My name is Wesley and I am a 25 year old teacher from Kennesaw, Georgia.
I have had Ulcerative Colitis (UC) since 1999 and Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis since 2011. Because of some advanced pathology found in my colon during a surveillance colonoscopy, I elected to have my colon removed in November 2012 to eliminate the risk of developing colon cancer in the future. I will have a temporary loop ileostomy while the internal J Pouch created during surgery heals. I will undergo a second surgery in 2013 to "reverse" or "takedown" the ileostomy and reconnect my small intestines to the pouch. After this second surgery, I will be able to use the restroom normally, although more frequently.
Please feel free to ask any questions that you may have! My main goal in writing this blog is to help anyone who may be going through a similar surgery or illness. While I was preparing for surgery, I read many different blogs and watched a lot of YouTube videos. All of these helped ease my nerves and were reassuring that things would be OK after surgery. Please don't be afraid to ask!
Hi Wesley,
ReplyDeleteI'm really shocked/impressed by how you've taken all this. I also had apprx 70% of my colon removed for other reasons, but did have the same surgeries as you did. For almost 3 months I had to bear with that bag and felt really depressed... Now, after a long time since all that happened, by chance I found your case.. and certainly, I feel really bad for how awful my scars are... more than 6 years and they're still there... and besides that about 2 years ago I had my gallbladder removed because of calculi ... And I'm only 21...
My intention was just to talk to you and share my experience. I never thought I'd find someone that's experienced something similar...
You've done a fantastic job writing this blog! Many people will be grateful.
Regards