Going with my Gut: A Journey to Wellness

Being at my parents house is very relaxing and I'm healing more each day. There are also lots of challenges including everything under the sun bathroom-related (I am keeping a running bloopers memory list!). I'm not in much pain and there is much more laughter than tears. Thank goodness for help from my parents and my visiting ostomy nurse...and naps, lots of naps!! One major plus to this stage of the operation is WAY more freedom in my my food options. Many of you know I had been on an extremely limited diet (the Specific Carbohydrate Diet) which helped keep my symptoms in check, but was a lot of work. For the last five years my diet has consisted of primarily eggs, meat, fish, vegetables, and fruit. I was not supposed to eat processed foods, even simple ones like organic tomato sauce or chicken broth because they could contain stray spices with "illegal" ingredients or illegals like sugar (did you know companies don't have to list ingredients on the nutrition

For those of you not on Facebook, I wanted to let you know that my surgery went well on Tuesday and I've been healing lots every day since. I just got discharged today an I'm staying with my amazing parents for a while to get back on my feet. There have been challenges every day, but lots of growth and new beginnings! Thanks for your ongoing encouragement and suppprt- it truly makes a big difference!! Time for a nap, I'll post more later. Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas!

Tomorrow's the big day and I spent some time this weekend doing some reflection, journaling, and talking to my body about what will be happening. I was told that when an organ is being removed it's a good idea to release that body part with love and gratitude for what it has provided. Here are some excerpts from my journal: Dear Colon, Thank you for 32 years of hard work. For 25 years I didn't think about you at all. We ate homemade pasta in Italy, lobster on the Cape, and s'mores by the campfire. You processed nutrients, extracted water, and eliminated waste. You were such a steady, reliable part of my daily functioning that I took you for granted. Things started to get tough in 2009. That's when your inflammation and suffering began. Since then you have been tested and tried, poked and prodded with colonoscopies, sigmoidoscopies, biopsies, pills (Lialda, 6MP, prednisone), and infusion medications (Remicade, Entyvio). We tried alternatives to Western medicin