**This is a personal post - not related to gaming, read if you wish**
My news: I’m going to live.
Well, I had a colonoscopy on Saturday to try and diagnose my long term lower stomach pains, cramps and soreness (as well as much else besides). My consultant specialist said that he was sure it was IBS but after hearing my worries (I have a close friend with terminal cancer and my Step Father survived his second cancer last Christmas) he wanted me to be sure and cover all the base’s.
The preparation for colonoscopy is quite an ordeal. I was allowed no food for 24 hours and had to take strong laxatives on Friday to “clear the road”. This was a depressing situation, which I countered by watching all 6 DVD’s of “24” back to back and by then end of that I was ready to be either ’scoped or taken out the back and shot through the lungs.
I am fortunate enough to live 200 meters from a private hospital and PPP healthcare agreed to foot the bill so, 8am on Saturday, Francesca and I walked up there and I checked in. Hospital admission forms give no quarter to those just coming in for a half day and I was asked every possible permutation of medical question at least twice before I settled in. Soon the good Doctor came and repeated most of the questions for forms sake, he then smiled and told me I was first.
Changed into my dressing gown I was led down to the operating theater and with nurses fussing around me jumped on the bed. The doctor, now in his robes, stuck a needle the size of a Pringles tube in my arm and I was ready. They wheeled me in and through the sedatives I was still very aware of what was happening. I had tubes up the nose and monitors on as well as that bloody great needle in my arm. My joke about pointing at the heart monitor and saying “Ah, I see you have the machine that goes ping” unfortunately flew over their heads. I was amazed to see that I had the best seat in the house and was laying on my left side whist looking at a big flat screen showing the whole thing in colour. And surreal it was. All I can comment is that seeing inside is another world and not too unlike a white version of the tunnels out of the film Aliens, but seeing your own insides in such a disassociated way is very strange indeed.
20 minutes later it was over. Final score. No tumors or other diseases and two small polyps removed and sent to the lab (results in two weeks). Result: IBS it is.
Finally, the last 18 months of worry and stress can start to disparate, as I can finally wake up and not immediately wonder if I have bowel cancer as I have seen very clearly for myself that I do not. The stress hasn’t magically vanished as yet but I am getting there and this post is a good part of it.
It goes to show when I am happy that I “only” have IBS; a lifetime, misunderstood and uncomfortable syndrome that medical science is at a loss to defeat or even pin down. I guess I am just happy that I will not die from it.
Finally the future is back in my mind. I had forgotten much of the carefreeness that I lived life and have let much (mainly my martial arts) slide. Time to start back down that road and get my life back in the order I want be the husband my wife deserves and learn everything ever written about IBS.
James (Basho).
Basho & Cesca are traveling with:
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April 18th, 2005 at 2:08 pm
Through all you have gone through over the last months, I’m glad I could share this burdon and be there for you, and that you are back with me again. We will conquer this together. Your loving wife, cesca xxx