Hope

-
Art by Millie Paulk, member of The Young Artists of Newnan & Coweta County

    The word "hope" can be used in many ways. It can be a feeling of trust, or a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. For me, it's all of those things.

    As most of you know, I've been recovering from a major surgery since October of 2021. It has been a slow process filled with ups and downs, and a ton of tears. For 6 years, I was unable to eat without pain in my epigastric area. I thought I'd never heal and be able to eat normally. I received my nutrition through a feeding tube for a small amount of time.. that did not work. We tried everything and no medication nor doctor could help. I became discouraged and prayed to God he'd take the pain away. I suffered with anxiety and depression due to the pain, which only made it worse. I lost all hope, all trust, and desire to even try to get better. I simply gave in and prepared myself to live with the pain for the rest of my life. 

    A few months ago, I had a follow-up appointment with my doctor in North Carolina. I mad a barium study done to re-check for SMAS. Unfortunately, it came back. My doctor was unsure of what to do and could not give me a definite solution. He pretty much did everything he could. He did suggest an NG tube, but he wasn't 100% sure it would work. So, my mom and I went back home to seek a second opinion. On the way back, we grabbed lunch. Like usual, I was scared to eat because I knew I'd be in pain. I ended up eating, but this time, it felt different. I didn't feel sick, and I didn't feel any pain. I knew right then that I was healed. It has been a little over a month without pain. I'm now able to eat what I want, exercise, and go out with friends and family. Throughout my entire recovery, I held on to that tiny ounce of hope I had left. No doctor could cure me, nor could the surgeries I had. Who healed me was God.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SMA, May-Thurner and Nutcracker Syndrome

-
Image
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...
Read more

My journey with MALS

-
Image
       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...
Read more

My Journey with MALS pt.2!

-
Image
                                                                        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...
Read more