Promise Fulfilled: Ulcerative Colitis Healed!

The Diagnosis

I’ll never forget the relief I felt after being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis on July 16, 2008. By this time, I had already been suffering with painful symptoms for almost a year. I couldn’t go out in public without having debilitating cramps that would literally bend me over, and force me to need a bathroom immediately. Food was brutal! If I had plans, I wouldn’t eat, so that I wouldn’t have to deal with the pain or inconvenience of my situation. These frequent episodes drained my energy.

After having a colonoscopy and being diagnosed, my G.I. doctor informed me that I had a chronic disease with no cure. I’d need to manage it with medication for the rest of my life. At twenty three, this should have been a grim diagnosis, but I was suffering and couldn’t be happier to finally have some relief. Statistically, I was not supposed to have this disease. But, as with many of my diagnoses over the years, this one would also be for the glory of God.

What is Ulcerative Colitis?

Ulcerative Colitis or U.C. is an autoimmune disease of the intestines. It causes ulcers in various parts of the large colon. My symptoms were intense cramps, nausea, fatigue, gas, bloating, feeling like I couldn’t fully empty my bowels, and bloody bowel movements that ranged anywhere from constipation to diarrhea. The symptoms are much like IBS, except with U.C., there is actual damage to the colon lining or ulcers in the colon. Stress is a trigger and can make the symptoms worse.

God’s Promise

A few years after my diagnosis, I was at church and a woman told me that God was working on a healing for me. I’ve always kept that word in my heart. I waited for years, hoping it would be an instantaneous healing. However, I didn’t lose faith even when it wasn’t, because I knew and believed what God said. Over the years, there were many altar calls that beckoned for people that needed a healing to come up and get prayer. I’d go 99% of the time, and I’d believe. But when the cramps would hit, or I’d see the blood, it would remind me that it wasn’t my time yet, and I had to be ok with it.

The Doctors

Throughout the years, I had four different doctors due to insurance, and personal preference. One of them wanted to increase my medicine from two pills a day to four and gave me a false diagnosis. Which meant, I took meds unnecessarily.

My U.C. didn’t go into remission too many times or for too long. The medication I took worked somewhat. However, I didn’t want to test out more, or have a stronger dosage, because that could have been damaging to my liver. The beginning of my diagnosis was trial and error. So after finding a medicine that worked most of the time, I chose to plow through the colitis, to avoid side effects from new medications.

Around 2019, I found a pretty good G.I. doctor. He was nice…he listened…and he told me that my case was mild and it could go away on its own!! MIND BLOWN! I mean, I know what God said, and I stood on his word, but when my medical doctor agreed with the word of the Lord, I was shook! I don’t know if he was a believer or not, but he initiated a shift in my life.

I wasn’t sure how this could happen, or when. My own research with this disease and healing my gut kept coming up short. I needed a step by step plan that I could just follow through. My next colonoscopy was recommended for Oct. of 2022, but this G.I. doctor’s office would no longer accept my insurance as of Jan 2022. Not that I wanted a colonoscopy, but I took it as a sign.

After the insurance issue, I found a male nurse practitioner who was naturally minded that could take over my care, and at least keep my prescriptions going. He was really personable and we clicked really well. However, I only had him for a few months, when he tragically passed away in April of 2022. This was such a blow not only to me, but to our whole community. So here I was, without a healthcare provider, with a chronic disease, and more medical issues about to pile up. But what looked hopeless, actually turned out to be one of the best set ups God could have orchestrated for me.

The Jump

In June of 2022, my blood pressure elevated. Doctors weren’t concerned, but I was. I didn’t like it, and I was tired. Tired of the U.C. that was coming up on its fifteenth year of intruding in my life, tired of needing doctors so much, and just tired of not feeling healthy. Even more than me being tired, was the push I felt from God to move forward with something that had been in my heart to do.

On July 25, 2022, my family and I walked through the doors of the same medical office where my deceased provider had previously practiced. It felt weird and a little sad, but this same office also housed a functional medicine doctor who took a holistic approach to healing the body. It was now or never for my healing and I couldn’t miss this. More importantly, I had gotten a word from the Lord that solidified everything I was about to do, including starting this blog! He told me to trust in Him, and that He had already gone before me to prepare the way. What else could I do?!

The Plan

The doctor presented my plan and I was on to the first phase of healing, which included lab work and tests. A couple weeks later, I went in for the results and I’ll never forget, as I sat across the table from him, he said so casually, “You’re prediabetic, so make sure you watch the carbs.” Prediabetic? PRE-diabetic?! I was in shock! How? I’m in my mid-ish thirties. I shouldn’t be prediabetic until I’m at least in my fifties, right? With grand kids? So now, along with my blood pressure reading high, my anxiety running rampant, and the inconvenient U.C., I was now prediabetic.

My decision to heal was already made and I just needed to walk it out. I was all set to embark on one of the most challenging and focused journeys of my life. But as with all plans, there were some speed bumps along the way.

