Thursday, February 16, 2012

Not what I wanted to hear

This is one of those blog posts where I don't know where to start. I want to be completely honest on here, but sometimes there are things I just don't want to tell everyone... like when I don't get good results from a colonoscopy.

So my week off hasn't been too much of a week off. I spent Tuesday preparing for my colonoscopy (which anyone who's had one knows, is much worse than the actual procedure.) I had the procedure yesterday morning. I had the good idea this time to have Jarrod record the post-op conversation with my doctor, since you never remember these things when you're under anesthesia. So this time I actually got to listen to the conversation after I got back home.

Basically he told me that things look worse since my last colonoscopy, which I had in October of last year, right before I started the new meds. So being on the new meds for four months has not helped and I am officially off of them now... which technically means I am on no medication for Crohn's for the first time in about 13 years.

He basically told me that for someone as high functioning as I am, I have the worst looking gut he's ever seen. He's always telling me how stoic I am and that my bar for "normal" is so out of whack that I don't even know what "normal" is any more. He wants me to consider surgical options. I don't consider surgery an option... at all.

I think all of this finally hit me today. I spent a good part of the day being pretty depressed. (I also blame the lousy weather a little.) Dealing with being out of work and bad results from this is a lot to handle all at once. But I'm done with that. Sometimes I think you just need a down day to get all of that out of your system in order to get past it and move on.

I had seriously been considering starting up the Specific Carbohydrate Diet again (info here) but had been waiting for the results from this colonoscopy. So now I've decided to start that on Monday. Jarrod is going to be out of town for work, so I figure it's a good time to get going on that. I tried the diet out a few years ago, but it didn't stick. However, looking back now, I realize that I was totally unprepared to start the diet at that time. I feel that I'm in a much better position to do it successfully this time.

It's going to be a big change. It's essentially eliminating all wheat/grains, dairy, soy and sugar. And what does that leave? Doesn't seem like a lot. But essentially, it's getting back to nature and making things from scratch. And getting a little creative with your cooking. It's going to be a lot of work, but if it helps, then it's definitely worth it.

I've been doing some soul-searching, too, on what God has planned from here. I know this isn't what he wants for me, but it's definitely hard to keep the faith when you feel like this all of the time. I appreciate everyone's prayers, cause God knows, I need 'em (pun intended). I know at this point, if anything works, it's going to be his doing.

2 comments:

  1. I'm sorry to hear that the results weren't good :( I had to do a diet very similar to this one last summer for my IBS/whatever else is wrong with me that they can't find.... It's challenging, but you just eat a lot of really basic foods...meat, veggies, fruit essentially. Soy is the hardest thing to cut out because it's stuck into almost everything! Almond milk is a great substitute for regular milk...I'm allowed to have dairy now, but have stuck with almond milk. Stevia is a great substitute for sugar too and when I was on that diet my mom and I made a lot of lentil and bean salads and soups, which can be really yummy and flavorful without making your stomach want to die. I am still on a pretty restricted diet and I make a lot of soups that I store and reheat.
    Good luck Stephanie! Let me or my mom know if you need any recipes or ideas :)

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    1. Thanks, hun. You're such an encouragement. And definitely, if you think of any great recipes, pass them along! stephaniemlhughes@gmail.com

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