People who have never experiencedulcerative colitismay think it means getting the occasional badstomachacheor having a fussy gastrointestinal system.
The intensity of your symptoms might vary over time.
Whichever symptoms you do have, they may wax and wane, theNIDDKexplains.
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You may have periods when youre in remission interspersed with periods when your symptoms are worse.
But some people experience constant symptoms from ulcerative colitis.
(Sam has asked to use only her first name in this story.)
Fatigue from ulcerative colitis can be brutal.
Exhaustion fromulcerative colitiscan be so severe its hard to get through day-to-day life.
For Sam, fatigue was one of the first signs that something was wrong.
I’m usually a pretty energetic person, she says.
I like running every day, things like that.
And I just couldn’t do it anymore.
Some days I’m just hit with a truck of fatigue, Skomski says.
So I always give myself an out.
It’s just that I have a very concrete amount of energy that day.
Ulcerative colitis can take a toll on your mental health too.
Being told you have achronic illnesscan feel like someone has just rerouted the course of your whole life.
I went through my own acceptance process, Skomski says.
I definitely went through a period of questioning if my life would ever be normal.
With time, processing the reality of having ulcerative colitis became easier.
Dealing with the symptoms can also bementally and emotionally taxing.
The psychological side of the pain is a lot worse than the actual physical sensation, Sam says.
This has led to constant vigilance about her health.
It’s very hard for me to not be closely monitoring my body 24/7, Sam says.
The catch-22 is that stress is definitely a trigger for me.
She also frequentlymeditatesand doesyoga.
Finally getting a diagnosis after years of pain and uncertainty also forced Skomski to put her mental health first.
I’ve had really dark days, she says.
There is no cure for this disease, Skomski says.
Ive learned to be at peace with that.
Figuring out which foods trigger flare-ups will involve some trial and error.
The tricky part is figuring out which ones.
That said, its really individual.
And its not for lack of trying.
I feel like I’ve done everything!
she tells SELF, explaining that she tries to avoid various food groups like dairy that can trigger symptoms.
I’m definitely still experimenting.
Not everyone will understand the intensity of your disease.
Althoughulcerative colitiscan affect many aspects of your physical health, its often considered an invisible illness.
My lifestyle’s not like a typical 20-something, Sam says.
And I just can’t.
It helps to have a connection of people with ulcerative colitis.
But to have people that have gone through the same thing changed my life.
When I connect with people that have ulcerative colitis, I don’t have to do that.
I think it’s important to talk about it and seek out that web link.
Your priorities may change.
Facingchronic health challengestends to make you realize what you value most.
Getting diagnosed shifted Sams approach to her health in a similar way.
I tend to be a very intense person and kind of a workaholic, she says.
Being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis completely changed my priorities for life.
I was always a health-conscious person, but now health is absolutely my number one priority.
It also affected her long-term goals.
I originally wanted to become a professor and work in academia, she says.
Now she works for an online pharmacy.
