Hope to see you there!!!
Monday, January 28, 2013
GIRLS WITH GUTS RETREAT!!!!
Some people I like to stalk (Charis,Jackie) have put blood, sweat, poop and tears (ahha!) into making this dream a reality for SO many people!! Today they released more information about the 2013 Girls with Guts Retreat!
Click HERE to check out the deets!
Hope to see you there!!!
Hope to see you there!!!
Monday, January 21, 2013
Back in the swing of things
I won't make excuses. Blogging hasn't been a priority lately. I guess I just didn't think it necessary to write for the sake of writing. I remembered I had taken some pictures a while back that I wanted to use in a post - so here we go.
Back to the essence of the blog...ostomy fashion!
Another example of using the "belly band"
Here is am in dressier denim with a lightweight sweater. These jeans have no belt loops, they are a higher rise and they have a wide waistband - all great for ostomates! A few pictures of what it looks like before I added my "belly band".
Tricky part is, the dryer fairy has gotten ahold of this sweater a few times and it has shrunk. When I raise my arms it rises and while that doesn't bother me, I was going to work and that's not the most professional look to be having.
So, I decided to throw on my upsidedown Victoria's Secret bandeau top - it is my go to for these instances.
So, I get the coverage I want in case I have to reach up on a shelf without the added bulkiness of an entire shirt or tank UNDERNEATH my sweater. Win win! I have this bandeau top in black, white and tan. I had intended to order more once I figured out if they were going to work for me, but by that time they were sold out and I haven't seen them again since.
I know there are other similar products out there such as maternity belly bands and some infomercial products as well. Hope that helps someone!!
Remember to find your silver linig.
Back to the essence of the blog...ostomy fashion!
Another example of using the "belly band"
Here is am in dressier denim with a lightweight sweater. These jeans have no belt loops, they are a higher rise and they have a wide waistband - all great for ostomates! A few pictures of what it looks like before I added my "belly band".
So, I decided to throw on my upsidedown Victoria's Secret bandeau top - it is my go to for these instances.
So, I get the coverage I want in case I have to reach up on a shelf without the added bulkiness of an entire shirt or tank UNDERNEATH my sweater. Win win! I have this bandeau top in black, white and tan. I had intended to order more once I figured out if they were going to work for me, but by that time they were sold out and I haven't seen them again since.
I know there are other similar products out there such as maternity belly bands and some infomercial products as well. Hope that helps someone!!
Remember to find your silver linig.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Only time will tell
I’m gonna rewind here for a few, I hope you don’t mind. I hadn’t planned this post to happen on this day – it just kind of worked out that way and now I feel like I owe the day the “respect” it deserves for lack of a better analogy.
A year ago today, I made a phone call I had made many times before. I called my mommy. I was sick, I knew it was not a sick like I had been before and I was afraid I was going to die. Seriously…I did. I know a lot of people throw that phrase around non-chalantly “I almost died!” or “OMG, I would just die!” There was one time before in my battle with Crohn’s disease that I thought I was going to die – funny thing is that we didn’t even KNOW I had Crohn’s disease! Huh. Weird how that works out. Anyway, I really thought I was going to die, the pain was nothing I had experienced before. The fever wouldn’t go away. I was going to the bathroom more times in a day than most people did in a month. I felt like my insides were turning wrong-side-out. That was the beginning of the end for my colon.
The last 12 months have been a roller coaster. Surgery. Then a complication and another surgery and again. And one last time. You can get the full scoop HERE if you don’t already know. Even after the surgeries I had more hurdles to jump over. I knew going in that surgery wasn’t the “easy way out” but I swear I had NO idea WHAT “could go wrong”. Even if I had known that these things were going to happen, I would have done it anyway because my life is SO much better now than it was on this very day last year.
After I participated in Take Steps San Antonio in October I set my sights on Team Challenge ½ marathon as my next event. I had been cleared to exercise (finally) and went right to work. Well, you can probably guess that I had some issues. And even now, I have issues. But, if I want to do what I have set out to do I just have to push through them and know my limits. As you may have read I have an amazing relationship with my medical team and they are always in close contact so that if ANYTHING comes up that is out of the ordinary I receive immediate attention.
