from the GF support group for lunch but my friend had to cancel. It really wasn't a big deal, but it was the final breaking point for me. I was fed up with having nothing to do. On days when I didn't babysit, have my weekly weight check at the hospital with Nurse T., or volunteer at the food pantry, there wasn't much to do. My mom and I still went some place every day, but I was growing bored with that routine. I didn't feel confident enough about my health to apply for an actual job yet. I wanted to get a job at a daycare; I love kids, and I felt like I had enough experience after babysitting Lucy and Collin since 2009. My mom tried to explain to me that I was well enough, but I argued that I still felt sick occasionally. My mom told me that there might be days where I didn't feel well but that was because I had irritable bowel syndrome. A syndrome is a group of symptoms that consistently occur together. There was no cure to IBS, just ways to manage the symptoms. I kept waiting for the magical date when I would officially recover from IBS, but my mom helped me realize that there was no such thing. With any type of syndrome (like Down syndrome for example), there are daily symptoms, complications, and struggles. It was up to me to manage the symptoms and side effects of IBS since there is no cure. This was a "mind blown" moment for me. I had not realized that I  made it; I wasn't sick anymore. Whenever my stomach felt even the tiniest bit upset, I completely lost it and thought that I was showing signs of another problem. In my own defense, being diagnosed with one problem after another was all I had known for 22 months. I found it hard to accept that I could have a stomach ache without having another new problem. I wanted to look for jobs, but I was so nervous that I would be hospitalized or diagnosed with something new as soon as I applied for a job. I knew no other employer in the world would be as kind and understanding as Erika, Lucy and Collin's mom, when it came to my health. My mom encouraged me to look into what daycares were hiring and pick up an application. She told me countless times that picking up an application was completely different from actually applying for a job. I would returned the filled out applications once I felt comfortable. So I did just that. I found two daycares that were hiring and picked up applications. On the way back to the house, my mom and I drove past a Catholic church just up the street from our house. We had driven past this church a million times since it's on a central street that we use every day, but I never knew there was a daycare there until I saw a sign advertising openings in the daycare. My mom wrote the number down, and I called later that day to see if they were hiring. They were so I stopped in for an application. I immediately liked the feel and atmosphere of this daycare WAY better than the other two. I waited a couple days, all the while feeling well and bored at home, and then I returned the applications. I got two on-the-spot interviews, one of which was at the Catholic church. I ended up getting a second interview at the Catholic church, and the supervisor of the daycare told me that there was a 99% chance of me being offered the job, but she would let me know early next week. Until then, I prayed that I would continue to feel well.

On July 21, I had the great opportunity to go on my first college tour. I would be a junior in high school in the Fall of 2012, and I had pretty much made up my mind that I wanted to be a dietitian. Even though what I had been through was rough, some of the good that came from it was this decision. I knew there were other people out there who had just been diagnosed with celiac disease, IBS, gastroparesis, and a host of other diseases that required restricted diets. If I could share something that helped me with somebody else who was suffering, then all of my suffering would seem to have a purpose. I knew Iowa State University (ISU) in Ames, Iowa had a popular dietetics program so I requested more information. Of course, they sent me postcards and sold my name to other colleges, but I was thrilled to get a postcard about a day called "Just for Juniors": juniors in high school were invited to visit the campus, go on a tour, learn about all the programs, and eat lunch in one of the cafeterias. I had been on the ISU campus once during a church youth rally, and I remember it being very big and beautiful. I was curious to see how the school would handle my restricted diet. On the registration form, there was a box where you could list any food allergies. When I was first diagnosed with celiac disease, one of my worries was: how am I supposed to go to college?! I figured this would be a good test run for ISU. I was beyond excited when the morning of July 21 came. It's about a 45 minute drive from Des Moines to Ames, and I couldn't wait to get a glimpse of the campus. I fell in love as soon as we got there. Our day started in a beautiful old building that looked like something you would see in Europe. After a few welcome and introduction speakers who talked about the different colleges and majors, it was time for lunch. I was so nervous about how lunch would play out. We had been instructed to tell whoever was at the front desk of the cafeteria that we had a special diet request. We were directed to meet with a woman who asked me if she could make me a pizza. Oh great...here we go. Hello dairy cheese and completely cross contaminated! My mom immediately jumped on the cheese issue and I tackled cross contamination. The woman calmly explained that they had dairy-free cheese available and the pizza would be cooked correctly. While I cautiously ate a dairy-free cheese pizza on a gluten-free crust, the woman told us all about how ISU handles food allergies. I was SO impressed! In the Fall of 2012, they were going to open a special diet kitchen that would handle all the food allergies. There was always GF pasta, DF yogurt, and DF milk available along with several other options. As I left lunch to listen to some more speakers, I had a wonderful feeling inside of me. I wasn't contaminated, and I felt very confident that ISU would be able to cater to my needs if I decided to go there. Once the day was over, I knew for sure that ISU was the right school for me. I could easily see myself on campus in two years!

