Hi, my name is Allison and I am 21 years old. I’m a senior in college finishing out my final year with a Management degree. I was just diagnosed with Gastroparesis July of 2020. However, I’ve been dealing with stomach and gi issues for almost 2 years. In January of 2019 I contracted C diff colitis, from being on antibiotic. This superbug turned my entire world upside down. It left me feeling weak, scared, and traumatized. I eventually got better from the c diff and tested negative for the bacteria. However, I was left with so many gi issues and my body never felt the same prior to the c diff. I had extremely bad acid reflux, bloating and distension, and was still struggling to have normal bowel movements. My gi diagnosed me with sibo after doing a breath test. So, I took Xifaxan (an antibiotic) to control the sibo, which really helped. I started to feel so much better and was having normal bowel movements again. However, the sibo kept on coming back and I still have really bad acid reflux, but I didn’t really care because I felt somewhat normal and I felt like I could live my life again. I kept on repeating the Xifaxan regime every time I felt a relapse of the sibo, and I just ignored the symptoms of the reflux because my gi doctor didn’t seem to care. This went on for about a year until this March of 2020, my reflux got so bad that one day I was spitting up stomach acid and could not stop. The next day I felt so nauseous, could barely eat, and felt like my stomach was weak. These symptoms went on for months, and my gi doctor just prescribed me a ppi and an antidepressant for a month and said it will help. This just made things worse and I just began to feel worse and worse and was losing weight very fast. By June I had lost 25lbs, and my gi doctor finally realized that something was wrong and ordered me blood tests, endoscopy, and a gastric emptying test. After all these tests, in June my gastric emptying test results were abnormal, and my gi diagnosed me with Gastroparesis. My world felt like it was cumbling down, I was releaved to get a diagnosis, but heartbroken that this illens’s has no known cure. Since then, it has still been extremely hard on me mentally and physicall. I cannot do the things I used to do anymore and I feel weak all the time. I have started domperidone to help with emptying, which hasn’t helped too much. Although it’s hard to stay positive, I am working with a specialist at the Cleveland Clinic and had already had a visit where I just completed the Smart Pill test this week and a lot of bloodwork. I know I’m on the right track to healing myself, and I know that people do recover and recover can be possible. But it’s so hard some days, and I feel very alone, and almost not like a person in society anymore. If anyone has an advice on how to help with the mental aspect of this illness, I am all ears and would love to hear it <3