My functional medicine team formatted a plan that should have lasted about three months. Because of challenges and minor setbacks, mine lasted six! Two weeks into the program, I was put on an elimination diet for technically four weeks, but mine lasted much longer.

On an elimination diet, certain food groups are removed from your diet for the first week, and then more for the remaining three. My diet mostly consisted of vegetables and chicken, and some specific types of fish. I was on this limited diet through Labor Day, church functions that included lots of food, the s’mores season, Thanksgiving, Anniversary, Christmas, New Year’s Day, birthdays…you get it. What really hurt my feelings was finding out white potatoes aren’t all that healthy, so those were completely out with this elimination diet.

There were detoxes involved, and I worked out consistently. I was on autopilot. I didn’t think too much about what I was required to do, I just did it. Supplements were provided to support my immune system during this time, and I had accountability that I’d never had in all my life.

Bumps in the Road

As I mentioned, with life, comes setbacks. The first setback was in September when I thought I was done with the elimination diet. I was getting heartburn from reintroducing reintroducing foods into my diet. It would take a couple of weeks for it to heal, and it happened back to back. I was frustrated.

I was in an odd space where my colitis symptoms were gone, but I didn’t know how to navigate this new lifestyle. I struggled eating enough daily calories. I felt like I was eating like a rabbit, and getting nowhere. It was hard juggling my healing, homeschooling, and day to day life.

The second setback sent me to the E.R. On October 23rd, my umbilical hernia flared up, and it was pretty angry. Maybe due to the weight I’d lost from the diet and exercise? This flare up caused stomachaches from everything I ate. Even drinking water caused me pain. Once again, eating was painful, so I naturally ate very little.  My bleeding had returned, and I was down to 118 lbs. I couldn’t afford to lose any more weight.

I wanted to feel hopeless, but I couldn’t. I had to keep moving forward, and that included surgery. I was going to go with a local surgeon even though I really didn’t want to. Thankfully, when I called to set up an appointment, they didn’t take my insurance. Yet, another sign. I remembered that I had previously looked up a surgeon in the next city over, that seemed fantastic. I set up a consultation and was scheduled in pretty quickly.

The consultation went extremely well. My surgeon answered questions that I had only thought about, before I could even ask! She laid everything out with confidence, so I was confident in her.My kids were set to sing at church on the first Sunday of November, and I didn’t want to miss it! So my surgery would be the Tuesday after they sang, on Nov. 8th.

The day came for my kids to sing. At the end of that service, my eight year old son decided he wanted to be baptized! It’s so wildly amazing how God works! I love how he interrupts our plans to show signs of His goodness and grace in the midst of what feels like a mess. I was emotional for so many reasons, but I knew everything would be okay.

The morning of my surgery, I was prepped and about to be rolled in, when my surgeon asked if she could pray with me! Could she ever! At this point, I had to laugh on the inside and think, Ok Lord, you got this. I love how He reassured me every step of the way! The surgery went smoothly, and I was discharged soon after.

Recovery from surgery went really well! It was much needed because I haven’t had U.C. symptom since!!! My surgeon actually found a second hernia and repaired both. I couldn’t have had a better surgeon!

My functional med team was very understanding, and after a few weeks of healing, they had another detox ready for me.  This was my third setback, only because I thought I’d be done with this program after three months and before the holidays. I wasn’t thrilled about it. Nothing against the team, it was just unexpected. This last detox lasted three months.

Graduation!

On Feb. 15, 2023, I graduated from the program and brought my healing with me!!! Thank you Jesus!!  I know God was in this process and in my healing. All the glory will always belong to Him for providing me with the direction, knowledge, determination, capability, focus and strength to get it done. Even though I worked with human doctors, God is the great physician.

Every day, I showed up to do my part and I watched and felt the craftsmanship and design of the Lord come together in my body, causing it to function the way it is designed to. An environment of pain, cramps, bleeding, inconvenience, and fatigue turned into an environment so healthy that not only were my colitis symptoms gone, but I didn’t even catch a cold! That is all God!

Update

During this process, I had to focus on God’s word over my emotions. He saw me through it for sure, because this healing process was one of the top five hardest things I’ve ever had to do in my life. Healing is hard…but 100% worth it.

So how do I feel now? {Insert lots of joyous laughter}! It feels surreal! I’m amazed! I’m excited! Even writing this, I’ve cried, smiled, and laughed!! I can’t not testify of the goodness of Jesus. I am no longer prediabetic. My blood pressure is excellent. My anxiety has declined immensely. My journey is not over yet, but I have jumped a huge hurdle!

I know this has been a lengthy post, but if you’ve read to this point, thank you! Thank you for allowing me to share my journey and the goodness of my Jesus with you. I pray this has put hope inside of you, increased your faith, and encouraged you to seek out your own healing…no matter what it looks like. Whatever trauma caused this dis-ease no longer has a hold on me!! I’m free, and if I can do it, you can too…and the Lord will help you every step of the way.