A Health Update

I like posting health updates. I don't do it all the time, but I think it can be useful. It can be a quick and easy way to spread awareness about various conditions. It can also be a way to keep friends and family up to date without having to constantly explain yourself over and over.

Recently I shared a health update on my blog. Having an autoimmune disease is difficult because the smallest thing can throw our bodies off and cause it to remain off or out of wack for a long time. This is exactly what happened to me. I'm not sure just how common Bronchitis is, but I know a lot of people who have had it at some point during their lives. I've also had it in the past myself. In the past, although uncomfortable, it didn't bother me too much. Sure, I wouldn't ask for it, but compared to ulcerative colitis and the pain I was used to facing, Bronchitis was a walk in the park.

Sickness came out of nowhere, but I thought it'd be gone soon

It came out of nowhere. I'm not 100% sure when, how, or even why I got sick. There have been no major changes in my life. The nurse who saw me says it seems like my allergies are also aggravating the condition, but where's the cause? Initially, it appeared as if I had a cold or flu type of thing. It made sense. My godchild is in daycare and we all know how it can get when little people play together! My sister also had some sort of stomach bug so I was confident that whatever it was, it would be gone soon. I was wrong.

I hate hospitals because of IBD

Soon turned into days and days turned into over a week. I hate hospitals and do everything I absolutely can possible to avoid them. I didn't want to continue to feel the way I was, but I also didn't want to wait hours and hours for someone to dismiss my problem or tell me to take Tylenol and call in the morning. In spite of how opposed I was to the idea, I went in.

A terrifying and aggravating sickness

After over a week of symptoms, I became super ill. The bad cough caused me to vomit uncontrollably. It was terrifying and aggravating all at once. It was gross, but I knew something was wrong. I knew I couldn't wait any longer.

Recovery was difficult with my compromised immune system

After hours at the ER, a chest X-ray and one amazing doctor and many amazing nurses later, I finally had an answer. The doctor told me because it had been so long and my symptoms are still present, he was pretty confident that my immune system being compromised played a major role in why my recovery was taking so long. He wrote a handful of prescriptions and told me how to use each. He was amazing and really listened to my problems. He explained that while we wanted to take a more aggressive approach, he didn't want to do certain things because he wasn't sure how it would impact my Jpouch.

Good healthcare providers are appreciated

I really appreciate when healthcare providers have the ability to listen, ask questions, and admit they don't know everything. After days of treatment, I am happy to say I am feeling much better. With all of the aggressive coughing and vomiting, my voice still hasn't fully returned, but I am grateful for progress.