I started the Couch to 5K program and was about ½ way through it last weekend when I ran in the Color Me Rad 5k here in San Antonio. Okay, I ran and walked. I followed the C25K plan for the day and finished in about 47min going just over 3.3 miles (I circled back for friends!) My first event just so happened to coincide with Team Challenge Rock n’ Roll marathon & ½ marathon in Las Vegas. I promise I did NOT plan that. Those people in Vegas kept me going – everytime I thought “screw it, I’m just gonna walk” I imagined ALL.THOSE.PEOPLE in Las Vegas running for me! They were there because they believe in me – they believe that there will be a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. They believe that I deserve treatment, education and activities that help with IBD. I couldn’t let them down.
As I got towards the end of the race the last 11 months literally flashed before my eyes. It was like a music video in my mind – all the images of my body, my family, the hospital, exam rooms, things I had done, people I had met, conversations I had participated in – all of it just went whizzing by. I was totally overcome by emotion – my body almost stopped on me, like it was in shock. I was seriously about to complete a 5k. 6 months ago I would have LAUGHED at someone if they said I would finish a 5k a year from the day I thought I was going to die. Hell, I still had an open wound on my abdomen then! As I started up the hill to go under the FINISH arch I put my hands on top of my head and started to cry. For the FIRST time in a LONG time I felt “normal”, whatever that is!?
I crossed the finish line by myself – well, there were lots of people going through – but none that I knew or had come with. There was no one waiting for me to celebrate my victory. I had originally thought I wanted someone to be there – but when the moment happened I couldn’t have been happier to be doing it alone. FINALLY something that was just.for.me. My life with Crohn’s disease has been about everyone else; work, friends, family – the way it sneaks in and disrupts every aspect. But this – this day, this 3.1 miles, THIS was all me and so I was okay with being alone at the finish line. It gave me a chance to reflect on who I am. Who I have become over the past year. Who I struggle to be.
I am a mother. I am a wife. I am a daughter. I am a sister. I am a friend. I am a patient. I am an advocate. I am a voice. I am a warrior (and have the scars to prove it!) I AM CROHN’S DISEASE, it is NOT me.
I dedicate that 3.1miles to every single person out there who is in a place right now that you don’t think you can get out of. I’m here to tell you that you can. All you have to do is reach out, there is an entire community of people out there ready and willing to take you by the hand and show you how. You just have to want to do it.
Please come back this week – I’ll be doing an entire post dedicated to the IBD community by linking up all the places I go to for support, information or just a good laugh!
Find your silver lining and BE AWESOME!!
A year ago today, I made a phone call I had made many times before. I called my mommy. I was sick, I knew it was not a sick like I had been before and I was afraid I was going to die. Seriously…I did. I know a lot of people throw that phrase around non-chalantly “I almost died!” or “OMG, I would just die!” There was one time before in my battle with Crohn’s disease that I thought I was going to die – funny thing is that we didn’t even KNOW I had Crohn’s disease! Huh. Weird how that works out. Anyway, I really thought I was going to die, the pain was nothing I had experienced before. The fever wouldn’t go away. I was going to the bathroom more times in a day than most people did in a month. I felt like my insides were turning wrong-side-out. That was the beginning of the end for my colon.
The last 12 months have been a roller coaster. Surgery. Then a complication and another surgery and again. And one last time. You can get the full scoop HERE if you don’t already know. Even after the surgeries I had more hurdles to jump over. I knew going in that surgery wasn’t the “easy way out” but I swear I had NO idea WHAT “could go wrong”. Even if I had known that these things were going to happen, I would have done it anyway because my life is SO much better now than it was on this very day last year.
After I participated in Take Steps San Antonio in October I set my sights on Team Challenge ½ marathon as my next event. I had been cleared to exercise (finally) and went right to work. Well, you can probably guess that I had some issues. And even now, I have issues. But, if I want to do what I have set out to do I just have to push through them and know my limits. As you may have read I have an amazing relationship with my medical team and they are always in close contact so that if ANYTHING comes up that is out of the ordinary I receive immediate attention.
