An Honest Conversation with Colleen Estrada

Colleen Estrada shares her journey through a rare diagnosis, a major surgery, and the faith that sustains her.

Introduction

If I would’ve sat down and interviewed Colleen Estrada, it would go something like this. Please know that the responses are real and taken directly from her sharing her story with friends.

Interview

Q: Looking back, what happened that first day you went to the ER?

Colleen: “It’s still hard for me to process what happened. I went in thinking it was just another rough day with my health, but within hours I learned that almost my entire stomach had died and needed to be removed. The surgery lasted nine hours, and when I woke up, I was told that only about ten percent of my stomach was left. I still haven’t fully wrapped my head around it. One day I was managing my life with medications, and the next I was waking up in a reality I never could have imagined.”

Q: How has it been since your surgery?

Colleen: “It’s been really hard. Talking wears me out quickly. I can only manage short conversations, because anything long is painful and leaves me breathless. That’s why I decided to write this instead of trying to say it all out loud.”

Q: What exactly did the doctors discover about your condition?

Colleen: “They diagnosed me with necrotizing gastritis. My oncologist told me I’m basically the 1% of the 1%. It is so rare that I’m almost the only one who has ever had it. That’s why I’m working with a cancer team at Loma Linda, even though I don’t have cancer. They are the only surgeons trained for something like this.”

Q: What does your treatment and recovery look like moving forward?

Colleen: “The plan is to rebuild my stomach using what little is left, along with parts of my small intestine and esophagus. The removal surgery took nine hours, and I expect the reconstruction will take even longer. I will have a whole team of specialists working on it.”

Q: Do doctors know what caused this?

Colleen: “We think my rheumatoid arthritis medication played a big role. I had nickel implants back in 2015, and that nickel caused the autoimmune disease that eventually required me to be on medication like RINVOQ. I finally found that RINVOQ worked, and I hadn’t been able to stay on it long term until recently. Then, all of a sudden, I ended up in the ER. One of the listed side effects of RINVOQ is necrosis of the stomach. What it doesn’t say is how severe it can be. In my case, it went completely over the top.”

Q: How has this affected you physically day to day?

Colleen: “I’ve lost a lot of weight. In some ways I needed that, but not this way and not this fast. I’m on oxygen now, I’m anemic, and my skin is pale. My face looks drawn. Even climbing the stairs at home is a struggle, and I have fifteen of them to face every time I leave. To make things worse, my right leg and hip are still broken and waiting for surgery. Just getting to the doctor feels like a mountain to climb.”

Q: And emotionally? What has this journey felt like?

Colleen: “Honestly, I shut down. Depression got the best of me, and I closed people out. I stopped answering messages. I barely leave my house except for appointments. For someone who used to be so active, that has been crushing. And even when you know people are on your side, it is surprisingly easy to feel like you are facing it all alone.”

Q: Where does your faith fit into this?

Colleen: “I’ve put everything in God’s hands. I’ve turned to Him for guidance and strength, because I know the road back is going to be long and grueling. I still ask for prayers, because I believe they matter. And even in all this, I try to hold on to a little humor. I joke that when it’s over, I want to gain back my health and my strength, but not the weight.”

Q: What do you hope for as you look ahead?

Colleen: “More than anything, I hope this next surgery goes well so I can start regaining my life. I want to rebuild my body, but also my spirit. I want to reconnect with people again instead of isolating. I want to feel healthy and present, and I am asking for prayer to help me through what I know will be a long, uphill climb.”

Q: What would you like friends and family to know or do for you right now?

Colleen: “That I am sorry I shut you out. That I am grateful for every message, every prayer, every ounce of patience. Even when I seem quiet, I need you. Doing this alone is scary but knowing people are listening makes all the difference.”

Closing

And for those who know Colleen, she often reminds us that her grandsons are her silver lining. In the midst of hardship, she is still a proud Mimi.