I thought mercap was much more successful in arthritis patients than UC.

There's a third biologic out there having good success but so far Humira is doing the trick for me.

Ahh ok, yeah the immunosuppressants are scary in general. Like I stated somewhere earlyer in the thread, the long term effects kinda worry me. Obviously not the only reason I considered surgery, but it is definitely a perk of having it.

Is the third biologic Simponi? My doc in Las Vegas mentioned that one to me after I had that last colonoscopy (can't remember if I said that, I may have). He said I could try that before having surgery, but by that point, I was pretty much over the disease taking over my life if I wasn't on a high dose of prednisone. And I was pretty much over prednisone as well.

yep that's the one

Humira seems to be doing the trick for me although I'm definitely going to be getting a few extra colds/infections yearly.

Yeah man, just gotta be somewhat of a "germaphobe". I used to use hand sanitizer a lot at the casino, and just in general. Still do, but not as concerned about getting sick easily. At least Humira is providing you with some relief. I'm sure you're glad about that, at least.

I received a sample of different pouches today. The brand I had before didn't have as low of a profile as I would have liked. I've been wearing hoodies and jackets a lot in public to hide the top of the pouch because a t-shirt just wouldn't do the trick. The new pouch's filter is in a much better place (top corner) as opposed to the entire top of the pouch (which caused the other pouch to fold down with the weight of the filter after some use). This one still shows in the corner where the filter is, but this filter seems as if it may actually work for the few days in between changes, whereas the other one would be done after a day.

I used some stretch tape (Powerflex is what we call it in athletic training) and wrapped it around my torso to help hold the bag closer to my body. My ostomy nurse basically told me I'm too skinny. Good problem to have, I suppose. The Powerflex seems to be doing the trick so far. We're having a family crawfish boil tomorrow for Good Friday (something we do annually), so I'll probably just wear a t-shirt, since we'll be outside, and see how it does. Hoping for the best so I can give my hoody a rest. I'm sure the dealers at Harrah's are getting tired of seeing me wear the same hoody for most sessions (they probably don't even notice tbh).

There's also a new pouching system being released next month that I plan to give a try, that's supposed to fit very close to the body. Hopefully I'm not too skinny for it. I'm at least excited that the stretch tape should provide a solution for now.

I've been slacking on my daily exercises. But I have been putting in a lot more hours with poker. I put in 7+ hours a couple nights ago, staying til about 4am, and ended up having my best 1/2 session to date. Swongs.

Well, the past week has been interesting. I was able to enjoy some crawfish last Friday with my family, and the prewrap/Powerflex combo helped the ostomy bag keep a low profile against my body. My dad caught a stomach bug the night before (a week ago today), unfortunately. I brought him to the ER, by his choice, last Thursday, and we stayed there for a while, while he got fluids and whatnot. He felt better within a couple days.

Mom got the stomach bug Saturday. She started feeling bad when I was at Harrah's. I felt fine Sunday and put a turkey to bake for us while she rested, thinking I was gonna dodge a bullet like Phil Helmuth. Alas, around 4pm, I started feeling nauseated, and the diarrhea started (one good reason to have an ostomy bag I suppose). Then I vomited a little later. Didn't eat much that night. Felt better the next morning and actually ate a solid food breakfast. Ate a light lunch, and then just ate bananas and a couple pickles the rest of the day. I had terrible heartburn Monday night, hardly slept. And I vomited again Tuesday morning. This is when it really hit me, and I felt severely dehydrated. I could barely move without almost passing out.

We ended up making the decision to just get an ambulance so I could be seen faster in the ER (doc from New Orleans suggested I go in immediately to the nearest ER, so I went to my local hospital). One of the EMTs tried telling me I wasn't dehydrated because my capillary refill was good, ignoring my dry lips and pale skin. I was much too weak to even argue or laugh. I was treated well in the ER. I was given fluids and Zofran for nausea, and I started to perk up some within an hour or so of being there. Then my blood work came back.

The doc came in and said my blood work showed signs of renal failure. Add that to the list of my accomplishments. He wanted to keep me overnight and keep me on fluids. So I was admitted Tuesday evening, and I'm just getting home today. I was kept an extra night to make sure the diarrhea was under control. I'm feeling fine now. I just need to stay hydrated, and I should be good. Hoping to get back to poker tomorrow, but we'll see how I'm feeling. I was exhausted in the hospital and slept a lot, and I slept some more when I got home around lunch. Hoping to get a full night of rest tonight.

