Take Steps for Crohn's and Colitis

On June 9^th, I will be participating in the Take Steps for Crohn’s & Colitis walk, the nation’s largest event dedicated to finding cures for digestive diseases.  If you follow this blog, you are aware of how Ulcerative Colitis changed my life and caused me pain that no one should have to endure. In June, I am walking with Team UCSF because I want to save millions of people like me from my suffering. I just graduated from Georgetown on time, even with a semester of medical leave, and with honors, despite the endless doctor's visits, daily unbearable pain, nausea, fevers, fatigue, weight loss..the list goes on. There is nothing I would appreciate more than a gift that would help the sick.


Please donate only as much as you are comfortable with. Every little bit will help. You can donate here: http://online.ccfa.org/site/TR/2012TakeStepsWalk/Chapter-NorthernCalifornia?px=2228852&pg=personal&fr_id=3320

A Visit from MRSA and what lies ahead

A couple weeks ago I ended up in the hospital for a condition unrelated to my intestines, a refreshing but boring experience. Long story short, I contracted Cellulitis, a deep tissue skin infection, on my face. In fact, it was in the "triangle of death," the area above your nose and between your eyebrows. Apparently, since veins run from the "triangle of death" to the brain, any infection is a big deal. After my face swelled up and I looked like an alien, I walked to the Georgetown Hospital ER and learned that Cellulitis was the culprit. It is usually caused by Staph or MRSA (drug-resistant staph).

Although Georgetown gave me a dose of IV antibiotics and some antibiotics to take home, a few days later Cellulitis made another appearance. I went straight back to the ER, not expecting a long hospital stay. That's what I got. I felt fine and looked fine because the swelling had subsided but the doctors were not taking any chances. They did a test for MRSA that came back positive (and only then did they decide I should be in isolation...after I had been in a double for four days when they knew I probably had MRSA). Then they finally let me out and I headed straight to a party. I mean, it's me after all.

MRSA made my plans for a rafting trip down the Grand Canyon out of the question. Initially I was uncharacteristically upset, and after I reflected on it, I realized that it was about much more than missing a really deep canyon. The trip was a symbolic culmination of my post-surgery life, an adventure that would have been impossible with Ulcerative Colitis. I would have been on a raft around seven hours a day, a nightmare for anyone with bad UC or Crohn's. I would have been with my family, the people I care most about seeing me healthy and happy. Then I thought about how well my recovery has gone, and I realized that the Grand Canyon would have been just the first of many outdoor adventures. I am more committed than ever to taking a long backpack trip in Yosemite this summer, my favorite place in the world. So I felt a little better. I also took advantage of my free time (I had done all my schoolwork early) to dominate the Assassins game I was playing. My spy mastery made me feel very accomplished and reconsider a career in the CIA. Cellulitis has not been seen since (I clearly killed it, too).

I could elaborate on my hospital stay - it made UCSF seem like a resort - but the most relevant item to UC was the issue of antibiotics. Antibiotics are never a good thing for someone with intestinal issues because they clear out the "fauna" in your intestine and make way for nasty bacteria like C-Diff or pouchitis. When I got MRSA, I thought it was just a matter of time until my J-pouch started acting up. In the past few days I have been going to the bathroom about 10 times a day, which is much more than the usual four. I can't know if it's pouchitis until I have been off antibiotics for a while, but I'm crossing my fingers.

In terms of future plans, I accepted an English teaching position in Bordeaux, France for the 2012-2013 academic year. I am so incredibly excited and ready to put my adventure hat on again. It's been too long! This summer I'm going back to California to save money for the travels I'm already planning. After a couple of brutal years, I am ready to have some fun.

Unfortunately, one of the members of my IBD support group had a bad turn with Ulcerative Colitis/Crohn's and she has to have an emergency ileostomy surgery that will likely take place tomorrow. Please send good vibes to Meredith, who has been such a champ in the past year.

After I assassinated people

Happy Trails

On the beach in Hawaii, getting in fish camouflage before snorkeling

Quite a bit of time has gone by since my last blog post, which shows how well I’m doing. Although my recovery is now very gradual, I am much better than I was four months ago. I am much more adventurous with food now – over the winter holidays I had deep-dish Chicago style pizza, also known as tomato central. I hadn’t any for more than three years and it was just as good as I remembered! I still avoid certain foods like lettuce, raw onions, spicy things, and caffeine. While some people might be glad they could avoid lettuce, I actually really like it (…but for the salad dressing, of course). Maybe I will try eating some in a few months.

I also went backpacking in Hawaii over the winter holidays! Initially I decided not to go because I didn’t think I was up to it. As the rest of my family got ready to go, however, I realized I was done with being a “no” person and since my family would support me if I had any trouble, a trip with them would be the best possible way to get back into backpacking. And I am so glad I made that choice! To my surprise, there were actually compost latrines by each campsite, so it even surpassed my expectations. We hiked over twenty miles on lava flows and camped on the beach beneath coconut palms. We even got to snorkel in a coral garden that was incredibly pristine because it was ten miles from any road. I finally felt like I couldn’t be farther from being a sick person and I was so happy that my family was with me to share in my high spirits. We all say that the surgery was a miracle.

In other news, my irritable bowel disease group has been going very well. We have been growing in number and I hope that it will continue after I leave Georgetown. As I embark on an internship with the Department of State this semester, make plans for the summer, and make plans for next year, UC just seems like a short and miserable detour that will diminish in importance as the years go by.