In November 2007, November 2009 seemed a lifetime away. In a way it was: Waking up in a hospital. Seeing my extended family file through the hospital room to see me. Taking my first steps. Going home for the first time. Ten confirmed kidney stones. Two that were over half an inch in diameter. Six months of nightly TPN. Another month of TPN for five nights a week. Two blood infections. A commencement address. Moving to college. Coming home from college. Staying home. Two years of "unemployment" during the worst economic meltdown in 80 years. Voting in the presidential election. Seeing the first African-American President being inaugurated. Starting a globally-read blog. A healthy rotation of daily pills. It could easily be a lifetime's worth of events. But it was just two years.
It has been quite the journey, and I realize that it is far from over. While I was initially told that the small intestine adapts for two years after resections; some research shows evidence that it will continue to adapt for five years after resection. I will choose to believe five years is correct, since it is most convenient for my goals. In this case, my intestines are less than halfway to their fully-adapted selves. This would definitely be a good thing. After just two years of adaptation, I have finally started gaining weight, with a net-gain of 11 pounds since after my surgeries. In all, since 11/1, I am down 16 pounds. Little known fact about the small intestine: it weighs approximately six pounds. Therefore, I have just ten pounds left to gain to reach my 11/1 weight, discounting the weight of my lost organs. Granted, this will be a much different weight than it was before V-Day (V for Volvulus). Pre-V-Day, I ran about five miles after school everyday at cross country practice. My senior year I ran a 5k (3.1 miles) in the low 19 minutes consistently. I have said before, I was far from a dominant force on the course, but 19 minutes is respectable enough. Now, I haven't ran since ... well ... V minus 11. October 22, 2007: my last cross country race and the last time a ran more than a few paces. Probably the last time I was shirtless in public, but that's a tangent I simply cannot afford to carry out. Pre-V-Day I was the epitome of teenage health (not quite); now ... not so much. Yesterday, for instance, the fam and I went to my grandparents house. My twin cousins (born on V plus 18) brought large toddler legos. So naturally, I sat in front of the TV and built a castle. As anyone who has ever been to a family gathering with young kids can attest, this inevitable turns into a wrestling match. Being the oldest, I, along with my sister, are the targets for tackling. Luckily, only one of my cousins is older than four. So the wrestling was more keeping my 8-year-old cousin on the ground while my sister and I alternated picking up the young boys and girls and laying them across the 8-year-old. It was surprisingly entertaining. And I am surprisingly sore today. The point I am trying to make here is this: Pre-V-Day I ran 30ish miles per week culminating in a 3-plus mile race. V plus I am really sore after an hour or so of wrestling with four young children.
But two years ago, I would have done anything to have known that two years later I would be wrestling with my cousins in my grandparents house and be fully capable of holding my own.
Now for the bad news. It is possible that my absence has been noticed. I haven't posted in over a month, the longest lapse since this blog's inception. The truth is that it has become a bit of a burden for me. When I first started writing, it was a crutch, another time-waster to supplement my time on facebook during which I filled the time not being taken up by my social life. The last few posts, I noticed that I was becoming stressed about coming up with things to write about. I take this as a good thing: my health is more stable now than it has been since pre-V-Day. But the purpose of the blog was to alleviate stress, not create it. So I am officially saying goodbye. I don't think it will be forever. I foresee myself updating the blog when I reach various milestones that I deem worthy of a blog post. But this is probably the last time I will be writing a blog for awhile.
The blog will still be active though. So if any reader has a question or comment on which they would like the Intestineless Wonder's advice, post a comment. I will receive an e-mail notification. The comment won't be posted unless I give it permission, so if you don't want it published for all to see, just stipulate that in your message. I will do everything I can to get back to you in a timely and efficient manner and with as much information as I possibly can.
This blog helped me a lot since February, and I am eternally grateful for the safety it provided me. A long-running joke in my family is that we have our "happy places" when we are really uncomfortable (one of my young twin cousins prefers to hide underneath the nearest desk). Well, for the last nine months, this blog was my happy place. When I was alone in my dorm room, sitting on my dirty, smelly futon wishing I had something to do, I did have something to do: I could share my thoughts and feelings with my faithful Wondeaders. So I would like to thank you for your support, convincing me that this was worth it. That I was worth it.
It has been two years, and at the same time it has only been two years. It has been such a long time, and yet, if feels as though it just happened. Two years. It was the unreachable summit. The day that never comes. V plus 731. And here I am standing on field of battle surrounded by fallen foes, and I am victorious. (Note: by "fallen foes," I am of course referring to various obstacles that I have had to overcome in the past two years, mentioned and unmentioned earlier and in previous posts)
To all those suffering with short-gut, I hope I can shed some light on this rare, virtually unknown disease. Know that you are not alone in your battles. It is not hopeless, although I know at times it may appear to be so. I hope this blog helps you find your way. It certainly helped me find mine.
Sincerely Yours, now and always,
The Intestineless Wonder
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