Jfc, hope you rungood at poker b/c you ****ing deserve it man.

GOGOGOGOGOGOGOGO

Haha, lately I've been fortunate enough to be playing and running well together. Hoping it'll last through the circuit here next month.

Was able to get in a few hours last night until I felt tired and a little nauseated. I really only ate one big meal yesterday, a hamburger, because it filled me up more than usual. I think it'll take a few days to get my appetite back to where I'm eating like I want to, just like it did after surgery and then after each hospital stay. Game was great for a while; some guy was real deep (1k+ easily for most of the time I was there) and was playing real laggy.

Circuit event here in Nola is May 8-19. The room should be real packed as usual, with 40-50+ on the wait list for 1/2, though it normally goes pretty quickly. The 2/5 list goes slower, but I'm not sure that I'll be playing much 2/5. Just hoping I can stay healthy for the duration, along with having good stamina. I'm planning to play a couple events, along with 1-2 megas for the main, and as much cash as possible. Looking forward to it.

I feel like the thread has been slacking in one area....pictures! So I'm here to provide with pictures and a quick update.

I've been feeling pretty normal lately. I've gotten back to the grind and am slowly increasing my hours again, gearing up for the WSOP Circuit run. When I used to read a lot of TRs in the Las Vegas Lifestyles (LVL) forum, shoes were what you normally posted first. Here are some shoe pics:

This was a few weeks ago, on a Saturday, when I decided to "dress up" (not wear sweatpants):



Last night's attire (back to the sweatpants):



I'm normally a Nike person. This is the first pair of Reeboks I've owned, outside of some Allen Iverson basketball shoes in middle school, and I like them a lot.

I've been eating a bit more dairy lately. I found this awesome ice cream at Whole Foods not long ago:



I bought that one and a cookies and cream (probably my favorite ice cream of all time). Very good choices.

Yesterday, my mom and I tag-teamed on making a homemade pizza. Here's the result:



It was a store-bought dough (not sure what kind) that we rolled out. We added an organic eggplant marinara sauce (365 brand), along with cheese (forget which kind), bell peppers, a little garlic, a little dill, jalapeno, chorizo sausage, chicken, feta cheese, red pepper, and chopped olives on a small portion (I'm not a big olive fan). It was quite delicious. I definitely ate too much of it on my way to Harrah's last night because I felt pretty sluggish during my first 1.5 hours of play.

Going to a wedding this weekend, definitely looking forward to that. Should get to see my best friends from college (we had a small, tight knit group in our athletic training classes). Then it's back to the grind.

I really feel like this story is more than worth sharing in this thread:

http://www.fox8live.com/story/25372953/fit-to-fight

One of the local news stations did a story on a guy who was diagnosed with UC, how it almost killed him, and how far he's come in his recovery. Absolutely amazing.

I had a doc appointment last Wednesday. He said I'm healing much faster than he expected me too, which was great to hear. I go back in a month for a scan and scope to see exactly where I am, and I'm assuming if all is well, we'll discuss a possible surgery date. At least that's what I'm hoping.

The wedding was an absolute blast. Was able to hang out with my college bffs, and it was just like it's always been. We've all been doing our own thing, and I'm not able to see all of them (7 of us) as often as I'd like, so it was great to be able to do that. Though, I don't think I've drank that much since college, and my stomach wasn't thrilled the next morning. No hangover though!

It's been a busy month so far. I had my 26th birthday (so old). And the WSOP Circuit was in town. I was able to meet up with Ben (bob_124 on 2p2) last weekend in the poker room. Seemed like a very cool guy. I played 5 mtts (6 if you include 2 bullets int he re-entry), including the main event, and only cashed in one, 17th in event 12. It was a rough week. Couldn't get anything going in the first few. I had some momentum in the main, then my table broke. I was moved to an amazing table, but I got crushed and eventually busted about 1.5 hours after dinner. That's mtt's though. I was able to do well in cash at least.

I'm flying to St. Louis to visit my gf in Illinois, then we're driving back down here next weekend. Looking forward to a little time off after grinding everyday the past 2 weeks.

Let's hope things continue to look up.

Not much has happened health-wise over the past month. I feel as if I'm gaining some weight, but I don't want to weigh myself until I go back to the doc on Wednesday. That's when we will do the scan and prob a scope as well. I'm hoping things go well and we can set up a date for the final surgery if everything looks good.