I started the Couch to 5K program and was about ½ way through it last weekend when I ran in the Color Me Rad 5k here in San Antonio. Okay, I ran and walked. I followed the C25K plan for the day and finished in about 47min going just over 3.3 miles (I circled back for friends!) My first event just so happened to coincide with Team Challenge Rock n’ Roll marathon & ½ marathon in Las Vegas. I promise I did NOT plan that. Those people in Vegas kept me going – everytime I thought “screw it, I’m just gonna walk” I imagined ALL.THOSE.PEOPLE in Las Vegas running for me! They were there because they believe in me – they believe that there will be a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. They believe that I deserve treatment, education and activities that help with IBD. I couldn’t let them down.
As I got towards the end of the race the last 11 months literally flashed before my eyes. It was like a music video in my mind – all the images of my body, my family, the hospital, exam rooms, things I had done, people I had met, conversations I had participated in – all of it just went whizzing by. I was totally overcome by emotion – my body almost stopped on me, like it was in shock. I was seriously about to complete a 5k. 6 months ago I would have LAUGHED at someone if they said I would finish a 5k a year from the day I thought I was going to die. Hell, I still had an open wound on my abdomen then! As I started up the hill to go under the FINISH arch I put my hands on top of my head and started to cry. For the FIRST time in a LONG time I felt “normal”, whatever that is!?
I crossed the finish line by myself – well, there were lots of people going through – but none that I knew or had come with. There was no one waiting for me to celebrate my victory. I had originally thought I wanted someone to be there – but when the moment happened I couldn’t have been happier to be doing it alone. FINALLY something that was just.for.me. My life with Crohn’s disease has been about everyone else; work, friends, family – the way it sneaks in and disrupts every aspect. But this – this day, this 3.1 miles, THIS was all me and so I was okay with being alone at the finish line. It gave me a chance to reflect on who I am. Who I have become over the past year. Who I struggle to be.
I am a mother. I am a wife. I am a daughter. I am a sister. I am a friend. I am a patient. I am an advocate. I am a voice. I am a warrior (and have the scars to prove it!) I AM CROHN’S DISEASE, it is NOT me.
I dedicate that 3.1miles to every single person out there who is in a place right now that you don’t think you can get out of. I’m here to tell you that you can. All you have to do is reach out, there is an entire community of people out there ready and willing to take you by the hand and show you how. You just have to want to do it.
Please come back this week – I’ll be doing an entire post dedicated to the IBD community by linking up all the places I go to for support, information or just a good laugh!
Find your silver lining and BE AWESOME!!
Friday, November 30, 2012
Purple Out People!!! #gopurple #purplechallenge
Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week starts tomorrow and we are so excited to celebrate it with everyone in our IBD family!
What is Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week?
As a result of a federal bill introduced by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and Congressman Andrew Crenshaw (R-FL-4) passed in 2011, Congress declared December 1-7 to be Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week to educate Americans about the diseases and encourage people to join in the effort to find a cure for IBD. This resolution was passed in thanks to some great Senators and Representatives who cosponsored it including:
· Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS)
· Senator Jack Reed (D-RI)
· Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
· Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)
· Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY)
· Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
· Senator Richard Burr (R-NC)
· Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
· Congressman Rush Holt (D-NH-12)
· Congressman Jesse Jackson (D-IL-1)
· Congressman Pete King (R-NY-3)
· Congressman Tom Latham (R-IA-4)
· Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY-14)
· Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA-3)
· Congressman Jim Moran (D-VA-8)
· Congressman Charlie Rangel (D-NY-15)
· Congressman Dennis Ross (R-FL-12)
· Congressman Pat Tiberi (R-OH-12)
· Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA-9)
Why celebrate?
Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis impact millions of people nationwide. We don’t have to tell you how debilitating these two incurable diseases can be- the cramping, the diarrhea, the constant urgency, the food limitations, and so on.
Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week is celebrated to make people aware of these diseases and raise money to bring us close to finding a cure.
How to celebrate this year
A group of Crohn’s and Colitis bloggers are coming together to celebrate this year with a Go Purple Challenge.
From December 1-7, we are going to wear an item of purple in honor of Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week. Whether it’s a shirt, bracelet, pants, socks, nail polish- it doesn’t matter as long as it’s visible and purple!
