AK’s journey

Recovery is not easy   There are good days and bad days. Fortunately, since my surgery, I've been going up on the roller coaster. It has been two weeks since my surgery, and I'm feeling great! A little nausea here and there still exists, but nothing too drastic. I've been able to tolerate solid foods as well! While I was in the hospital, the only thing that suited my taste was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich which is much better than tube feeds!   Today I had my last face to face appointment with Dr.Petty! He put me in charge of leading the conversation as he usually does. I told him that I've been eating on my own, and that I made a brave decison a few minutes before we saw him. I said "I ate a hot dog from the cafeteria and I didn't have any MALS pain!". He replied with "a hospital cafeteria hot dog?? That makes ME hurt" as he pointed to where the MALS pain would be. Dr.Petty is always cracking jokes which is one of the many great qualities...

  About me!      Hi! My name is Anna Katherine. I'm 18 years old and I live in Newnan, Georgia with my Mom, Dad and my crazy dog named Paisley.    I currently have my CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) License and I recently got accepted to the University of West Georgia. From there I will pursue my Nursing career! I am beyond excited to start my classes in January of 2021. I haven't always wanted to be a nurse. Growing up, I went through different phases. At one point I wanted to be a horse, then later realized that isn't quite possible. One year I wanted to be an Archaeologist... I was OBSESSED with rocks and fossils. I also wanted to be a YouTuber... haven't we all?    One of the things that got me into the medical field is having to be in the hospital so much. I realized the amount of pain I was in and that pain motivated me to want to help others. I've always been a helper. I love being there for people and listening to their problems. I'm an ...

I not only have MALS, I have 3 other illnesses too!   Let's start off with SMAS. Superior Mesenteric Artery Syndrome is a condition that occurs when the duodenum is compressed between the aorta and superior mesenteric artery. This type of compression causes partial or complete blockage of the duodenum.  It is so rare that 0.013% of people have it!    Symptoms vary from person to person but I personally experience fullness, severe abdominal pain and weight loss. My weight got so bad that I went from 115 lbs to 93 lbs in a few weeks. I was so scared to eat because of how excruciating my pain was. SMAS is life threatening because someone can get so skinny and become so malnourished that it could kill them. I don't have to worry about that since I'm receiving my food through a feeding tube, not to mention I gained all my weight back!   Moving on to May-Thurner Syndrome. May-Thurner Syndrome is a rarely diagnosed condition where patients develop what is called ili...

                  This is the amazing man I was talking about in "My journey with MALS pt.2"!   So, a few days after my surgery, I had an allergic reaction to the epidural they gave me to manage my pain.I was so nervous to get it but it wasn't bad at all! I got hives and red places all over my body and I was itching like crazy. They gave me Benadryl which just made me more sleepy than anything. We got it under control a day later but it was a very uncomfortable experience. I ate a few things here and there like grilled chicken, green beans, cookies, and some jolly ranchers but the chicken got stuck in my feeding tube so the nurse had to flush it. That was the last time I ate their chicken haha!       I was supposed to go home yesterday (21st of October), but I haven't been tolerating my tube feedings very well. It's all new to me but as far as I know, my goal is to intake 60 ML an hour, We started off with 10 and it m...

                                                                        MALS PT. 2   After my first MALS surgery with Dr.Patel, things still did not quite seem right. Something seemed off. As usual, my family and I found ourselves searching around for a doctor who knows what MALS is and who can REALLY get me some relief. My mom stumbled upon a facebook group called 'MALS PALS'. It's basically a group of patients or families of patients who come together to talk about their MALS journey! Little did we know that this group would have such a huge impact. We came across a girl named LewLew who also shared her MALS story. She spoke about her doctor named Dr. Petty. We had already heard that name before but never realized how great of a man he is until we kept reading blog pos...

  Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome is a condition where the median arcuate ligament presses too tightly on the celiac artery (a major branch of the aorta that delivers blood to the stomach, liver and other organs) and nerves in the area (celiac plexus). MALS occurs in about 10-25% off the population. This compression occurs most often in thin, younger women and is a very rare condition.     Some people are unaware they have MALS because they don't even show any symptoms. Those who DO show symptoms are most likely to get a diagnoses much quicker. There are a handful of tests that can be done to diagnose MALS including a mesenteric ultrasound, a CTA and even an MRA! The hard part is finding a doctor who has seen MALS before and can treat it.  SYMPTOMS OF MALS MALS pain has been compared to End stage pancreatic cancer. These symptoms include: Pain and/or fatigue after eating Nausea/vomiting Unexplained weight loss Constipation/diarrhea Sharp stabbing pain...

       For five years, I’ve been dealing with horrible stomach pains. Over the last eight  months, it has gotten worse. I first noticed my pain when I was about twelve years old.  My mom thought it was just growing pains so we shoved it off until one night I was rushed to the ER. I remember we had nachos that night so the nurse said maybe it was what I ate... I knew he was wrong though because back then, I was a bigger kid and I ate everything. I had never had a pain like this before. So they got an IV running and did a few tests and they found nothing. We went back home with my stomach still hurting. The only thing I found that helped the slightest was a heating pad. Little did I know that thing would become my best friend for the next few years ahead.    The more things I ate the more I realized that something was off. I used to always be able to eat queso and pizza. We cannot forget the pizza. But one night I had two slices and not three minut...