Trip to St. Louis was good. I've been spending time with my gf off and on between her jobs (travels during the summer) and grinding most every other day. My dad and I are going out to Vegas the second week of July. I'm looking forward to it.

I went to the eye doctor earlier this week, and she suspects I have a mild cataract on my right eye. I've been having cloudy vision once in a while. So she took a picture, and that's what she saw. It's not overly bothersome; I only notice it now and then. She wants to monitor it from here on out to make sure it doesn't get worse. She also strongly suspects it's from the prolonged use of prednisone, as cataract and increased eye pressure is not all that uncommon. Something to keep in mind for others using prednisone for prolonged periods of time.

I had a follow up appointment with my doc last Wednesday. I was set to have some sort of contrast scan done, followed by an exam upstairs. I assumed the contrast would be injected in me somehow. Nope. It was basically an enema that put the contrast directly into the j-pouch. Fun!

Then I went upstairs and had the flex scope done, which wasn't as uncomfortable this time around for some reason, probably because I knew what to expect. Doc said things were great, and we set my 3rd surgery date for August 5th. Definitely looking forward to it! He said he expects me to be out of the hospital after 2-3 days, but we all know how that goes. Hoping for no complications this time around.

I've done some reading about other people's experiences after their takedown. It seems to vary quite a bit, so I'm taking it all with a grain of salt and going in knowing certain things can occur (bad gas pains, etc.) but hoping for the best. I'm sure it'll take a little time for my body to adjust, regardless. Hoping I'm not out of commission for too long, but trying to remain a realist at this point.

As far as exercise, I haven't been doing anything strenuous tbh. I went to the beach for a couple days last week and did some walking in the sand, which can be tiring of course. I also did quite a bit of walking around the French Quarter for a few days while we spent time there. I've taken the past 9 days off from poker, but I plan to get back into it for a few days. My dad and I are heading out to Vegas next week for a week trip. Hoping to play 1-2 mtts and get some cash in while catching up with some friends out there. Looking forward to it.

Surgery was pushed back from the 5th until tomorrow morning at 9am. Really looking forward to it! Fasting today in preparation. I've been a little anxious this week, just really hoping everything can go well of course.

Awesome news. I hope everything goes well! It will be nice to finally put this behind you after everything you've had to go through.

I've been extremely lucky as I'm now coming up on 3 years without any issues at all since I was first diagnosed. Really hoping I'm in that small 5% group that never has the disease pop up again, but from reading healingwell, I know there are people who've gone like 10+ years before it popped up again.

Thanks bud. I'm ready for the next challenge in this journey.

That's really, really awesome to hear! I hope it continues like that for you man because we both know having a flareup is not a way to live. Are you on any meds still at the moment, or just dieting well?

Yep, still on asacol and 6mp. Although, I really don't think they are doing much. I've missed days here and there with no negative results. My Dr said if my next colonoscopy (next year) comes back without any sign of disease we can try getting me off 6mp.

I've never had problems with diet, been able to eat whatever I want aside from gluten due to my celiac . I think stress is the big trigger for me, so I always do my best to deal with it as best I can now without holding everything inside. I broke up with my GF a little over a month ago and was happy I got through it problem free. I took a different approach to it than in the past and it seemed to have worked as I managed to avoid having any UC issues.

That'd be great if you are able to get off of the meds. Stress is definitely a trigger; I felt as if it used to be a trigger for me as well. Glad to see you were able to get through things relatively problem free.

Surgery went well on Friday. My parents said it only took about 30 minutes. I've definitely been more sore than I thought I would be. There's a hole in my lower right side that goes from skin to stomach lining, where the stoma used to be. I have to fill that in with gauze soaked in saline daily until it fills, which I was told would take 1-2 weeks.

I had my first real bowel movement sometime on Saturday (the day after). I was able to start on solid food this day. It's definitely watery, diarrhea-like pretty much. I haven't gotten it too thick since then, but it's definitely not as watery. I've gone about 6 times so far today (my first full day home). It's really not too bad. There's no pain or straining involved in going to the bathroom, which is a huge relief from having the disease. The main thing is getting used to how it feels when the j pouch fills up and when I actually have to go vs just feeling uncomfortable. I'm sure it'll take a little time to sort it all out, but so far, I'm happy with everything.

hey jay, thanks for the update. good to see things are progressing well. hope you're enjoying the nola grind. looking forward to joining you soon!

