Diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis While in College

When I was first diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis I had already started college. Because my doctors told me that they would be able to control my disease with medication I didn't even consider that it would affect my college life. I continued to go to school but started noticing that I was running to the bathroom so much that I had to start taking classes that weren't so long. I was a biology major and would take classes that lasted over an hour and a half and included taking labs. I would sit in the back of the class so I could sneak out to use the bathroom as often as I needed to.

I tried to talk to my professors about it and they understood but there wasn't a lot they could do to help me keep up with my schoolwork. But because I was leaving class so much I found that I was missing out on a lot of lecture time and started getting behind on my assignments and the ones I did turn in were very poor quality.

Obviously this affected my grades and I knew that I had to do something. I couldn't keep going to school and making bad grades. I gradually started cutting down on my classes and eventually found myself only taking online courses or independent study courses, and that's no way to learn. I had to drop out. Not only was I running to the bathroom ten times a day but my condition was worsening and I was being admitted to the hospital a lot for observation and treatments. I was out of school for two years and never had the chance to finish my undergraduate studies. I was really upset that I had to leave school because I wanted to pursue a career.

While I was in college I also lived on campus in the dorms. I shared a room with one other person but had to share showers and other bathroom facilities with the entire floor. I lived in a co-ed building. Girls and guys were separated every other floor. The showers I didn't have so much of a problem with. The bathroom was a different story. Ulcerative Colitis can have some embarrassing symptoms and I found it difficult to deal with these.

I would spend fifteen to twenty minutes at a time in the bathroom and I'm sure the other girls wondered what I was doing. I didn't have to, or couldn't, explain my situation to my roommate because she was exchange student from Japan and hardly spoke English. I ended up talking to my resident assistant and I she just mentioned my situation to the other girls so I wouldn't have to endure the humiliation. No one ever said anything to me about it and no one's attitude towards me ever changed. I was very lucky that they were as accepting as they were.

Ulcerative Colitis is something that we just have to learn to accept and know that it's going to change our lives. My case was extreme and I had to drop out of school. If your disease is under control you can lead a normal life. You might have to cut down on classes and it might take a little longer to finish school but at least you know you're on your on your way to reaching your goal no matter how long it might take. You should talk to your professors if you're struggling so that they're at least aware of your situation.