Cy the Cyclone

Back in Des Moines, a few days after the college visit, I got a phone call from the Catholic church. I got the job!! I was so happy, excited, and grateful. When I called my grandpa to tell him the good news, he said: "I think your life is finally turning around."
 My first day at my new job went well. The same day, my mom and I made an official decision: we were going to plan a whole weekend of celebrating my return to health! It was something that I had been thinking of for a while, but I was too nervous to bring up in case "something else" happened. During the weekend of August 4-5, nobody but my parents, siblings, and me were going to do all sorts of fun things together as a family. Once I decided on the weekend, I began to feel anxious that I would wake up one day and not feel good or something else would happen. I noticed that when I felt nervous or anxious, my stomach immediately became upset. This is very typical of IBS. I was also having trouble adjusting to the new routine of working. I worked a morning shift so I had to get up at 6:00 a.m. By the time evening hit, I was drop dead tired. Of course, I didn't like that because that's how I felt when I was sick. My genius mother figured out that it was all related to my medicine, amitriptyline. Amitriptyline (which I was on for IBS pain) has a sleeping pill component. About a hour after I took the pill, I would fall into a deep sleep. When I had to wake up at 6:00 a.m., I didn't have all of the medicine slept off. This caused me to feel exhausted and very emotional. Somehow my mom figured out that I needed at least 7 1/2 hours of sleep to feel like my regular self again. Like always, my mom's plan worked!

At the end of July, I sort of "self-diagnosed" myself with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). I didn't feel like it was necessary to talk to a professional about it (my mom reminded me that it was okay if I needed to do that), but I often felt sad and sort of depressed about what I had just been through. I think the severity of my health issues finally hit me after I felt better. My mom told me that I was too busy surviving and fighting for my life to realize what exactly was happening. I never put it together that I had been diagnosed with three chronic and life-altering digestive diseases, I went through surgery, and I was hospitalized all in less than 12 months. I still had very dark moments when I thought about Dr. Satan in Iowa City. I would be just fine and then something very faint and discreet would somehow give me a flashback to either going to Iowa City or the aftermath that followed. Then I wouldn't be able to stop thinking and re-living those moments for the rest of the day. I had the same moments when I thought about the dark days when I was sick. I had  regretful feelings about the things I said when I wasn't feeling well and how I handled my health issues in some situations. These are still things that bother me to this day, two years later. I was almost paranoid about never feeling sick ever again. Of course, that's impossible, but I would have a total meltdown if I had even a mild stomach ache. Usually, I was either constipated or stressed out/anxious/nervous. I was learning that I had to manage stress and other negative emotions if I wanted to feel well.

Hot air balloon ride

 The opening ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London was a nice distraction. I am British at heart so I loved every opportunity to see live video of London. I even made an adorable (if I do say so myself!) Union Jack flag cake to celebrate the opening ceremonies! The month of July started off a little rough, but it was ending great! I was able to go on a hot air balloon ride with my mom and sister at the Indianola Balloon Festival, and that was really exciting and a little terrifying! I was settling into a routine with work, I knew what college I wanted to go to and was confident that they could feed me, I was learning how to manage my emotions and health, and ultimately...I felt 100% better!

I had made it.

TO BE CONTINUED......

My Union Jack cake

June 2012: Progress is Still Progress

June 2012

Having fun with Elizabeth!

