Warning...Poop Post...Read at your own risk.

I did promise you an account of my last trip to FL in December. It was quite a drive for me because I wasn't having a very good intestinal day!!! (darn crohns beast) The result was a lot of stopping at a lot of fast food restaurants to use their bathrooms. Most fast food restaurants are a better choice than gas stations and rest stops. It's been my experience that the ffr bathrooms are cleaner. Anyway I had no choice but to stop at a rest stop bathroom. It wasn't too bad...it was cleaner then most, the problem was in my hurry I picked a stall right next to someone. Now ya know how you try to hold back "the noise" till someone flushes...oh come on you know you do it!!! Well there was no holding back for me that day...I'm talking long winded (pun intended). At first I felt bad for the poor person next to me and after a few minutes of this I had a hard time keeping from laughing out loud. It was like a scene from an Austin Powers movie. lol Whats even funnier is that I started to notice the noises the person next to me was making. OMG all I can say is that she probably wished she had my problem because it sounded like she was having a lot of trouble "pushing" it out...moans and groans that sounded like she was going to pass out or have a baby or something. It moments like these that you are thankful that whoever is in that bathroom with you you will never see again. I left before her so I hope everything came out ok! hee hee hee. I am happy to report that the rest of the trip was not as noisy.

Well now that thats over I'm happy to say It's a new year and I'm praying for good health for all of us.

I hope we can all avoid this bad flu thats going around.

Love, Laugh, and always know where the nearest bathroom is

All I want for Christmas is: A Crohnie Christmas list!

Favorite Toilet Paper
Imodium
A good bathroom book
Jolly in the John Snowman (I saw this at the hallmark store and I love it)



He is motion activated. Watch the youtube video to see what he says

http://youtu.be/WADMOd76ujI

Directions to all the best bathrooms
Bathroom spray or matches
Emergency Underpants Dispenser



Toilet seat covers
Flat screen tv
ToastieTush Toilet Seat Heater



Love, Laugh, and Always know where the nearest bathroom is

The Angry/Why Me Place

The bowel saga continues…I went very quickly back to my version of normal and even quicker to the other extreme of major diarrhea. Fortunately that did not last long and I am back to my normal. Other than that the beast has been quiet. The fistula on the other hand flared right after I came home. Since then it has been draining a lot and goes from hurting really bad to hurting just a little and back to hurting really bad. Last night it was hurting really really bad. So bad that it sent me to that angry/why me place. Isn’t dealing with breast cancer enough? Why do I have to deal with this pain too? Or, I’ve been suffering with Crohns disease so long why do I have to go through breast cancer too. Since the surgery I spend a lot of time sitting because that’s about all I can do. That’s the only time I’m comfortable. Then the fistula flares and I’m not even comfortable sitting. Arrrrggggg! I wonder if the change in my bowels caused the flare? I guess it could be from all the sitting around? Whatever the cause I’ve had enough. Of course as angry as all this makes me I am very thankful that no other crohns related problem has reared its ugly head. I just want it ALL to feel better….please!!! Speaking of sitting around, I don’t usually have the TV on during the day and let me tell you I’m not missing anything. I can’t believe we have all these channels and I still can’t find anything good to watch. I’ve never been fond of game shows and I no longer watch soap operas. I say no longer because years ago when my kids were younger I watched a few soap operas but now I have no desire to watch them. I’m sure if I tuned in it would only take me a few days to feel like I picked up right where I left off lol. Of course with all that’s going on in my life I guess you could say I’m living my own little soap opera…Nahh. I’m also not really crazy about talk shows so unless there is a good movie on I’m more tempted to take a nap. Well actually there are all the reruns of old shows. I do like Everybody Loves Raymond. I could watch that all day. I’m starting to get my appetite back but I don’t have any cravings. It would be nice to crave something I would really enjoy eating. The one thing I always crave and always look forward to is a Starbucks Chai Latte. My sister and sister in law have been bringing me those as often as they can…yum. Well since there is not a Chai Latte on the way that nap is sounding pretty good.

Love, Laugh, and Always know where the nearest bathroom is
For updates on my Breast Cancer journey go to:
http://yourboobsoryourlife.blogspot.com/

Check That

Did I really say that I was happy to be only going to the bathroom once or twice a day? Did I really think what was happening was normal? Well if that was normal you can have it. I don’t know maybe my intestines just don’t remember what normal is like. Maybe after so many years my intestines just can’t handle being normal anymore. Maybe this just wasn’t really normal. Whatever it quickly made me very unhappy. It got to the point where I always felt like I had to go and so I would climb the stairs and try to go and NOTHING. Or I would go sit for 20 minutes and all I got out was this teeny tiny poop…”that’s it, that’s all? You felt like the rock of Gibraltar”. I got so tired of pushing out a little nothing that felt like a lot of something. If that is normal I don’t want any part of it. I don’t really think I can call it constipation. I don’t think going once or twice a day falls under the constipated heading. How do people who don’t go for days do it? I think it would kill me. I would just die right there on the toilet in the middle of the drop. (Not how I want to go out, not how I want to be remembered…poor girl she just pooped to death) I’ve always said that if I had to choose between diarrhea and constipation I would always pick diarrhea. I have always suspected that constipation was a horrible painful way to go so to speak and now I know I was right. Well silly me what was I thinking…after all I am always right :)

The good news is I’m back to my version of normal…its not ideal but it beats being that other version of normal...

