Let's take a little trip down memory lane...
In May of 2018, I was hospitalized for the first time in 10 years. It was 2 days before my senior prom. I was sitting on my porch eating blueberries and wheat toast, when I felt a burning sensation in my throat. Suddenly, the burning became so unbearable that I could hardly breath. My parents weren't home and they took both of their cars with them, so I had no way to get to the hospital. 10 minutes later I found myself in an ambulance for the first time since I was 4. At the hospital, my mother asked me to give her on a scale of 1-10 how bad the pain was. I told her it was a nine. I threw up for 30 minutes and then an hour later I was feeling fine. All the tests from the ER came back normal.
The next 3 months were a lot of trial and error. Eating was hard and there was a rarely a meal that would not make me sick. I went to an allergist and my tests came back normal. I got blood work and my tests came back normal. I got an ultrasound of my pancreas and my results came back normal. I went to a gastroenterologist where I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and GIRD (Acid Reflux). I was put on a handful of pills and a new diet called the FODMAP diet. Three months passed and nothing changed. My doctor thought the onset of all these problems was triggered by "extreme stress". Right before I entered college I went completely off of gluten and dairy. I also avoided citrus, onions, spices and, worst of all, sugar.
A month into college I had started to develop what I refer to as the "anti-freshman fifteen". It was hard to find food that wouldn't hurt my stomach. I had loss fifteen pounds. First semester went by. I missed a lot of class for my stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. But things weren't all that bad: I made Dean's List and I made friends with the workers at the gluten-free station at the cafeteria.
In March of 2019, I went through a very exciting procedure: a colonoscopy. I'll spare you the details but long story short the result came out normal. This became a common theme. Sucrose test? Normal. Blood tests? Normal. How could all my tests come back normal when my condition is so not normal?
Now.
A year later and still no answers. No diagnoses. No medication. All I have is a very selective diet, a heating pad, and a family sized box of Cheerios. I have been able to find things that have helped me like not eating past 7pm, avoiding certain foods and regular exercise. I've learned to make food that fills me up and doesn't hurt my stomach. Every day brings up new challenges but I'm learning from them.
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