Oh Honey, you have Ulcerative Colitis! How do you feel?

It was the last year of the millennium, and in the spring of 1999 my junior year of college finished in a much less dramatic fashion than it had begun. My stomach issues definitely weren't gone, but they were being managed better with medication. That summer my fiancé and I were separated for the first time (of what would be many) in our relationship as he went to Fort Knox, Kentucky for ROTC training. I decided to join the debate team my senior year, and I jumped in with both feet by attending debate camp (a real thing) at the University of Vermont in Burlington. I had similar issues to Germany: my stomach was really unhappy in Vermont. It was worse than it had been at home, and I was embarrassed my new friends would find out what was happening.

I loved adding debate to my senior year. I knew I only had a year, so I attended every tournament I could. In the fall semester I was at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, PA, at the University of Richmond, the University of Rochester, NY, and Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA (yes, home of Jerry Falwell and yes it's gross). It turned out I was pretty good at debate. My partner and I were regularly qualifying for elimination rounds, and I was winning speaker awards (they awarded the top 10 individual speakers in each division) at every tournament. I was having a blast.

At the final tournament of the fall my debate partner and I won the tournament, and I was the top speaker in our division. It was so much fun to compete, win and build this great new group of friends. My fiancé was really busy with ROTC (an endeavor I still wasn't fully sure I was cool with), so it was nice to have my own new set of friends and interest.

Winning the Appalachian State debate tournament

As the fall semester went on, my stomach issues began to get worse. My doctor ordered a colonoscopy over the holiday break. I completed my first colonoscopy prep like a champion mainly because I didn't yet hate broth or Jello. I remember being given sedation, but I also remember the procedure. I certainly wasn't asleep like I would be in later years. Immediately after the procedure my fiance and I drove nearly 9 hours to visit his sister in Wilmington, North Carolina. He had to drive because I'd been sedated that day. I remember getting Burger King and eating in the car while he drove through a torrential downpour. Ah to be that young and ridiculous again.

We came home in time to party for the millennium new year, a night that was as out of control as it should've been. When I was younger I could sometimes be a runner when I had too much to drink. In my head I'd rationalize that I needed to leave so I should just go and not ruin anyone else's night. That meant my friends were often searching for me after I disappeared. That night I ran back to my friend's apartment (in a tank top in January) and went to sleep in her bed. It all made perfect sense in the wee hours of January 1, 2000.

I was ready to jump into my final semester of college, and I got a call from Judy, the nurse at my GI doctor's office. Judy told me that my colonoscopy had revealed I didn't have Proctitis (inflammation of the rectum) as I'd been initially diagnosed. She informed me that I instead had Ulcerative Colitis (UC). "Oh Honey! How do you feel?" she asked me in her southern accent.  "Well Judy I feel the same way I've felt for the last year while I've been misdiagnosed." I quipped. The GI doctor changed my meds to account for my new diagnosis, and I kept going. After all I had college and debate, not my health, as my top priorities. 

We started the semester strong by attending a debate tournament at the University of Miami. There's nothing better than leaving a freezing Pittsburgh and landing in hot, humid Miami, Florida. My team and I had an absolute blast debating and exploring Miami as only college students can appreciate. I then attended tournaments at the U.S. Naval Academy and the University of Pittsburgh. Debate was a drug, and I was addicted.

That semester I was selected to participate in a week-long internship in the West Virginia legislature for which I would receive college credit. Three of my debate teammates (including my partner) were also attending, so it was a really fun time. I was wrapping up college with no clue what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I had applied to law school and graduate school at West Virginia University, but my LSAT scores weren't super strong. I'd been admitted to grad school but had received a letter saying I hadn't been either admitted or rejected from law school but would be informed later in the semester. I had no idea what to do next, but I did know I needed health insurance.

Each intern was paired with a legislator to show them around the capitol. My legislator was running for State Supreme Court (my opinion on how terrible is it that judges are elected reserved for another time), so he was rarely there. While my friends were busy, I wandered around the capitol trying to figure out what to do with myself. In one of our few conversations my legislator, Evan Jenkins (who is now Chief Justice of West Virginia's Supreme Court) gave me advice that changed my life. He asked what I wanted to do next, and I told him about law school and grad school. He said if I got into law school I should go that route. Even if I didn't want to practice (I didn't), that extra year would give me a lot more options.

In the WV House of Delegates during my legislative internship

I returned to Morgantown and was accepted to law school. I decided I would attend law school in the fall of 2000. I was also gearing up for my last debate tournament, Nationals at Towson University in Maryland. That spring my UC had been spiraling, and I headed to Towson a hot mess. I didn't want anyone to know, so I continued to power through. One evening my team went down to the hotel pool/bar area, and I begged off saying I was tired. In truth I was in so much pain I could barely walk. I sat on the floor and changed into pajamas. I crawled to the bathroom and then into bed. My partner and I still managed to qualify for elimination rounds, and I won a speaker award at my final tournament despite how sick I felt. 

After Towson the countdown began to graduation. The Coliseum, WVU's basketball facility and usual location for graduation, was having asbestos removed, so the class of 2000 was the first ever to graduate outside on Mountaineer Field. It was a stunning day, and I sat with the other two seniors from the debate team. I graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science. I was headed to law school, engaged and happy. I was sick, but it felt like something temporary. It felt like I would get better. On that flawless day I didn't know I was about to have the toughest summer of my life. 

With my parents the day I graduated from college