Love, Laugh, and Always know where the nearest bathroom is
…and may it be a version that you love

For an update on my Breast Cancer journey go to:
http://yourboobsoryourlife.blogspot.com/

New Med = Less Bathroom (so far)

I went to see my GI the other day and we discussed the Pentasa I’ve been taking for longer than I can remember. 2 pills 4 times per day. I was out of refills and needed a new script called in. He told me if I wanted I could take 4 pills 2 times per day or he could switch me to a different drug (Asacol ~ mesalamine ) that was 2 pills 2 times per day. I said sure I’ll try the Asacol. About a week later, after my insurance company approved it (don’t you just love insurance companies) I got it filled and started taking it. I’ve been taking it for about a week now and it is helping better then the Pentasa. I don’t have to go to the bathroom as often woo hoo. As a matter of fact it is 1:42 and I haven’t gone yet. This is like the closest I’ve ever gotten to constipation lol. Going less should be very helpful during mastectomy post-op. My surgery is scheduled for October 22nd which is creeping up on me quickly. I’ve found some very informative blogs that have given me lots of ideas of what to take with me to the hospital and what to expect after the surgery. I’ve started packing a bag already so that I don’t forget anything that I read about. The bad news is my fistula has been acting up. I got a script for Cipro so I hope that gets it under control FAST. I don’t want anything to postpone my surgery. I just want to get this over with. I’m also getting back on track with my gluten free diet. All the junk food is gone. B had some friends over and the gobbled it all up. I want to eat as healthy as I can leading up to the surgery (something I should have been doing all along). Since I’ve been off the vitamin D3 my joints have been hurting more and the past few days have been really bad. This could also be because of the change in the weather. I hope I can get back on the D3 quickly after the surgery is over. Well I will try to update you a few times between now and my surgery. Until then

Love, Laugh, and Always know where the nearest bathroom is

Friday was Fabulous! Monday was Horrible!

Guess what I got on my Fabulous Friday

My free sample of rice cakes…Three…3…yes three different kinds of Quaker Gluten Free Rice Cakes. Lightly salted, caramel corn and apple cinnamon. I’ve tried the apple cinnamon already and I love them. At first I was thinking I’m sure these are ok but I bet I’m going to need to spread something on them to give them a little boast but what??? Nope they are very very good all by themselves.

Saturday was very rainy but relaxing. Sunday was sunny and warm and we spent the day doing more yard work and vacuuming the pool. That may sound like work but it really feels good to stand by the pool in the warm sun and guide the vacuum around. Yes I know the vacuum should go around on its own but it always goes in the same pattern and misses spots or gets stuck somewhere or clogged.

Well thank goodness for fabulous Friday and relaxing Saturday and Sunday because Monday….yeah Monday was just plain horrible! CT Scan horrible, contrast drinking injecting gagging horrible.

Wake up…No food for you.

Arrive at hospital…wait…fill out forms…wait…register…wait…get forms back…wait…get IV started

Drink 3 bottles of contrast similar to this (my bottles were bigger about 32oz each I think blah)



Gag, gag, gag, gag, almost throw up, squeeze hubs fingers off, gag, gag, tantrum, gag, gag, almost throw up, beg hubs to drink some for me but even my most pathetic face can’t convince him (can’t say I blame him), gag, gag, must find bathroom (over about 45 min.) (vow [like I always do during this test] that I will NEVER have this test again)

Wait…(about 25 min)

Climb onto machine similar to this



Scaned

Injected with contrast similar to this



Scaned again

IV removed

All done

Must find bathroom

Home sweet home…eat…bed…nauseous the rest of the day…I hate Crohns

Love, Laugh and Always know where the nearest bathroom is…

In My Own Little Corner

Do you know that song from Rogers and Hammerstein’s version of Cinderella “In My Own Little Corner”? That should be my theme song. I seem to spend all my time these days tucked into the corner of my couch with my laptop to my left and the TV remote to my right (except when I’m in the bathroom of course). Not quite the same as Cinderella’s corner but still it’s a corner and I always seem to be in it. Occasionally I find someone else in my corner and well let me just tell you they aren’t there for long if they know what’s good for them.

In my own little corner in my own little chair
I can be whatever I want to be.
On the wings of my fancy I can fly anywhere
and the world will open its arms to me.

I really need to get my energy back and get out of this corner.

Love, laugh, and always know where the nearest bathroom is