Crohn’s Disease, Sarcoidosis, Hip Surgery and whatever else I have!

My name is Max and I’m a sick bastard.

Literally.

BUT before we get into all that, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I am ( at the time of posting ) 40 Earth years old. I was born in Philadelphia and then lived in a small town in New Jersey called “the” Villas. For a while I lived in central Florida where I graduated Full Sail with a degree in Video Production/Film Making - I then went on to teach there as well. Full Sail is also where I met my future wife, Shels.

In 1999 I moved to Colorado where I was Senior Designer for Excite.com/Matchlogic. I ended up back in Florida, this time St. Pete where I worked for the Travel & Tourism ad agency Yessawich, Pepperdine and Brown. Missing Colorado and snow, I found my way back and was hired my a company called Virtuas which specialized in Open Source. That opened up a whole new world for me, a place where I could use my talents in design along with Open Source technologies. I also had the pleasure of meeting and working with the best human beings ( for the most part ) on the planet. On the side I started Timberline Group, a media and production company for outdoor sports. I got into offroading and my Jeep - loved the outdoors and all, but soon, I started feeling like crap - and just couldn’t get better. In 2004 I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Colitis. Then in 2007, after having trouble walking I was diagnosed with Avascular Necrosis and a hip replacement was suggested. Add to that severe sleep apnea - off the scale stress - vomiting in my sleep and you have the current train wreck that is called,…. ME.

Since getting sick, sadly Virtuas Open Source Solutions is no more in a sense. I was then transfered to our sister company Synteras, which is own by the parent company Qivliq. They have been super supportive and understanding ( especially  Regina and Stan & Brad from Synteras ), not to mention helpful since I took this turn and ended up in the situation I’m in. The only positive things that have happened since getting ill; I married Shels in 2006 - bought a house early in 2007 in Bailey Colorado - up in the hills where I’ve always wanted to be and recently we added a third Pug to the family. We have Molly. Dweezil and now Rizzo. The dogs and the house in the mountains are better than any drug I’m taking, the side effects are wonderful and it’s the best treatment I’ve been on. Well, the other thing that keeps me going - I’m blessed with some of the kindest, most understanding, giving and unselfish friends an Eastcoast Born Mountain Bastard with a limp and bad colon could ever have. Doesn’t matter if they are people I’ve been fortunate enough to work with, go wheelin’ with - people I’ve met online - or the maniac’s that I’ve been friends with forever. You are the best and thank you for being part of this with me.

So anywho, the reason for all this - the blog and the topics - its all rather simple. I can’t always talk about what I’m going through and really, I hate doing so. I used to be pretty damn healthy. So it’s not easy to talk about this. So what happens is, I go long periods keeping to myself and people either think I’m too sick to talk or dead. The only logical thing for me was to put together this site, and post as often as I can. And maybe even help someone going through the same or similar things while also informing my friends and family on my condition.

At the moment my Crohn’s doesn’t seem to be in full on flare stage, but certainly not in remission. I now also have to walk with the aid of a cane. It’s almost dapper, except for the fact that I’m rotten from the inside out. I have good days and bad with my guts and with my hip. I am trying to eat better, lots of Omega 3’s - and healthier food. I’m off alot of the meds I was on before, but still on the pain killers which I’m fully addicted to now. My Doc’s prefer I don’t call it that, but it is what it is. This from the guy who wouldn’t even take aspirin when he had a headache, hell I never even smoked pot.

I’m not very good at accepting I have all these things I’ve had to deal with, especially stress. I didn’t believe it existed before. But after having to deal with insurance companies, and medical billing processes, and learning about the things that afflict me - and how medicine that’s supposed to help can harm, all of this…Yeah, now I’m pretty sure stress exists and it sucks. But it will not beat me. None of this will.

And thus, the motivation for the blog. I deal, cope, learn and then vent, share, entertain and inform here. Hopefully that reduces some stress. Hopefully my friends and family who have been on the side-lines with this whole thing can feel like they are somehow a part of this with me now. Hopefully a stranger stumbles in here and finds something useful. Hopefully those strangers in turn become friends as well. Hopefully I’ll make it through all this and then go back - and use all this to make a book and then Hopefully pay all my medical bills. HA!

Well, that sums it all up I guess. Thats me, this is my blog and that’s that I guess. Oh yeah, TWITTER me,… 

-maxi