Posted by Bianca Siedlaczek on December 29, 2016
"Remission." – the word many living with a chronic illness hope to hear one day. Remission is such a wonderful time of less symptoms and less doctors, but as many of us know, remission doesn't always last forever.
Since being diagnosed with Crohn's disease eight years ago I have only been in remission once, for about a year and a half. It was like coming up for a breath of fresh air. I was being drowned by Crohn's. And while a year and a half totally seems like a long time, it really wasn't. In nearly the blink of an eye, I fell out of remission and began fighting the most brutal flare I have ever known.
This flare has led to emergency room visits, hospital stays, and even a surgical consult. Not just A surgical consult…THE consult. Yes, the total colectomy consult. At this point in my flare, I saw it coming. The pain, the weight loss, and all the other symptoms were not the same as before. I knew my colon might not be able to bounce back from this. I thought I had mentally and emotionally prepared myself for the consult, but quite honestly, I do not think it is humanly possible to be prepared to hear a surgeon tell you, "your colon needs to be removed." The surgery is scheduled and I am now only a few weeks away from getting my colon removed. Of course I am scared and nervous, but I am so excited to hopefully start feeling better again.
I am beyond grateful to be taking on this surgery with the support of my friends and family (especially my ICN Family). The constant love and support the PAC and I have received from the ICN community the past few years has been so heartwarming. I am so glad and thankful to have such an amazing support system fighting alongside me.
