In Sept 2023, I was in the process of making the decision to have, or not have The Whipple , I asked the surgeon “ Will I be able to ride my mountain bike after The Whipple?” I love riding my mountain bike, and being out in nature, it has helped me for years deal with living with Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) . The surgeon told me I should make a full recovery, and able to live an active life. After hearing this I started to make a plan of how I would get through the surgery, and recovery. I was figuring 7 days in hospital, and 3 months at home, this seemed to be the standard. I had no idea it would be such a long difficult time . One of the first things I did, in the month that was leading up to the surgery, was buy a flag with a happy face on it. Then took this on a mountain bike trip, spending time each day saluting the flag , starting the process of focusing on a positive outcome for the surgery. I was lucky to have my family, and friends in my life. I enl...
A personal story of living with Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP), and life after The Whipple Surgery.