Each day, we are going to take a picture and post it on our blogs, Facebook, & Twitter to share with our followers to show our support of the Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week.
We are challenging all of you to join us!
Wear purple and take a photo of it each day and post it to your blog, Facebook, or Twitter with the hashtag [#GOpurple or #PurpleChallenge]. At the end of the week, we’ll compile all the photos on our blogs to share with everyone.
Want to celebrate but can’t participate in our challenge?
Check out the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America’s website for ideas- they have some great one’s listed for ways to participate in the week.
Happy Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week!
Rebecca (www.caringforcrohns.com, @caringforcrohns)
Sarah (www.myjourneywithcrohns.com, @SarahChoueiry)
Melissa (www.detouredfashion.blogspot.com, @allbluezoo)
Louise (www.youngcrohns.tumblr.com, @sapphire20)
Kristen (www.kla-yeayouknow.tumblr.com)
What is Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week?
As a result of a federal bill introduced by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and Congressman Andrew Crenshaw (R-FL-4) passed in 2011, Congress declared December 1-7 to be Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week to educate Americans about the diseases and encourage people to join in the effort to find a cure for IBD. This resolution was passed in thanks to some great Senators and Representatives who cosponsored it including:
· Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS)
· Senator Jack Reed (D-RI)
· Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
· Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)
· Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY)
· Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA)
· Senator Richard Burr (R-NC)
· Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
· Congressman Rush Holt (D-NH-12)
· Congressman Jesse Jackson (D-IL-1)
· Congressman Pete King (R-NY-3)
· Congressman Tom Latham (R-IA-4)
· Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY-14)
· Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA-3)
· Congressman Jim Moran (D-VA-8)
· Congressman Charlie Rangel (D-NY-15)
· Congressman Dennis Ross (R-FL-12)
· Congressman Pat Tiberi (R-OH-12)
· Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA-9)
Why celebrate?
Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis impact millions of people nationwide. We don’t have to tell you how debilitating these two incurable diseases can be- the cramping, the diarrhea, the constant urgency, the food limitations, and so on.
Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week is celebrated to make people aware of these diseases and raise money to bring us close to finding a cure.
How to celebrate this year
A group of Crohn’s and Colitis bloggers are coming together to celebrate this year with a Go Purple Challenge.
From December 1-7, we are going to wear an item of purple in honor of Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week. Whether it’s a shirt, bracelet, pants, socks, nail polish- it doesn’t matter as long as it’s visible and purple!
Each day, we are going to take a picture and post it on our blogs, Facebook, & Twitter to share with our followers to show our support of the Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week.
We are challenging all of you to join us!
Wear purple and take a photo of it each day and post it to your blog, Facebook, or Twitter with the hashtag [#GOpurple or #PurpleChallenge]. At the end of the week, we’ll compile all the photos on our blogs to share with everyone.
Want to celebrate but can’t participate in our challenge?
Check out the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America’s website for ideas- they have some great one’s listed for ways to participate in the week.
Happy Crohn’s & Colitis Awareness Week!
Rebecca (www.caringforcrohns.com, @caringforcrohns)
Sarah (www.myjourneywithcrohns.com, @SarahChoueiry)
Melissa (www.detouredfashion.blogspot.com, @allbluezoo)
Louise (www.youngcrohns.tumblr.com, @sapphire20)
Kristen (www.kla-yeayouknow.tumblr.com)
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
#NHBPM - what day is it?!
Guess what? I didn't blog everyday.
Guess what else? I think that's great!
You know why it is great?
Because it means LIFE was getting in the way and that is A-O-K with me.
I've been black Friday shopping, putting up decorations, visiting friends, celebrating new babies, enjoying time with my family and generally just not worrying about Crohn's disease one-freaking-bit.
Can you GRASP the enormity of that?
NOT WORRYING ABOUT CROHN'S DISEASE?!
For those of you WITH IBD you probably can grasp that, for those who are closest to me and really understand what the past 9 years (specifically the past 18months) was like - you probably grasp it too.
I'm stuck between crying for joy and getting shit-faced on peppermint schnapps. Okay, I'm not gonna get drunk on schnapps b/c that is WAY too much sugar and I'd be up all damn night - but you're pickin' up what I'm throwin' down.
