Not long after I made the decision to go back to school, a surgeon agreed to see me. As I prepared to go back to school, I also prepared for a make or break appointment. That June, I had my consult; although not optimistic, the doctor reluctantly agreed to perform an arthroscopic procedure. He did, however, inform us that if this didn’t work, there was nothing else that could be done. We set a date anyways, the week of American Thanksgiving, and I did my best to keep moving forward.
While most people my age start their freshman year of college figuring out how to buy alcohol and go to parties, I spent my time looking for doctors offices and where I was going to get my drugs (all legal of course). It wasn’t how I imagined starting university, but I was pretty damn happy to be there, even under the circumstances. At the time, I also felt it was best to keep my arthritis a secret, making new friends isn’t easy and I felt that if people knew of my illness it would make it harder. I don’t regret the decision, but it also made the first couple months a lonely place.
Apart from my roommate and a few choice friends, nobody knew. Even though I wasn’t taking a full course load my first term, I was busy. Not only was I trying to make new friends, navigate the world of American Greek life, and taking classes for the first time in a year, but I was also trying to get my footing in the American medical system. I will always be grateful for the healthcare system in Canada, without it, life could’ve been very different, but holy crap, if you have insurance, the American system is where you want to be. I was able to find a new rheumatologist only minutes away immediately. Within a month, I had all the medications I needed and the right care, all covered by insurance.
That November, I left for thanksgiving on the Saturday to have surgery on the Monday. It was a quick two hour procedure with much less swelling, thank god, than the last surgery, I was even able to eat turkey on the Sunday night before I headed back to school. The rest of first year flew by, I started my computer science classes and even decided to add a math major, and made some great friends. I did my best to get involved in everything I could to form bonds that most people find by going out for drinks.
Unfortunately, even though my school life was going well, things were far from perfect. The surgery provided about a month of relief until the pain came back, so we were officially out of options.