I wish

...a lot of things in my life. One of them is that I wish I kept up with this blog more. I wish I had wonderful, witty and motivating things to say. In real life, I’m actually very motivating. I am a personal trainer and running coach and I help people feel good about themselves.

Unfortunately I do not feel very good about myself lately. It’s not a “I hate myself thing” at all. I don’t hate myself thing. I’ve just not felt good for a long time. It’s the head, but it’s more than the head.

In 2003 I had a Whipple Procedure to remove a cancerous (pre-cancerous, it was in-situ) tumor from my pancreas. Since then I’ve had on again off again digestive issues that have been annoying and painful but manageable. I realize looking back that it’s been getting worse over the last two years with a lot of issues that are embarrassing that people who deal with these kinds of issues will relate to. I’ve struggled to run long distances with severe stomach cramps and diarrhea. I’ve had problems fueling on my long runs. Stuff I used to be able to eat without issue suddenly causes problems.

In mid-May or so I had an attack, as I do, of stomach issues...bloating, cramping, stomach pain, nausea (two different types of pain), diarrhea, loss of appetite. When I get this, every time I eat I’ll feel better but then within five minutes I’ll start having symptoms. Usually these go away within 2-3 days but this time it didn’t. At first it was annoying, but I could ignore it. But as days turned into weeks and weeks into months it got worse and worse. I started losing weight and not wanting to eat. I went from five meals a day (small meals) to three to two to one.

In August I finally had a colonoscopy and endoscopy. I was hoping that they’d find something and if not, at least having the procedure would “reset” things (like a cleanse, although I do not necessarily believe in them) and I’d feel better. Not only did they not find anything at all, but it didn’t reset anything. In fact, it’s only been worse.

I’ve lost 12 pounds since May. My exercise has gone from daily to none because I’m so weak. Okay, I am still trying to get something in if I can. I did kayak today but was sad when, after a single mile I had to turn back because I was exhausted.

At first I was handling it with marijuana, which helps the symptoms quite a bit. But they’ve gotten to the point where it soothes them but doesn’t take them away. It helps with appetite but I’m starting to get afraid of food because even if it doesn’t hurt now it will tomorrow.

I have started a low FODMAP diet. FODMAPs are short chained carbohydrates that most people don’t absorb well, and some don’t absorb at all. If you don’t absorb them, they ferment in your large intestine and cause symptoms of IBS and other intestinal issues. I am actually starting to feel better but it feels like 2 steps forward 2 steps back and I’m not sure if I’m doing it right. I ate something yesterday or the day before that reacted with me, so I’ve had two no fun days. However, the day before yesterday I felt good enough to go for a run and that was AWESOME!

Other things this summer...one of my dogs tried to kill another dog. We had to rehome the killer Dog. Ugh. I feel like one of those people who always has a sad story to tell, but the fact is, August has sucked. Not “My house is underwater in Houston” sucks, but “It’s not been the best month” sucks. I miss Pogie so much. I don’t blame her. She’s a dog and for some reason she just was set off by Lucy and I blame myself. We did the right thing by rehoming her but I love her and I miss her, and even typing this tears me up. Lucy is fine. She is going to live and acts like nothing ever happened. She has a huge scar from her surgery, and we have an empty bank account (literally), but payday is Thursday and it’s only money. Money can’t buy you love, but it can pay to save your dog’s life and puppy kisses are like love so there.

We did make the most of not having money, though. We’ve had an awesome month despite that issue and money has come out of the woodwork when we’ve needed it, Praise the Lord.

Head has been better in August than in July, when the first from BC were really impacting it. The stomach and intestinal cramps can send it soaring, but now that they’re a little better they don’t seem to be setting it off as bad.

By the way, the second procedure did not work at all on my brain. It was very disappointing. So for now, I’m not going to do it again. There is a new supplement I will be taking once payday comes called Bosswellia and there is also some new pain thing she wants me to try. It has a ton of good reviews and I feel like if it doesn’t work for me, it probably will for Roy! So that’s hopeful for him. There is also something that is not yet FDA approved for my brain pain but it is for Cluster Headaches. I tried it in the office and it did give me relief. Dr. M feels it will be available within six months to a year.

So there are some hopeful things on the horizon.