Endometriosis | A New Kind of Normal

May 2, 2012

My Hospital Saga – Part 2

May 2, 2012 By Jamee 4 Comments

Yesterday I headed to Charlotte with my husband for my follow-up visit with my gastroenterologist after my weekend trip to the ER. I wasn’t able to see my primary GI doctor because they wanted me to get in as soon as possible so my appointment was set up with one of his associates so I really wasn’t sure what to expect.

Right off the bat, they ruled out pancreatitis. While I had slightly elevated levels, it was nothing close to what would indicate pancreatitis so we were able to mark that off the list. We next did a brief overview of my medical history. He immediately apologized when I told him about my journey with endo. He said that endometriosis is like the black plague for women. I have never heard a better description. That man deserves a medal.

We went over the blood work taken at the ER and compared it to my blood work done at my previous visit. My liver enzymes are a little up but not anything crazy – just something to keep an eye on. He sent me for more blood work as well as an abdominal xray and then met me back in the office. At my latest EGD, they discovered my gastroparesis. After confirming with the xray, it seems that its not only my stomach that is paralyzed but pretty much my entire GI system. This coupled with existing chronic pelvic pain (endo/adhestions/etc) was probably the source of my severe abdominal pain.

So the plan is to attempt to jump start my GI system with back-to-back bowel preps (I started the 2nd this morning). I will also start a new medicine that will try to help stimulate my system which will help the gastroparesis as well. We also dropped to the two new medications I started last week as they were likely adding to the irritation. Not sure what that will mean for my pain levels but hopefully once things get moving again I will notice a big difference!

Filed Under: chronic illness, health Tagged With: adhesions, endometriosis, gastroparesis, hospital, pain

Apr 1, 2012

HAWMC Day 1: Why I write

April 1, 2012 By Jamee 4 Comments

I am super excited to be taking part in the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge which is being hosted by WEGO Health! The entire month of April will be dedicated to sharing our stories as well as educating and raising awareness!

The first official prompt of the month was to talk about creating a health time capsule but as you know I’m a bit of a rule-breaker. To quote the pirates, is more of just guidelines right?

I have decided to kick off the month by telling you why I write. Over the last four years, I have shared what caused me to begin blogging as I was looking for an outlet and a safe place to share my feelings and process the challenges of infertility and health. As time went by, A New Kind of Normal has become a way to encourage others who may be facing the same health situations as well as to raise awareness of the illnesses that are out there that need attention. Even then, if someone had told me that I would still be blogging almost five years later and gearing up for my second blog conference I would have died from laughter. I had absolutely no idea what the blogging world held for me.

Maybe more importantly than why I started to blog is the reality of why I continue to blog. Many times over the last four years I have considered closing up shop and quitting. I have had moments where I had no idea what to write and felt like I had no meaningful content left to offer. I have had moments where I’ve felt completely inadequate to try to offer hope to readers when I felt so helpless myself. I have had moments as recently as this weekend when I’ve felt like I physically didn’t have anything left to give.

But I press for one reason. Ok, maybe two. One – I feel like God has directed me to blogging as a ministry. And two – because of you amazing readers. Every conversation we have on twitter keeps me going. Every facebook comment boosts my love of connecting with others. Every email I receive from a reader thanking me for writing that always comes at just the right moment brings tears to my eyes and I feel in my heart that this is right where I should be.

So thank you readers for being a part of A New Kind of Normal. Thank you for allowing this blog to be a place where you can find encouragement, support, and hope as we walk this road of chronic illness together.

Filed Under: chronic illness, health Tagged With: celiac, endometriosis, fibromyalgia, HAWMC, IC

Mar 5, 2012

Blogging for Endo Awareness: The Physical

March 5, 2012 By Jamee 5 Comments

Today marks the beginning for the blog carnival for Blogging for Endometriosis Awareness & today’s topic is physical aspects of endometriosis and its affect on your life.

Over the last couple years I have shared how my journey with endometriosis began, the multiple surgeries, and how the pain from endo has caused me to redefine my womanhood.

My day-to-day struggles are documented in posts throughout the last several years so while I was laying in bed yesterday, I pondered how to share how endometriosis has impacted my life on a physical level that I haven’t already shared.

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I think one side of endometriosis (as well as many chronic illnesses) is how it impacts your energy levels and so often leaves you with almost a chronic exhaustion. This is not a type of exhaustion where a nap will be the perfect pick-me-up and leaving you feeling much more refreshed. It is not a type of exhaustion where heading to bed an hour or so before normal or sleeping in a bit late will put you back on schedule.

This type of exhaustion is a relentless fatigue that hits you straight to your bones. A type of exhaustion where your muscles feel like you’ve just run a marathon. A type of exhaustion where no amount of time spent in bed can cure.

This side effect of endometriosis can often be the hardest one to explain as often this type of exhaustion can hit at any moment without notice. It is also tough to explain how being in bed does not necessarily equal relaxing nor does sleep mean true rest.

With this side effect an endo warrior must not only learn to plan ahead but also learn how to let go of plans without guilt. I have learned over the years what type of activities will require a day or so to recuperate. For example, if my family takes a trip to the beach which is roughly a 4 hour drive, I know not to plan a lot of activity the first day so I can try to recuperate without causing a major flare. At our trip to Disney, we knew to plan our days accordingly. Learning to plan is just as important as learning how to un-plan as often flares and fatigue can hit without notice or trigger and it is important to learn how to say no in those instance AND not feel guilty in the process (with much emphasis on the last part of that statement).

If you have endometriosis, or another chronic illness, what has been on the the biggest physical changes that have taken place in your life because of illness?