Introduction:
I am 18 years old and was diagnosed with UC just over a year ago. At my first appointment I remember feeling extremely embarrassed by the examination and no one seemed to have any idea what was wrong with me. It took 5 months for me to be diagnosed with the disease. I had a colonoscopy last month however they decided to stop halfway through and admit me into hospital immediately! I was going through a “flare up within a flare up” as described by my Dr. I am quite new to all of this and am eager to learn more about UC and how to deal with it in the future.
Some more about me:
I am the “stressy” one in the family so it’s quite ironic how now I am the one who cannot stress out! I am a student from London and love art and socializing with my friends as most teenage girls do. I also enjoy sports and so often play badminton with my brother or friends. Most people usually describe me as the childish one who is always smiling. I really enjoy physics and so have applied to study it at university this upcoming academic year and am really excited regarding the matter! I would also love to go traveling someday and go on tours around the world.
Symptoms:
I am currently recovering from quite a severe flare up and so my symptoms are beginning to settle down. My flare up took place during my exam period and so I was a complete mess! I would need to go to the toilet approximately 15 times a day and saw blood almost every time. The abdominal pains were becoming ridiculous; at times I was not able to stay focused upon my revision and work. I found that I was very weak and spent more and more time sleeping or just resting.
Beat UC Don’t Let It Get You Down!
Being diagnosed with UC has made me a more serious person and has compelled me to focus much more upon my health and everything that I eat. At first the whole thing was very embarrassing but after being examined by many doctors I began to get used to it. Just after my exams had finished and I thought I could finally kick back and relax but was admitted into hospital after my colonoscopy which could not be fully carried out. I had no idea what was happening and was not told anything until after I was discharged.
It was quite daunting being the youngest person in the ward and at times I felt really down. My friends and family were extremely supportive and were making loads of inquiries about UC to loads of different doctors. After being discharged I was extremely concerned about stressing out on the approaching results day and ending up back in hospital! I knew I didn’t perform as well as I could have due to my flare up and was so worried that everything was going to fall apart. I’ve read so many stories about how people suffer with flare ups throughout their life, for example during pregnancy and how it not only had an impact on them but also their friends and family. It all seemed so depressing and made me think about all the hindrances I may have to face in the future.
However things have been going really well, I got accepted into the university of my choice and am now preparing for the year ahead. I am really looking forward to meeting lots of new people and studying the subject of my choice. Looking back on the whole experience this summer, I feel as though I know how to handle my condition much better. Trying not to sound cheesy here but I now feel that despite having UC by keeping positive and understanding your body and what affects it you can live a normal and happy life. I am determined to avoid another flare up and am looking forward to the future…bring it on!
Medications:
At the moment I am taking Asacol, Prednisolone steroids, folic acid and vitamin supplements. I have found that juicing works really well if you want to try to maintain a healthy diet. I am unable to eat a lot of things so I just create different juices which actually taste pretty good and are really healthy. Here’s a website you can use for juice recipes, you can even check out how the ingredients help specific problems, not only UC but also diabetes, high blood pressure etc…
http://juicerecipes.com/health-conditions/juicing-for-ulcerative-colitis/
written by Sheetal
submitted in the colitis venting area
I am 18 years old and was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis just over a year ago.
