With M80's and fire crackers still going off in our neighborhood, Kate and I were reflecting on this past year and she asked me, "many years from now, what do you think we will remember from 2014?" In the words of the great Charles Dickens, it was the best of times and it was the worst … Continue reading 2014: The best of times, the worst of times.
the (650)
Almost exactly a year ago I was sitting eating sushi with my friend and co-worker Jeff, when I saw a familiar area code pop-up on my phone. (650). It would be one of many calls I would be receiving from Stanford since last October, but this phone call changed my life. I guess you could … Continue reading the (650)
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Lessons Learned #3: You Do You
On my third hospital stay, I was pretending to be asleep when the team of young doctors told my elderly roommate he had an inoperable tumor. I wanted to just walk over and hug him. Laying there, I couldn't help but to imagine myself receiving the terrible news. "You're dying." I believe their words were, … Continue reading Lessons Learned #3: You Do You
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Lessons Learned #1: Sunny Side Up
Yesterday, our gastroenterologist ran into Kate at the hospital while she was working. Kate told him about the past four weeks including the Meckel's Diverticulum that had gotten infected and removed. The doctor said something that surprised both of us: the Meckel's Diverticulum is made up of both stomach and pancreatic tissues, which means that I … Continue reading Lessons Learned #1: Sunny Side Up
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Facetime
If I have learned anything through this whole process, it's that the stomach-less community is tight. Yesterday Kate and I got to meet Marne and her husband Kyle for the first time. A couple of months ago, Marne reached out to us after finding out that her work was sending her to San Francisco for a … Continue reading Facetime
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The Lottery Continues
Well, it took me a while to write this one because to be honest, the number of times I've had to go back to the hospital has been embarrassing. This past Tuesday night I spent 8 hours throwing up bile and had to get admitted once again on Wednesday the next morning. I decided I … Continue reading The Lottery Continues
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Third Time’s a Charm
Well, this blog post took me a little time to write because I ended up back in the emergency room this past Tuesday (I think it was Tuesday, my memory is a little hazy). After being sent home after my second surgery I was doing fine until I started getting the same stomach cramps I … Continue reading Third Time’s a Charm
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6 More Inches of Story
Well, that one was one crazy week. I get a bowel obstruction, find out I have a hernia, an extra organ that only 2% of people are born with, had a hand full of doctors at two different hospitals look at my CT scan and say, "I don't know", take an ambulance ride up back … Continue reading 6 More Inches of Story
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Set Backs… and Practicing What you Preach
Set backs are not something I totally prepared for during this process... At least not to the extent in which I would have to come back to the hospital. On Thursday afternoon I experienced some of the worst abdominal pain I've felt since I got my stomach removed. It felt like I had gotten stabbed … Continue reading Set Backs… and Practicing What you Preach
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6 months, New Friends and a Triathlon in 2 Weeks
A couple of weeks ago I got a message from Rachel who had been in contact with another CDH1 patient going in for her total gastrectomy at Stanford. While it sucks to have such a rare condition, it makes the HDGC community very unique and tight knit. This past Monday I got a chance to … Continue reading 6 months, New Friends and a Triathlon in 2 Weeks
Steve Dang 