Sorry if you were counting on my infinite wisdom imparted into a blog post for every day of NHBPM....I promise to make it up to you somehow, k?
Find your silver lining and be awesome!
Guess what else? I think that's great!
You know why it is great?
Because it means LIFE was getting in the way and that is A-O-K with me.
I've been black Friday shopping, putting up decorations, visiting friends, celebrating new babies, enjoying time with my family and generally just not worrying about Crohn's disease one-freaking-bit.
Can you GRASP the enormity of that?
NOT WORRYING ABOUT CROHN'S DISEASE?!
For those of you WITH IBD you probably can grasp that, for those who are closest to me and really understand what the past 9 years (specifically the past 18months) was like - you probably grasp it too.
I'm stuck between crying for joy and getting shit-faced on peppermint schnapps. Okay, I'm not gonna get drunk on schnapps b/c that is WAY too much sugar and I'd be up all damn night - but you're pickin' up what I'm throwin' down.
Sorry if you were counting on my infinite wisdom imparted into a blog post for every day of NHBPM....I promise to make it up to you somehow, k?
Find your silver lining and be awesome!
Saturday, November 24, 2012
#NHBPM 23 of 30 - Something your doctor has taught you
What have you learned from your doctor?
Which one? There’s a gastroenterologist. A dermatologist. A hematologist. A psychologist. An infectious
disease doc. Of course the “primary care physician”. A surgeon. Oh, the surgeon. THE surgeon.
I’ve definitely learned the most from my surgeon. We’ve “been together” for 11 months now – that is EONS in the land of military
healthcare where everyone is moving or deploying and you can easily go through
5 doctors before it is YOUR turn to move.
She left me once – deployment – but true to her word she is back and
picked up right where she left off.
I wish everyone I knew that had to have surgery could have
her for a surgeon. What has she taught
me?
Vulnerability. The day she came to
tell me I had developed a fistula. Her face when she walked through the door –
a combination of pain, helplessness, confusion mixed with the concern of a
mother and someone who has pledged to “do no harm”.
How to
be humble. When things continued to push
the borders of typical surgery related issues she sought out the physicians who
could help. She was never afraid to
say “I don’t know” and quick to take all offered suggestions into consideration.
Transparency. She cried. She sat in my hospital room with my family
and she cried. And she looked at my
husband in the eyes and told him she was gonna fix this thing if we would let
her but she understood if we wanted to move onto to someone else and she would
make that happen. She curses. That might offend some people but it just
makes me like her that much more. She
likes coffee, she hates to run, she drinks sangria and she just put a pool in
her backyard. I bet most people don’t
know stuff like that about their doctors.
But that is who she is.
Kindness.
She NEVER seems put out by me. The
emails, the phone calls, the pages. She
returns them all. She IS a kind heart.
Selflessness. She’s in the military, so that
is just a given. I remember her coming
to my room in her civilian clothes “just to check on you” as she would say on
her way to an event with her family or on the way home from something. I asked her to walk with my team for CCFA’s
Take Steps this year. She had guests in
from out of town and came anyway – after spending the morning at Sea World with
her family.
Strength. I don't know how to put this one into words. She believes in me (where my health is concerned) and that empowers me and strengthens me physically and mentally. It is through HER strength that I am able to find mine is this conundrum that is IBD.
Simply put, she is awesome and I don't believe for ONE SECOND that if I would have been paired up with another surgeon I would be the post-op person I am today.
At Take Steps San Antonio 2012
me, Dr. Pottymouth and Shana my WOCN.
I have since added another WOCN but she had to leave early :)
Find your silver lining and be awesome.
#NHBPM 22 of 30 - days late and dollars short
What I'm thankful for - God, family, friends, modern medicine, PICC lines, blood transfusions, sushi, Cholula, coffee, LEGOs, basketball, water, my husband's career, medical coverage, the internet, US military, my education, the CCFA, Texas weather, the NFL, king size beds, relationships, plastic surgery, toll roads, Greek yogurt, The Chew, technology - most of the time, the school bus and my health.
Find your silver lining and be awesome.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)