Post by Penny on Oct 8, 2009 7:43:07 GMT -5
Who am I?
I am a 41 year old mother of two teenagers and one chihuahua with illusions of grandeur.
I love to write, am an avid reader and spend my time doing one or the other when not training my little dog (who happens to be a certified Service Dog... not bad for a little ankle biter ;D )
My son is showing signs that he, too, may have this confounded condition and will soon be following in my footsteps through the myriad of testing.
Why did I create this forum?
I am by no means an expert on Gastroparesis, having only recently been diagnosed (but having lived with it for a decade or two) and one of the things that stunned me was that I could not find a forum dedicated to this condition!
Gastroparesis is a very widespread condition (it is estimated by the National Institute of Health that over 5 million Americans have it) yet until you come down with it yourself and it is diagnosed chances are that you have never heard of it. There is something very wrong with that!
With so many people suffering from this condition the fact that there is not more being done to find effective treatments and a search for a cure is insulting and intolerable! Doctors do not take it seriously.... after all... it is just an upset stomach! (grits teeth)
So... why the forum?
To give us a place to join together and discuss our stories.
To give us a voice... we severely need a voice in the Health Care Industry and we need to get the word out there that this is a very serious condition that has a huge impact on daily quality of life. Millions have been diagnosed and millions more are out there suffering with no diagnosis because most Doctors know little to nothing about this condition.
My hope is that this forum might be a tool to combine our stories and experiences and give practitioners a place to see how we really feel.
I am a 41 year old mother of two teenagers and one chihuahua with illusions of grandeur.
I love to write, am an avid reader and spend my time doing one or the other when not training my little dog (who happens to be a certified Service Dog... not bad for a little ankle biter ;D )
My son is showing signs that he, too, may have this confounded condition and will soon be following in my footsteps through the myriad of testing.
Why did I create this forum?
I am by no means an expert on Gastroparesis, having only recently been diagnosed (but having lived with it for a decade or two) and one of the things that stunned me was that I could not find a forum dedicated to this condition!
Gastroparesis is a very widespread condition (it is estimated by the National Institute of Health that over 5 million Americans have it) yet until you come down with it yourself and it is diagnosed chances are that you have never heard of it. There is something very wrong with that!
With so many people suffering from this condition the fact that there is not more being done to find effective treatments and a search for a cure is insulting and intolerable! Doctors do not take it seriously.... after all... it is just an upset stomach! (grits teeth)
So... why the forum?
To give us a place to join together and discuss our stories.
To give us a voice... we severely need a voice in the Health Care Industry and we need to get the word out there that this is a very serious condition that has a huge impact on daily quality of life. Millions have been diagnosed and millions more are out there suffering with no diagnosis because most Doctors know little to nothing about this condition.
My hope is that this forum might be a tool to combine our stories and experiences and give practitioners a place to see how we really feel.