Life Happens but I'm Back!

When I created this blog, I had plans to update it often - daily, even. But, truth be told, life happens. And unfortunately, this little gem had to take a backseat for awhile. So, after nearly a month-long hiatus, I am back! Over the past few weeks, I have dealt with a lot of personal and family issues that created a lot of stress. But, everything is settling down now, and once again, I'm able to focus more of my attention to helping others through their Crohn's or Colitis journey!

What? Why would I want to do that? As crazy as it may sound to some, helping and educating other IBD'ers and their friends/family gives me a sense of accomplishment, peace, and good ol' satisfaction. I guess what I'm saying is, I'm not doing this for you - I'm being a selfish brat and it's all for me!! (Just kidding. This is 100% for YOU.)

A quick run-down of my health status: 

1. The shingles I had are long gone, finally.
2. I've been trying to taper off of Prednisone (this link will take you to my previous blog post about steroid meds), but ran into some issues with it. My body had withdrawal symptoms, and my Crohn's flared back up with a vengeance. So, I'm still on the medication, but am working toward weaning off again.
3. The Prednisone also gave me the delightful side-effect of severe muscle spasms in my back, legs, and feet. I've been miserable with these aches and pains, but it's getting better!
4. My GI doctor has recommended a second surgical opinion for my fistula surgery, for reasons that I'll expand on after I meet with the new surgeon.
5. Because my surgery has been postponed again, I am back on Cimzia - a biologic injection medication - for treating my Crohn's. The injections seems to be helping to at least keep the fistulas from growing and worsening while I await surgery.

I'll keep this post short, as it's more about my status than helping others, but I would like to say that I'm really glad to be back. And I'm looking forward to the next step of the journey. In the meantime, I have some more highly-informative posts planned for this blog, thanks to questions asked by readers and friends. 

If you're new to my blog or new to Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), a great starting point would be HERE. You can also learn more about the various symptoms of Crohn's and Colitis HERE. Feel free to read through my posts to educate yourself or others about the Crohn's and Colitis struggle.

As always, please SHARE my blog with anyone you feel may benefit from it! And don't hesitate to comment, ask questions, or share your complete disgust of the disease with all of us! Stay tuned, there's lots of goodies in store!