10 replies to this topic

[kjaggard]

and jumping into heady conversations is my game. As should be apparent by the fact that I've replied to three topics before introducing myself properly.

I'm also mildly dyslexic so don't mind the spelling too much, so long as you get the idea I'm trying to convey.

But really what bring me here is the time line first of all, but an avid curiousity about the universe and a creativity so big it's stifle by the limits of today and a single lifetime.

And the limits of an auto immune disorder that's destroying parts of this body slowly and painfully, effecting my quality of life. But every day they find new potential treatments and understanding of the causes for disease like mine and others. It seems just around the corner that we have the solutions that would make the fighting for every day extra I can would maybe allow me to get my head above the water and to see a future where my curiousity might actually be quenched and my creativity might be fully expressed and used up someday... (I doubt it, but I'll gladly play with life trying to use it all up).

I've a fair bit of exploring these topic on my own under my belt, and being sick as I have been at times I'm not over shy about sharing what I know, and ideas I might have. The humility one gets from this sort of thing also helps you realise that while your just one person so is everybody else, and nobody is so great that they can't benefit from listening to a different perspective.

So I guess that's a good place to start.

[Time_Traveller]

Welcome to Futuretimeline.

[Raklian]

Welcome Jaggard.

Good news is that if you stick around for the next two decades, you'll be much better off health-wise, thanks to rapid medical advances especially with diseases relating to the immune system. Even now, we're starting to know a lot more about our immune system than we did even just five years ago.

[Anu]

welcome

[tornado64]

Welcome to FT. Hope there is soon something what can help you.

[kjaggard]

Welcome Jaggard.

Good news is that if you stick around for the next two decades, you'll be much better off health-wise, thanks to rapid medical advances especially with diseases relating to the immune system. Even now, we're starting to know a lot more about our immune system than we did even just five years ago.

Specifically my condition (I have others that are more easily handled and are not life shortening) is Crohn's Disease, a form of IBD. Once refuses to go into remission, which it has, there is a span of a few years before the first surgeries are needed. After that it becaomes a battle where surgery resolve life threat but often the sight of surgery becomes the sight of a new flare which damages the tissue to the point of neededing another surgery in the next few years. Ultimately they begin to remove so much that the body stops absorbing nutrients from most of the food.

But as you say they are making great breakthroughs lately. Recently they have found that Many forms of IBD have contributing factors in Gut flora imbalances and irregularities. They have also found that the reason there has been some success with hookworm parasite as treatment options is that there is a protien released that changes the immune response without suppressing the whole immune system. They've also found that things like dietary changes and vitamin supplementation can make a differance (and that is primarily what I do at this point).

Also on this site in the last few days somebody posted that scientist have in fact replaced a rats digestive tract with an artificially grown one.

So it looks like in the short term they may find ways to minimise symptoms and damage, and then even force it into remission. Then further along the may be able to cure the cause all together. and by that point I'd just have to wait another few years before an undamaged digestive tract could be made to replace the damaged one with absorbtion issues now.

That's the hope anyway. The red tape and hope don't always go together.

I really do have a lot more to do in this life and the limit imposed on my by this illness often impede me in the persuit of it. I still do as much as I can, and will say that I've know fully healthy people who don't live as much as I can sometimes. But my goal is to be in the group of people who live to see 200. If I can make it that far I think I might just be on the edge of the escape velocity.

It's going to be tight. going by statistics I've got about thirty years left, because those with my illness have a decrease life expectancy, not to mention the last years tend to suck because of complications and illness.

But if they can find low to zero side effect ways of stopping or slowing damage, that will get me to drugs being approved that can send it into remission, which will get me through until a potential cure, which will get me to the point of repairing the damage done. Then I can avoid the decreased life expectancy and I can look forward to an additional twenty to thrity years by current expectations of life expectancy. That means I could be around for sixty years from today.

If we hold civilisation together long enough, and don't backslide too heavily, in sixty years time I fully expect there to be life extending procedures that will extend my life further. If I make it to onhundred years from now I may just walk on another planet even if I'm not the first tourist.

And if I make it to two hundred years old I will have lived long enough to realise a great deal of my dreams, and a few more as yet undreamed. Maybe I may live to go on dreaming very much longer than that.

Through it all it is my deepest hope to contribute to world by using my creativity and many talents, and to encourage others to do the same and share dreams and creations.

There is just so much potential in humanity, and the universe is just so big and full of wonder. It would be a shameful waste of potential and wonder to live such a short time in pain and limited to a tiny section of a tiny world.

Welcome to FT. Hope there is soon something what can help you.

Thank You.

[GNR Rvolution]

Welcome Jaggard, sorry to hear about your condition, doctors thought I had it once but thankfully tested negative, hope they make some breakthroughs soon for you!

[Italian Ufo]

Welcome among us

[Raklian]

My grandmother has Crohn's Disease as well. She struggled with it nearly her whole life and still has those painful flare-ups from time to time. She is now nearly 85 years old and suriving.

[wjfox]

Welcome!

[kjaggard]

My grandmother has Crohn's Disease as well. She struggled with it nearly her whole life and still has those painful flare-ups from time to time. She is now nearly 85 years old and suriving.

That's pretty decent. I've been going solid flare for five years now, had some bouts when I was younger and before we knew what it was. Lost half my body weight. Right now I'm struggling with a Vitamin D deficiency and attempts to supplement cause what appears to be hyper calcemia, with heart arrythmia. My D hydrox levels come in at 4 and anything below 20 is severe deficiency. Acceptable range is about 35-50. So I'm trying to get sun and I may low dose supplement very sparsely to see if I can get into acceptable range before winter.