I was learning the hard way how awful being cross contaminated with gluten was. For 12 days, my stomach felt like the fireworks on the 4th of July. I was also exhausted all the time, I had terrible headaches, and my legs ached. It was hard to assess how the amitriptyline was helping my stomach while under attack from gluten. My mom reported the progress that I had made to Nurse J. at my pediatric GI doctor's office. I was definitely feeling better but not 100% so Dr. Di increased my amitriptyline to 50mg. I was very optimistic that the increased dosage would do the trick.

"Horse Therapy"

 After I recovered from being "glutened", I began to get back to a normal life. I had a sleepover with my friend Elizabeth, and I felt like a regular teenager for the first time in a long time. I realized that teenagers are supposed to splurge on junk food, jump on trampolines, and stay up late watching movies with their friends. I felt like one of those regular teenagers and not like a teenager who had spent more time in doctors' offices than at friends' houses. I also paid a visit to my grandparents and went on a horseback ride at a nearby camping ground. I felt so relaxed during and after the horseback ride that I went on while camping so my mom thought it would be beneficial for me to do it again. The next day, I started volunteering at the Des Moines Area Religious Council (or DMARC) food pantry warehouse. I was getting very bored and restless being at home all the time. I still wasn't healthy enough to commit to a job, but I needed to find something to do. I helped the employees of the food pantry sort through donated items to make sure they weren't expired and then boxed the donations. I volunteered once or twice a week, and it ended up being a huge blessing! I really believe volunteering there helped me mentally by having somewhere to go and physically by the movement and lifting of heavy boxes that was required.
 On a Saturday, my sister and I went to the beach at the lake. While the water is absolutely disgusting and filled with who-knows-what, we enjoyed laying out on the beach in the sun while listening to music. I felt so great! I was thrilled to be able to lay on my stomach (something that I wasn't able to do because of how sensitive my stomach was) and get some sun. That evening, my siblings and I went to an Iowa Cubs baseball game with our mom. None of us really care about baseball (my brother quizzed me about baseball rules while I quizzed him about England's kings and queens),  but we had a blast anyways!

Hannah

 A few days after this glorious day, I had a very memorable day on June 12. I had been emailing with a girl named Hannah for over a year by the time we finally met in person. Hannah's dad is a very talented traveling Christian musician, and he was passing through Iowa on one of this tours. I was so excited to meet Hannah! She was diagnosed with Crohn's disease the day after I was diagnosed with celiac disease. Although our conditions are different, we are able to sympathize with each other when it comes to nausea, pain, loss of appetite, restricted diets, and anything else digestive related. We had a fantastic day together, and I was sad to see Hannah and her lovely family drive off to their next destination. Fast forward two years, and Hannah and I are still emailing! To top off a great day, there were moments during the day when I had absolutely no nausea at all! I was beyond thrilled and grateful. I was so used to having a chronic stomach ache that I was taken back at how different it felt to not have a stomach ache. Was this it? Did I make it to the other side?! Unfortunately, no. The next day, I accidentally ate some granola that had whole nuts and honey, two IBS no-no's, that made my stomach upset and hurt for the rest of the day. The day after the nuts and honey incident, I picked up some nasty flu bug. I went from having minimal to no nausea to feeling like I was going to throw up. I had to cancel fun plans to go shopping with Elizabeth and her sister, and that made me upset. I was so sick and tired of having to cancel plans just because I didn't feel well. I hated it when my health prevented me from doing something. This bug lasted for about three days, and then I felt better. I was able to go shopping with Elizabeth and drive myself to volunteer at the food pantry. While I was still frustrated about not feeling 100% better, I was very thankful that I was able to drive myself again. I was impressed at how far I had come!

Towards the end of June, I felt like I was going to turn the corner very soon. A church member told me one Sunday that I looked like I was feeling better. My diet was very restricted, but I finally felt like I had that aspect of my health under control. I read in a book about IBS that symptoms are often worse in the heat. Iowa has some steamy summers so I started drinking cold water whenever I was outside. As is typical with IBS, I still struggled with abdominal pain and constipation. I was definitely in less pain, even if it was still a level eight when it hit occasionally. It always seemed that I was feeling better (almost to the point of "calling it") and then I take two steps back by being hit with another round of nausea and constipation. I was beginning to notice a trend between those two lovely topics. I remembered my surgeon, Dr. R., telling me: "Constipation causes nausea." Now I was on a mission to fix this constipation problem once and for all.

