That Damn C-Word

No, it’s not what you think. I’m going to need you to keep up with me for this one. It’s been a rough few weeks so I might be all over the place. I was diagnosed with UC when I was 4 years old, which is pretty much unheard of. Throughout the last few years, whenever I was sick the first thing doctors would think is that I was misdiagnosed and I had Crohn’s disease. It wasn’t until recently that I found a surgeon that referred to it as the “C-word.” The word I dreaded, the word I fear, and the word that shouldn’t be used unless you’re completely sure. While I’ve had my fair share of issues with UC, I cannot imagine what individuals with Crohn’s deal with.

The moral of this story is that finding the right doctors at the right time is one of the most important parts of this. I’ve worked with many other individuals with similar medical situations facing similar, if not the same, surgeries and it’s an ongoing pattern. For the last few months I’ve been undergoing numerous tests, meeting new doctors and surgeons until I found people I like and trust. This made me realize that when I tell my story I get one of two reactions. I either face pity or curiosity. Honestly, I don’t know which is worse. Either I’m viewed as a wounded puppy or like I have 16 heads. Sometimes I forget that my story makes me sound like a walking miracle. I’m lacking over half of my digestive system due to surgeries, some how I’m living insulin free despite having my pancreas removed, and all of this happened before I turned 20-- before I had a chance to go to college.


I’ve had some of the best and brightest doctors behind the scenes and the most talented surgeons working on me. That handful of individuals gave me a worthwhile life. That doesn’t mean that along the way I didn’t have doctors tell me I was lying or some just take my case to say they had a part in it. These doctors are the people that you're supposed to trust with your life and I promise you, you'll know when you find the right one. That same surgeon who brought up the idea of the c-word was about to leave our first appointment, he looked at me and said, “this isn’t going to be an easy one, but I promise you I’m going to figure it out.”  That’s when I knew.


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