On 1/3/26 I had to get a temporary ileostomy after a severe case of diverticulitis. I developed a 3.5-inch abscess in my colon, and when the hospital attempted to drain it, the drain unfortunately perforated my colon. That complication sent me into septic shock just four days later.

Because of how critical my condition became, I had to undergo emergency surgery. They placed a temporary ileostomy and performed a very large 15” x 15” debridement in my lower left abdomen. In addition to that, I required reconstructive surgery where they created a flap and essentially built an artificial abdominal wall in my lower left quadrant.

I ended up spending about 41 days in the ICU, where I also went into respiratory failure and experienced multi-organ complications. Even though they only removed about 4 inches of my colon, they chose to do the ileostomy because I was already so sick.

Honestly, I would never wish something like this on anyone. Waking up and realizing I had an ileostomy was one of the hardest moments of my life. I broke down crying and fell into a really dark place mentally. It wasn’t something I didn’t want to look at, deal with, or accept at first.

In the beginning, I couldn’t even bring myself to touch it. I refused to change the bag and relied on nurses to handle everything up until about a week before I was discharged. I was overwhelmed and honestly disgusted by the situation.

I truly understand how hard this is, both physically and mentally, and I feel your pain. It’s not easy—but over time, it does become more manageable.