Family

Many of you have asked how we found out about Reid’s diagnosis and what his symptoms were, especially since he’s young, fit, and we maintain a healthy diet. Honestly, it was a shock to us, too.

Before I share our journey, I want to remind everyone to never hesitate to schedule a colonoscopy. You never know what they’ll find, so don’t put it off!

Reid had been dealing with digestion issues for about three years. We often brushed it off, calling it the “Thoma stomach,” something his grandpa suffered with and I gave him extra enzymes to help. He’d occasionally complain about a stomach ache, but we didn’t think much more of it.

This past summer, we decided to join the annual family reunion in Texas to escape the Southern California heat. Maybe wishful thinking. We packed up the car with all our favorite snacks—because let’s be real, snacks are half the fun of a road trip! We had chomps, SmartSweets, sour gummies, licorice, and chips. It was definitely a fun car ride.

We made it to Flagstaff and spent the night at a less-than-5-star hotel, trying to make the most of it. But that night, Reid was in a lot of abdominal pain, worse than usual. He spent most of the night soaking in the hotel’s bathtub—the only thing that seemed to ease the pain in his back and abdomen. That’s when the questions started: Why has this pain been ongoing? Why is it getting worse?

At that point, morale hit rock bottom. The kids’ excitement deflated like a party balloon when we told them we had to turn around. It wasn’t easy giving them that news, especially after driving eight hours. The next morning, I drove us the eight hours back home.

Once back, we started researching and asking around for the best urgent care or ER options. Eventually, we ended up at an urgent care, where they advised us to go straight to the ER at Loma Linda Hospital. We arrived around 1 p.m. and stayed until 4 a.m., when Reid was finally admitted for potential surgery. That was the beginning of a nightmare week.

The doctors were general practitioners, each day bringing a new, negative opinion about his health. It was frustrating because no one could figure out what was going on. Was it diverticulitis? Ulcerative colitis? Crohn’s disease? They kept asking if Reid had a history of Crohn’s, which he didn’t.

Eventually, they performed “exploratory endoscopy” surgery. After seven incisions, they removed his appendix and an unexpected abscess. Later, we found out from pathology that his appendix was clean and didn’t need to be removed. Reid felt much better post-surgery, but we had to wait for the next milestones: gas and a bowel movement. Without those, he couldn’t be discharged. It felt like an eternity, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could keep up the daily hospital visits from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. The kids kept telling me they missed me at home, but they also understood how important it was for me to be there with Reid, advocating for him and pushing the doctors with the hard questions.

Finally, after a long week, we were cleared to go home. I hadn’t felt that kind of relief since we bought our house—it had been a while. It was such a joy to have him back under our roof, where I could make him homemade bone broth instead of the junk food from the hospital.

That first night, all seven of us slept so well, knowing Reid was home. I hope that helps answer some of your questions regarding how could Reid, a healthy 40 something get a bad report from his colonoscopy.

Stay tuned for more updates.

Holding onto our maker.

Shalice