Light at the End of the Tunnel

I know I sound like a broken record at this point but I had another successful week. The fundraising event “Get Gutsy” ended and I finished with 57.5 miles in 20 days! And, thanks to those who donated, I surpassed my fundraising goal! I set a mini goal within this event to be able to run a half mile by the end of it. I accomplished this by running .53 miles in 4 minutes and 27 seconds on Saturday. It took a lot out of me to run that, my legs were shaky and my heart rate was through the roof, but it felt good to do something physically demanding again. Physically I’ve been feeling better each day. I’ve been trying to add things where I can without putting stress on my abdomen which the surgeon said would still take 2-4 weeks to recover completely. It’s been fun to see my body adapt to the changes and how quickly I’ve regained some strength and stamina.

Speaking of surgeons, I had my follow up appointment with my surgeon on Tuesday. This was the appointment that cleared me to run and encouraged me to add more activity when possible into my day. Every time I have an appointment with them they are extremely encouraging and give me a lot of hope. We also set a date for my next procedure and what that looks like! October 5th. That’s the next big day. I’ll be going up to Cleveland to hand a colonoscopy to see how well, or if, the new medication I’m on is working. Based on these results, the surgeon will determine what my next surgery will be on October 6th when I have my appointment with him. The hope is, the medication is working and my colon looks great. If that’s the case, I’ll be able to have my ostomy taken down and everything reconnected to work normally. If the medication isn’t working, or if the scarring is too bad from my last flare, then they will take out my colon completely. My hope is that the medication is working, but ultimately I’ll be happy to finally have answers and a final(ish) decision. If you asked me 4 months ago if I would be ok having an ostomy for the rest of my life I would have adamantly said no. Having lived with it for a little over a month, I’ve grown to the idea of it. Especially if it keeps me feeling healthy and gives me an opportunity for an active lifestyle! I could not have come full circle like this without the support of my amazing wife and family and friends. I’m looking forward to continued progress and a light at the end of the tunnel!

With Love,

Andy