Catheters, Colonoscopies, and Radioactive Oatmeal

As I set out to write this post, I’m simultaneously working my way through a bowl of Cream of Wheat with bananas and pureed strawberry compote. Although Cream of Wheat is among the list of approved foods on the new diet I’ll be adhering to for the next month, if not longer, I’m struggling to finish my modest portion. The nausea I woke up with has yet to dissipate, and my upper stomach, a place I commonly experience discomfort, already throbs with pain.

These symptoms–along with bloating, early f...