Hello!

My name is Amanda, I'm 27 and living in Louisiana, USA.

A little back story about me: In July 2016 I had my colon removed for chronic and severe colonic inertia. I was pretty much constipated since birth and it progressed as I aged. Prescription laxatives, diet changes, etc failed to help me and my quality of life was going down the drain. I had a full incision because my colon was so large and 'floppy' because the muscles basically just stopped functioning properly. I was given an ileorectal anastomosis. It was an incredibly rough surgery for me. I had several complications which resulted in more hospital stays. I'm forever grateful for my husband staying by my side every single hour. 

I did eventually recover and began feeling so much better. But 6 months post-op, constipation returned. I went from 5x a day, to 3x a day, and then unfortunately 1x a day to nothing. I'm unfortunately back on Linzess to help me have regular movements but the side effects are awful. Weight gain, vision changes, headaches, and constantly needing to be in the bathroom because you're losing so much fluid... 

My surgeon feels my rectum is failing and sees this about 1 out of every 20 patients. So we decided to switch me to an ileostomy to bring me relief and a more normal life. There is still a chance my small bowels may be slowing down as I also have gastroparesis. Thankfully my gastroparesis IS mild. But overall an ileostomy is my best chance at improvement. We will be leaving my rectum inside for now, as long as it doesn't cause issues I am okay with that. But I know he will take it out if it does.

I will be having surgery on May 15th, this year. I cannot wait to get my life back! I'm scared of the pain and possible complications happening but enough is enough.

So as of right now since I have time I'm learning EVERYTHING I can about my upcoming changes. This website is an INCREDIBLE resource and I've been sharing it with everyone. I run a support group on Facebook for colonic inertia and have passed this site along for those who are facing surgery like I am. I still have a lot to learn and won't fully get there until I have my surgery as everyone is different.