Thanks for keeping up with the thread man. Keep me updated on your move and whatnot. Hopefully we can grab a beer once I'm feeling better.

The past few days have been a bit rougher, to say the least. The soreness over my incision is almost gone, and that's healing up (at least from what I can tell, I'm just packing it with gauze each day after I shower). My bowel movements have become more frequent and a bit more painful (I guess because my body is still getting used to everything). I was really hoping to get more active next week, get in the gym, get back to poker, but as of now, I'm not sure when that'll happen. Trying to stay positive, even though it's pretty frustrating. My doc and nurse have been the best so far. They've been answering my texts, regardless of if I text them after 5 or on the weekend for advice (like today). Here's to getting better this weekend and early next week!

Best of luck with your recovery, Jay.

Thanks Montecore.

Everything seems to be getting better daily. The bowel movements aren't as bad as they were a weak ago. It's just taking some getting used to for sure. From not going for 10 months to going multiple times a day is quite the change.

I updated my blog tonight (I think it's in my profile on here), and I included some before and after pics from the 1st surgery and the 3rd surgery. The weight change is definitely noticeable. I was about 160 lbs going into the first surgery. I was 145 lbs going into the 3rd one, and I was 143 at the doctor's office a couple days ago (which went well, he checked my wound and said everything sounds great so far). My low was back in February/March when I had that infection/abscess. I was down to about 128 lbs around then and stayed between 130 and 140 for a while. Looking forward to adding on some muscle that I lost. I don't mind as much though; I was 145 in high school, before I started working out a lot, so in a way, I get to start over. And now that I'm much, much more knowledgeable about nutrition (though I still have a lot to learn), I'll be able to do everything even better.

Didn't realize it had been over a month since the last update. Things have been up and down. I have good days, and I have some bad days. The bad days mostly consist of more frequent bowel movements, along with some burning, which isn't too fun. I'm watching what I eat and trying different stuff slowly, which means I'm learning the hard way about what I can and can't eat. The slightest irritation or cut feels like I would be pouring rubbing alcohol on a fresh cut on my hand.

I withdrew from the pain meds last week, which made me feel like I had the flu, but I had to take some again this weekend. The scar where my stoma was has started to come alive recently, and it's been pretty sore, especially during bowel movements. That and I've had some burning come back recently. I'm just watching how much I take and how often because I don't want to become mentally and/or physically addicted to them again. Withdrawing is no fun.

I don't think I've made much progress in gaining weight. I talked with my doc today about the issues I've been having off and on, and he said I should see improvement over the next 6-12 months. That seems to be pretty standard from everything I've read. I guess I just had high expectations that I'd be ready to run (figuratively...and I guess literally) much sooner. Just gonna keep taking it easy and see how things go from here on out, month to month.

Haven't put in many sessions at Harrah's since the surgery. A few times I went, I just didn't feel too great while I was there. I've gone back to grinding husngs online again, which I'm enjoying overall.

Here's to patience!

Over a month again bump

I know, I'm terrible. Sorry!

I was able to get in a couple sessions at Harrah's about 3ish weeks ago, I believe. I had 2 really good days, and I had a lot of confidence. Then things sorta went back downhill after that. It was probably a mixture of foods I was eating + my body just still adjusting. I had a bout of cuffitis (inflammation at the staple site on the inside of my body) last week, which I received medicine for, but it seems to have gone away, so far.

A lot of it has been mentally draining. I'll wake up, feel pretty good, then things may go downhill. I've just been trying to keep my confidence up as best as possible. It's helped to talk with my girlfriend about things, and I'm a part of 2 support groups on facebook, one for UC/Crohn's, another for people with or thinking about getting J-Pouches. That's definitely helped. A lot of people comment and say that have very little, if any issues, and they're years out. It may not necessarily take years to get to that point, but it's comforting at least.

At this point, I'm doing my best to stay patient. I want to give this a good year and see where I'm at then. I'm ready to gain weight, but it's been difficult. My last weigh-in at the doctor last week was 132. I don't eat as much because I don't want to cause my pouch any issues, but that's probably flawed thinking. Sometimes, it can be uncomfortable though.

I'm ready to get back into a routine with poker. And life in general. That's been one of the toughest parts. I try to stay mentally busy as much as possible, but I'm just not comfortable doing much physically right now, other than walking.

Patience, patience, patience.