Eric Tapley

I’m pleased to report that my recovery continues at a great pace. I’ve been walking around outside quite a bit, eating plenty of varied foods (but sticking to a low fiber, low residue diet) and helping out a bit around the house, all without problems or pain. So at this point I feel comfortable easing back into life, and will start working a light schedule from home, as tolerated.

If you try to email or call me and don’t hear back right away, however, please be patient. Although my recovery is progressing nicely I’m still going to take breaks and rest when I need to, and that means shutting off my PowerBook (gasp!) and turning the ringer off on my phone.

You all knew I couldn’t stay away for long.

I’ve been home for almost a full day now, and it’s great to be recovering here. I’m still a little weak and tired, but in general am recovering much faster than I expected. I have very little pain and feel quite good - I’ve even been outside for a walk today, which was nice, since I’ve been indoors for the last ten.

My surgery went well, but was more difficult than originally anticipated. I was admitted to the Boston Medical Center a day early with another partial intestinal block, but the team decided to go ahead with surgery instead of postponing it again - there was no reason to postpone and the block didn’t cause any of the additional difficulties. Difficulties arose because of my past two years of active Ulcerative Colitis and previous surgery, but Dr. Becker and his team responded well and didn’t have any trouble. It just took them more time than expected to operate.

My recovery started slow as my body adjusted to the new layout of my abdomen and the incision started to heal, but once I was able to start walking around I began recovering more quickly and feeling significantly better and stronger. Walking is really good exercise, especially when you’re recovering from surgery, and I intend to keep up with a steady schedule while I rebuild my strength and return to health.

So there you are - I’m at home, walking around a bit but generally still resting and focusing on easing back into things, eating real food, and very happy to be getting well again.

Hey, everyone. Just a quick update to let you know that I’m home recovering now. I was released from the hospital late this afternoon.

I’ll write more later, but for now, I want you all to know that my recovery is going very well, I have only a little pain that is managed quite well, and am generally feeling great. And it’s wonderful to be home.

There are just a few more days left until I have surgery. I’m beginning to feel a bit anxious about this. I know from past experience there are parts of the recovery which will be very uncomfortable - having a catheter, the tube down my throat to keep my stomach cleaned, the sameness of the room and routine day after day - and I’m starting to focus on those things. I need to keep my eye on the ball, the intent of this is to help me return to health. A few weeks of discomfort and pain to finally recover from years of ongoing problems (and possibly years into the future, without help now), well now, a few weeks isn’t such a big deal.

Since being released from the hospital on Friday I’ve been plagued with restlessness and insomnia. I know part of it stems from the high dose of steroids I’m on again leading up to the operation - Prednisone does a great short-term job of keeping ulcerative colitis at bay by reducing inflammation - but it has to be more than the drugs.

I just feel as if there is so much to do in the next couple of weeks, and I keep waking up after just a few minutes rest, ready to head back into it. I know this is the worst possible thing if I’m trying to rebuild my body’s strength prior to surgery - instead of helping I’m hurting. But I just don’t know what to do so I can relax and rest. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

As you’ve probably heard by now, I’ve been in the hospital for the past two weeks with severe intestinal problems. Specifically I suffered from a complete intestinal blockage due to inflammation of my small intestine near the spot of my previous surgery. This was exacerbated by ongoing problems with Ulcerative Colitis, lots of ongoing medications, and a possible bacterial infection.

Initially my doctors thought I would need emergency surgery, so I was transferred from hospital to hospital until I ended up at the Boston Medical Center. Rest and aggressive medical therapy was able to relieve the blockage. As a result the surgery has been delayed to give my body a chance to rebuild some strength and to schedule the operation for a more convenient time.

My surgery is scheduled for May 11th at 7:30 am. This is a major operation, during which I will have the remainder of my colon removed to get rid of the Ulcerative Colitis permanently, a “J-Pouch” constructed for eventual return to normal bowel functionality, and a temporary colostomy bag installed while my insides heal. It will be about a 5-hour procedure followed by 7-10 days of hospital recovery and then a gentle schedule of home rest and recovery. Two months after the initial surgery I will return for a smaller procedure to remove the colostomy bag, which will again be followed by a few days of hospital recovery and then - finally - a gradual return to normalcy. In the time between the two surgeries and initially following the final procedure I’ll be working closely with my doctors to monitor and and evaluate the healing and recovery process.

I’m very optimistic about this turn of events. I was able to avoid emergency surgery and have a bit of time to prepare physically and emotionally for the operations and recovery. I’m also working with top specialists in this field, a team lead by Dr. Becker, so after three or four months I should finally get back to being healthy. It’s been a very long two years and I’m excited to be solving these health problems.

Thanks for your understanding, support, prayers, and generally being great while I’ve dealt with these health problems. I know it’s hard because we don’t like to see our friends or loved ones in pain, but with a disease like mine there is very little anyone else can do. Now this is finally coming to closure and I’ll be able to resume my life - yea!