Hello, this is my first post. I'm writing on behalf of my son, Niko. Niko (soon to be 16) was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in 2010. After 2 years of taking various meds (which did not work), he had a total colectomy (Aug 1, 2012). It was the first out of 3 surgeries (next will be the creation of the j-pouch). For now, he has an ileostomy. 20 days post-op, my son continues to have cramping daily. Some days are worse than others. His GI did a endoscopy on him last week to make sure that his small intestine was fine; he found nothing wrong. He's been trying to stick to a low residue diet as well as avoiding gas causing foods (although it's been a challenge finding foods he CAN eat). Can anyone offer advice?
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Niko's Mom,
I am sorry to hear about your son's UC. But there is some hope for him in playing sports.
There used to be a football player named Rolf Benirschke who played in the National Football League for the San Diego Charges during the 1980's. He had UC and also had to have a Koch Pouch but even after all his surgeries, he played for 8 seasons. Listed is what I found on the web-site. Just google this player's name for more info. I hope this helps.
Rocco
Rolf Benirshke Early career:
Benirschke attended La Jolla High School in San Diego where his father Kurt Benirschke, a German immigrant, was pathologist at UCSD medical school.
He attended college at the University of California at Davis, playing under coach Jim Sochor. He was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the 12th round of the 1977 NFL Draft, and was then traded to the San Diego Chargers for his rookie year in the National Football League.
In the off-season before the 1978 season, his second season, he developed chronic fever, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. He learned that he had ulcerative colitis, a form of inflammatory bowel disease.
Living with ulcerative colitis:
His health problems worsened in the 1979 season, when, on the team plane coming home from a road trip, Benirschke collapsed. He underwent two surgeries to remove his large intestine and he was in the intensive care unit for weeks. When released from the hospital, he weighed only 123 pounds and had to adjust to life with two ostomy appliances. His ileostomy was eventually reversed in a Koch pouch procedure.
On Sunday, November 18, 1979, Benirschke made his dramatic return to the Chargers in a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While he did not play, he was named honorary team captain for the game, which was a sellout. Louie Kelcher, a Chargers' defensive tackle, assisted him and held his hand out onto the field. The Chargers won the game 35-7.
From 1980 to 1982, Benirschke was also a broadcaster for the San Diego Sockers of the former North American Soccer League.
FOOTBALL CAREER:
In 1980 Benirschke returned to kicking and played seven more seasons with the team before retiring in 1987 as the team's all-time leader in points scored (766).
He was named the NFL Man of the Year in 1983. He was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 1983 season. In 1997 he was the twentieth player inducted into the San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame.
I am sorry to hear about your son's UC. But there is some hope for him in playing sports.
There used to be a football player named Rolf Benirschke who played in the National Football League for the San Diego Charges during the 1980's. He had UC and also had to have a Koch Pouch but even after all his surgeries, he played for 8 seasons. Listed is what I found on the web-site. Just google this player's name for more info. I hope this helps.
Rocco
Rolf Benirshke Early career:
Benirschke attended La Jolla High School in San Diego where his father Kurt Benirschke, a German immigrant, was pathologist at UCSD medical school.
He attended college at the University of California at Davis, playing under coach Jim Sochor. He was selected by the Oakland Raiders in the 12th round of the 1977 NFL Draft, and was then traded to the San Diego Chargers for his rookie year in the National Football League.
In the off-season before the 1978 season, his second season, he developed chronic fever, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. He learned that he had ulcerative colitis, a form of inflammatory bowel disease.
Living with ulcerative colitis:
His health problems worsened in the 1979 season, when, on the team plane coming home from a road trip, Benirschke collapsed. He underwent two surgeries to remove his large intestine and he was in the intensive care unit for weeks. When released from the hospital, he weighed only 123 pounds and had to adjust to life with two ostomy appliances. His ileostomy was eventually reversed in a Koch pouch procedure.
On Sunday, November 18, 1979, Benirschke made his dramatic return to the Chargers in a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While he did not play, he was named honorary team captain for the game, which was a sellout. Louie Kelcher, a Chargers' defensive tackle, assisted him and held his hand out onto the field. The Chargers won the game 35-7.
From 1980 to 1982, Benirschke was also a broadcaster for the San Diego Sockers of the former North American Soccer League.
FOOTBALL CAREER:
In 1980 Benirschke returned to kicking and played seven more seasons with the team before retiring in 1987 as the team's all-time leader in points scored (766).
He was named the NFL Man of the Year in 1983. He was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 1983 season. In 1997 he was the twentieth player inducted into the San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame.
Thank you sooooo much for this post, Rocket! It is so inspiring and I will show it to my son.
try to get him moving and active. Oftentimes it really helps in getting things moving through the system. He's been out of surgery for 3 weeks now, so he should definitely be able to walk several miles a day and do some other mildly active things.
Niko's Mom,
Glad I could help. Being a man, I loved playing baseball and football when I was growing up so if I couldn't play, I would really take that very hard. So I understand how that can be very frustrating for your son not being able to be active in sports.
But the story is inspiring as you said, and there are so many other cases where athletes have come back regardless of their health situation.
Rocco
Glad I could help. Being a man, I loved playing baseball and football when I was growing up so if I couldn't play, I would really take that very hard. So I understand how that can be very frustrating for your son not being able to be active in sports.
But the story is inspiring as you said, and there are so many other cases where athletes have come back regardless of their health situation.
Rocco