Shannon's Story: Colitis and Diverticulitis

Russell,

I am writing to you a week and a day into working with you. I wanted to put in writing what I am experiencing that I seem to fail at expressing when we talk; mostly because I am so excited and cannot get the words out properly.

I cannot remember a time that my belly was good; except for a short time 8 years ago when I plunged into acupuncture and worked with an herbalist. I did see improvement for a while; less running to the bathroom, an increased appetite, but after a little over a year all of my symptoms returned and I was back to square one.

I had a fabulous GI doctor. She just retired. She wanted nothing but for me to be better. After 4 colonoscopies in a matter of a year and a half which showed nothing; no Crohns, no nothing, she brought my story to her colleagues. After my hysterectomy at 28 that was done laparoscopically, the team thought that it was endometriosis that was causing my pain and incessant diarrhea.  Two laser surgeries later; endo everywhere that kept recurring I finally went to New York to a specialist. He removed all the endo again; from my lungs to my intestines, bladder and bowel. PHEW. It was over.

Well, not so fast. 6 weeks after surgery I was back to constant diarrhea – upwards of 15 times a day; but at least I was pain free, right?  Prior to this surgery, I was in constant abdominal pain and I was hopeful that if the pain went away caused by the endometriosis, that my belly issues would disappear too. I was hopeful that the two were connected; unfortunately they were not. The constant pains are gone though;      so one less thing to deal with is always a good thing.

I have tried everything. Gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free – nothing changed. This was just my lot in life; to be the girl with a terrible belly who had to plan ahead for everything “just in case” I needed a bathroom at a moment’s notice and I just dealt with it. I have missed weddings, had ruined vacations, missed milestone birthdays and countless holidays and for times on end I could not even make it to Pilates classes because there was no safe place for me to run to if I needed to (and I always needed to!)

Aside from it just being embarrassing running out of class. I even went so far as buying a reformer (THE pilates apparatus) so I could just work out at home. I run my family’s school bus company and had to give up driving a bus because it was too scary to be away from a bathroom. My husband has had to watch me suffer and cope forever.

I have never taken our dogs on a walk in 5 years because I could not be away from the house. Forget shopping (thank God for the internet). Then in early November, 2017 I was hospitalized and diagnosed with diverticulitis. It was insane pain and misery and I was discharged with nothing more than prescriptions. Oh, and my trip to Austin, Texas was cancelled – yet another vacation ruined. I took a deep dive online. Literally every web site that I went to said something different – and finally I just cried.

I almost gave up but then decided to do one more search online, this time more specifically looking for stories from those that had and were successfully dealing with diverticulitis. That’s when I found Liz’s story on your website; and here we are. I had nothing to lose but after reading all that was on your web site, I knew I needed some hand holding and coaching.

So Russell, this is why I am writing to you a mere 8 days into working with you. After our initial consultation I spent time talking it all over with Charlie (my husband) since he is my food prepper in general. We agreed to go forward because what you explained to us made sense. You answered our questions and concerns. We felt hopeful. We had a plan; your plan. Plus, I decided that I could do anything for three months, right?

I was overwhelmed at first – but with your constant reassurances everything has fallen into place. It was LITERALLY two days in and I was better; insane right? I felt like the universe was playing a trick on me. TWO DAYS!

I have an appetite again and the bathroom is no longer my second home. Food prep is easy; albeit a bit restricted or limited but I will take temporary restriction and limitation over how I felt any day; nothing else matters. I feel like a human again.

I am mastering new recipes to keep things more interesting and the supplements are WAY easier than I ever imagined. Everyone in my life has commented on how I look; that I am smiling again and that I have an altogether different aura (if that makes sense). My sleep is better, my life is better. How can I tell everyone? I want to scream and jump up and down and tell anyone and everyone that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I know I am just at the beginning of my journey and there might be hiccups along the way; but I cannot express my gratitude to you enough. You are my hero; my very own Christmas miracle, the best coach anyone could have. Your support and guidance make all of this pain-free and easy. This is going to be the best holiday ever and I am not going to miss anything for the first time in years!

Best,
Shannon