Livin like LewLew

I know I haven't written in a while, I've been super busy with summer, traveling, etc. I wanted to write a post more specifically to people going through a rough time. And if you fall into that category, know that there will be bad days and there will be better days. We are all going through something in one way or another. Some may be overwhelmed with school, studying, work. Some may be fighting a battle that they just can't seem to overcome. Some may be mourning a loss. We all know what it's like to have days that are never-ending. But in the end, even if the days are tough, long, and sad, try and focus on the good stuff. Being chronically sick sucks. There's really no way to sugarcoat it. There are moments where all you want to do is scream and yell, "why me?" Sometimes all you want to do is give up. I know I had moments like these. Moments where it felt like I would never be able to eat again. But despite the trials and obstacles I faced, I kep

I realized that I mention SMAS a lot, and some of you may not be fully aware of what it is. SMAS stands for Superior Mesenteric Artery Syndrome. Only 0.3% of people in the United States are known to have it. Sadly, I was one of those people. SMAS happens when part of the duodenum is compressed by the Superior Mesenteric Artery. When this happens, it is almost like a kinked hose or a pinched water balloon. If you were to step on a hose hard enough, no water would be able to pass through. The same thing happens with the duodenum when the Superior Mesenteric Artery does this. If you don't know what the duodenum is, it is be the tube between the stomach and the small intestine. Its job is to squeeze the stomach contents through the digestive tract. With SMAS, it took away my ability to eat, because there was no way for food to pass the kink. Since I went misdiagnosed for so long, my SMAS caused a lot of damage to my duodenum. SMAS is very rare and misunderstood, and unfortunately it i