Tuesday, December 26, 2017

A Story to Tell

Hey Friends! Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! I hope you all had a great day yesterday. Because I have a little more time over Christmas break, I am happy to have some time to work on my blog. I have hopes and expectations of sharing my story with many people because I know that it will help them. I have a story to tell. And you can help me by sharing this with others. Some of you may know it, and some may not. So here it goes.

5 years ago.
I was super duper sick. I was really scared about it and even wondered at times if I was going to pull though. To make it worse, Crohn's is well, kinda embarrassing and I didn't even have the courage to tell my mom about it for a little while. Well, let me tell you, you can hide Crohn's for a little while but not forever. It got to the point where I simply had to tell my mom about how I was feeling, what was happening, and where I was afraid I was headed. During this time I was on my high school XC team and that is where the majority of my friends were. I liked cross county and didn't want to stop. I was practicing harder than anyone I knew and was getting slower and slower until I even ended up in the back of a JV race running a 36 minute 5K. Something was off. I told my coach that I needed the season to work on my health and then traded my time spent with my team for time spent at Primary Children's Hospital. I was nervous but very glad to be receiving some medical attention and hopefully some answers as to why I couldn't seem to get better.


Diagnosis.
On October 17, 2012 I awoke to a strange room. Dinosaurs plastered on the wall I believe haha. And my mom's face looming over me next to my IV bag. A nurse kept bugging me to eat something and I just wanted answers. Well answers I got. As soon as I got my coherence back my mom told me that the doc thought I had something called "Crohn's Disease". I didn't really think twice about it and just was glad that I could be going home. I thought that now I had the diagnosis I could take my medicine and just get better. I had no idea what I was facing. Naiveness is a beautiful protection at times.

Adjusting to the new "norm".
Between some brutal awakening calls (I'll spare the details) and many conversations, the magnitude of what I am faced with started to grow inside me. Meal time was torture and my life revolved around food. Planning food, avoiding food, reading labels, packing food, preparing food, and yes even many tears about food. I decided to try the specific carbohydrate diet (SCD) and started with the intro phase. It involved lots and lots of bone broth, and eventually upgraded to homemade yogurt, fresh fruits and veggies, lean meat, and occasional baked goods with honey and almond flour. No processed foods, wheat, milk, sugar, grain. Ever. But I could tell that slowly it was working, and my friends and family stood by me always. I am forever thankful.


My miracle story to tell.
I remember the first night I felt energy again. It was winter and I was eating a grapefruit. I just felt this surge of excited energy rush through me and ran outside onto my back patio. I jumped around and was renewed by the unfamiliar yet blissful feeling of energy. Soon after things started looking up. I gained about 10 pounds (very good for me!) and even decided to start running one day. One day I just decided to run after taking about 8 months off. I ran 4 miles and felt great! I came home and told my mom that I was going to do XC again come that fall. I did and that is where the real miracles began. With many fond memories, I reflect on race after race where I pr'd. Ending my season with a varsity race and  5K time of 21:40, I shaved 15 MINUTES off of my 5K time! I was so happy. I also knew that God was beside me every step of the way. Literally. The other miracle that happened simultaneously is that I started to actually enjoy my diet. Food became less and less of a burden, although still hard. And I started to adjust to my new "norm". On top of all of this, I really started to know my Savior. Not just a good guy you hear about at church or in the scriptures, or someone who helps people generically. But as someone who helped me and felt what it felt like for me. Christ experienced the atonement individually. That means that he was there with me when I didn't have a diagnosis, he was there with me at primary children's for my colonoscopy, he was there for me when I couldn't eat lunch with my friends, when I cried about staying up late to pack my lunch, or when I felt like a burden. He felt all of that. And he still feels all of that. He will forever more be with me in the future. That is why I choose to not be afraid.

                          Where I am now.
Today. I still have Crohn's Disease. The Doctors think that medically it will never go away. I think that medically they are correct. But I also know that miracles are real and that if it is God's will I will be healed. I don't know if God has this in store for me or not in this lifetime. But I do know that God has given me this weakness so that I can be strengthened and help others. I am the type of person that doesn't keep things to myself very easily. I am being healed, I can see it and feel it, and I am going to share that with others. And I still do get sick from time to time and I am going to share that with others too. Recently, some very dear friends of mine have come to me and confided that they too have Crohn's Disease. People let me tell you, IT IS AN EPIDEMIC. My heart breaks every time that I know of a person personally or a stranger who has it. I don't want it and I don't want you to have it. But I would also never ask to have it taken away either because it has been such a blessing in the curse for me. Way more blessing have come from just this one curse.

How I can help.

  • Look for my SCD recipes posted here of my instagram @blessing_inthecurse
  • Follow this blog for real advice on not just Crohn's but optimism, because we all need that.
  • I WANT TO TALK WITH YOU. Email me or contact me and I can share advice from someone who lives with this nasty disease firsthand. If you know of someone, send them my way. :) 
  • Questions or inquiries, please also contact me. :) 
  • I will always be real on this blog, but I will always remain optimistic. What you are reading is real optimism. 
How you can help. 
  • Please share this blog with others!!! 
  • Follow.
  • Comment. 

I am so grateful for all of you!
Life is good! The future is bright!

xoxo
Camille 

2 comments:

  1. Amazing and thank you! I started reading your blog when my then 13 year old was diagnosed. He has had an easier time than you have so far. Remicade has worked really well for him. But we know there are challenges ahead. We appreciate your optimism. It helps me be more optimistic about the future.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much! Your comments always mean a lot to me, and I am so happy that your son has been doing really well!

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