Megan McNeil, who lives in Belfast, Northern Ireland, had a problem with bleeding every time she went to the toilet and had bouts of diarrhea for a long time. Megan, who is afraid to share this situation with those around her, When he was 17, he had to tell about what happened when his mother found a bloody towel in the toilet. Young lady, “My mother made me an appointment with the doctor right away. Here I was given a flexible (bendable) sigmoidoscopy (a method used to examine the large intestine). mentioned.
Megan, who got worse within 3 months of going to the doctor, had uncontrolled bleeding and had to go to the bathroom sometimes 15-20 times an hour. Tired of standing on the toilet for days and nights, Megan’s psychology was also turned upside down. The girl was used to living with the symptoms of the disease, which were getting worse day by day, and what had happened to her was untraceable.
HE CAN’T EVEN START FROM HIS PLACE
Megan, who lost weight rapidly with the blood loss and remained emaciated, so to speak, saw another doctor. This time the doctors told her that her appendix had ruptured, but it soon became clear that was not the problem. Megan, who was close to passing out from the pain, had low blood pressure and even struggled to go to the bathroom. The girl, who stayed in hospital for a day, was diagnosed with “ulcerative colitis” following all the tests carried out. He was also told that he would have to receive intravenous biologic drug therapy and high dose steroids every 6-8 weeks. Megan McNeil, “This whole process took about 4 months. I stayed in the hospital for 1 month to get my complaints under control” he said.
After her diagnosis, Megan continued to commute between hospital and hospital for a full year. However, over the past few months, his condition had deteriorated. None of the meds she took were of any use and her body was giving signals that she needed surgery, and that was it… Megan, who was taken in for surgery emergency, was fitted with an ostomy (intestinal) bag. Saying he probably would have died if he hadn’t had this surgery, Megan said: “People think this disease only affects the gut, but it’s much more than that.” used expressions.
After recovering from surgery, Megan couldn’t do her daily routine on her own for long. The greatest destruction for Megan was the damage this disease had created in her body. Doctors say there is still hope, even though her illness is drastically reducing her chances of becoming a mother. On the other hand, Megan, 21, organizes social responsibility projects for people struggling with these problems and whose disease cannot be diagnosed. Describing her experiences through social networks, the girl is also a model for major brands.
“THIS IS NOT THE END OF LIFE, HE GAVE ME MY LIFE BACK”
Megan walks around with a bag over her body, “A lot of people see this as the end of life, but it gave me my life back. I want to be an older sister figure to young people who have gone through a similar journey and feel like no one understands them. is very important to raise awareness.” makes his comment. Megan McNeil is now much better than before. First, he has a disease diagnosed and a treatment that works. Megan, who now knows much better what to do, summed up her feelings as follows:
“My body has taken me so much, betrayed me over the years. Now I’m ready to take it back and show what thousands of people have been through.”
‘DANGEROUS LIFE AT THREAT’
Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory disease that affects the intestines. It is estimated that there are around 100-120,000 inflammatory bowel patients in Turkey. Patients with ulcerative colitis are also included in this group.
Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Gastroenterology, Assoc. Dr Nalan Unalshared the following information about ulcerative colitis:
“Ulcerative colitis is a chronic, inflammatory, autoimmune disease that affects the large intestine and progresses with periods of exacerbation and recovery. Symptoms of the disease are bloody-inflammatory diarrhea, abdominal pain, urge defecation and incontinence, rectal bleeding, weight loss and weakness.Depending on the involvement and severity, these symptoms can range from mild to life threatening.Ulcerative colitis not only affects the medical aspect, but also affects the patients socially, leading to deterioration in quality of life and loss of manpower.
Stating that the cause of ulcerative colitis is not clearly known, Ünal pointed out that genetic, environmental and immune system factors play a role in the formation of the disease.
“IT IS WRONG TO CUT IT IN HALF, IT MUST BE USED FOR LIFE”
Although the frequency of ulcerative colitis differs by geography and country, it can be seen in all ages and genders. Its incidence increases in the age group 15-30 years and in the age group 50-70 years. Population-based studies found that there was no gender difference in the incidence of ulcer disease.
Addressing the process of treating the disease, Assoc. Dr. Nalan Ünal said that the goal of current treatments for ulcerative colitis is to control, eliminate and maintain the symptoms of the disease. Unale, “Current drug treatments are curative, non-curative, but should be used for life, as they aim to control symptoms. Stopping or interrupting drug therapy can provoke an exacerbation and exacerbation of the disease. Surgical treatment is required for disease or disease-related complications that cannot be controlled by drug treatment. he finished his speech.