TO BE CONTINUED.....

Take the Good With the Bad

May 2012

If you recall from the last post, I had just finished 10th grade. I was still struggling with constant nausea and a burning sensation in my stomach. My pediatrician told me to give it a week (in case it was just a virus) and then call my pediatric GI doctor. While waiting for a week to pass, my mom and grandpa had been doing some looking online. They discovered a book written by someone with IBS who had similar symptoms. The author had come up with an IBS diet, and it helped her get back on her feet. However, this diet would restrict me even more. In addition to avoiding gluten and dairy, I would have to stop eating foods that were high in fat (coconut and avocados), foods that were irritating to the stomach (caffeine, carbonated drinks, chocolate, honey, and sorbitol-an artificial sweetener), and red meat since it was hard to digest. I had also stopped eating bananas since they are very constipating. The author of this book suggested drinking cranberry juice (and absolutely nothing else!) with breakfast first thing in the morning. She also suggested staying away from icy cold drinks in the morning. I was willing to try anything at this point so I started the IBS friendly diet.
 After one week had passed, my mom called my GI doctor's nurse, Nurse J. She updated him on all my symptoms, and Nurse J. said he would talk to Dr. Di. When Nurse J. called back, he said that Dr. Di was going to put me on lansoprazole.
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Lansoprazole (generic name: prevacid) is a medicine that shuts off the pumps in the stomach that produce acid.
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Having fun camping

Dr. Di thought my stomach was probably inflamed and the acid in my stomach was irritating the inflammation, thus causing the burning feeling. I was prescribed this medicine shortly before Memorial Day, and my family and I were going camping for the long weekend. Last year, I had just been diagnosed with celiac disease and camping gluten-free was a new experience. This year, not only was I gluten-free, but I was also dairy-free and free of the foods I listed above. My mom (who is also a gourmet camp fire chef) cooked delicious meals with delicious alternatives for me! Even though I had to drag two medicines, several supplements (I had started taking a probiotic, peppermint oil capsule, and multivitamin), and my own food....I had a great time camping! My family and I enjoyed hiking, boating, horseback riding, archery, and just sitting around the campfire visiting. My brother's girlfriend, Meghan, was able to come with us this year. I had fun camping, AND I felt well for most of the time! I struggled with some nausea and burning, but I spent most of the time laughing harder than I had in a very long time. Maybe it was because I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. When I was recovering from my surgery (September 2011), I came up with a list of things I was going to do when I felt better. The top two things were: 1) going to Build-A-Bear and making a teddy bear, dress it in hospital scrubs, and name him after my doctors. It may sound like a childish thing to do, but I held on to the hope of getting that bear with my dear life. 2) baking a huge amount of cookies to give to my doctors and their staff. I knew that whoever could get me feeling better would deserve nothing but the best!

Boating

Archery

When we got back from camping, I had high hopes of fulfilling these two things on my wellness bucket list soon. I didn't want to make any plans or get too excited in case something else went wrong. I was done having my hopes crushed. I didn't think anything of the soup our neighbor made us. She had done an excellent job understanding how tricky gluten-free cooking is, and she always made me safe dishes. I can still remember how good that rice soup tasted. There was pork in it, but I just picked it out since I couldn't eat red meat anymore. Shortly after finishing the meal, I was struck by a sensation I had never experienced. By this point, I thought I had experienced every feeling possible: nausea, pain, severe pain, I'm-going-to-puke-any-second nausea, burning, you name it. What was this new feeling? It felt explosive. It's hard to describe, but it felt like there were fireworks exploding in my stomach. No amount of peppermint would fix it. I also noticed that my legs hurt and walking from one room to another was difficult. I prayed and prayed for wisdom to figure out what was causing this new sensation. I felt fine before I ate the delicious rice soup, but after I ate it I had an explosive stomach, achy legs, headache, and I was exhausted. Any guesses? Yep, I had just been contaminated with gluten.

TO BE CONTINUED......