Exciting news!

Kerissa Lee • April 1, 2023

...and other updates :)

Hello, friends!

It's been so long since I last blogged--I missed all of you! One of the reasons is because my Pain With Purpose website was in the midst of a complete makeover! The Lord directed me to Maisey.co--it was so amazing to work with this incredible team who built and designed a beautiful new site for me. They even prayed for me when I was in the hospital in February (more on that below). ❤️

I am so excited to tell you that my website is now finished, and if you'd like, you can check it out right at this link: painwithpurpose.com ☺️ It would make me so happy if you signed up for my newsletter! *Also, if you were signed up to my old website, hopefully you received this new update in your inbox as all emails got transferred. Bear with me if not...I'm still getting familiar with Maisey.*

As I shared above, the other reason for this long overdue post is because I was very sick in the hospital due to sepsis from a central line infection (the line had a hole in it from being well used which is how it got infected). This happened just 3 days after my younger brother's beautiful wedding on February 4th. I'm so thankful for God's faithfulness and sovereignty--if I got septic just a few days earlier, it would have been devastating for me to miss my brother's wedding! His timing truly is perfect.

It was a brutal hospital stay. And because I was feeling so sick from the sepsis (fever, chills, vomiting, body pain, tachycardia, nystagmus that's always 10x worse when ill, and many other symptoms), I wasn't well enough to go under anesthesia in the O.R. for the removal of my infected line. So I had to have excruciating bedside surgery while completely awake. :'( But God's grace was sufficient to carry me through such a terrible and traumatic experience.

I was at the lowest of lows physically and emotionally while in the hospital, but like the above verse that I hand lettered once I felt strong enough after coming home, God saved me. He is my help and my deliverer, time and time again.

After waiting many weeks, my port implant surgery is this coming Tuesday on April 4th! Will also be getting my j-tube replaced while under anesthesia. I'm so happy to finally get the PICC line removed from my arm as well! I started experiencing some pain at the insertion site yesterday, so it's definitely ready to be pulled out! My surgery is at 3:30 PM, and the plan is to be admitted for one night (to be monitored) given my past medical history.. I have a lot of scar tissue in my chest from previous central lines/ports, so I'd appreciate your prayers that my surgeon will be able to find a good spot for the port.

Love you all. 🤗

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Surgery Update 😊

By Kerissa Lee • August 21, 2026

Dear friends, I just wanted to thank you all so much for praying for me during my abdominal surgery on August 6th! 💚 All of your messages/emails really encouraged my heart! If you missed my previous post, I had to have an unexpected surgery to take down the jejunostomy tract and repair an enterocutaneous fistula (a rare complication from having a j-tube for 12 years). I truly felt your prayers, and the Lord answered so many of them as well! 🥹 My surgeon only had to remove about 1 1/2 inches of my small intestine which is great news! I was in the hospital for 4 days because my blood pressure was low and pain control was rough (it’s a long story, but pain management is complex due to a specific medication I take daily at home..). But aside from that and having an allergic reaction to the surgical glue, I’ve been healing well. Thank you again for praying!! God has been so faithful throughout this journey. I got a visit from my sweet foster nephew when I was in the hospital (2nd picture)! 🥰 I can’t wait until I can show you his face—he’s so adorable. 🩵 I’ve mentioned this before, but an important medication I take causes severe insomnia (still not falling asleep until anywhere between 3 AM-9 AM). 😞 But I saw my naturopath this past Monday, and she’s going to treat me for suspected cortisol spiking up during the night (which disrupts the body’s circadian rhythm). I’m thankful for the wisdom God gives her, and I’m excited to see if this treatment will help! It will take 6 weeks to see if there’s any benefit, but I first have to specially order it..

August 6th Surgery Prayer Requests 💚

By Kerissa Lee • August 6, 2026

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." -Psalm 46:1

Another surgery 😞

By Kerissa Lee • July 25, 2026

Hi, friends, I thought I wouldn’t be posting for a while since I’ve been doing really well, but I’ve hit a bump in the road again and would appreciate your prayers. 💚 This past Tuesday the 21st, after nearly 12 years living with it, I had my jejunostomy tube removed completely. I thought it was going to be a simple process and that the stoma (hole) would close quickly within 30 minutes like they said. That didn’t happen, though, as the stoma started draining a ton! I couldn’t even leave the lobby and had to go back up to the clinic on the 8th floor to have an ostomy bag placed to collect all the small intestinal digestive juices that continually drained. Unfortunately, I’m experiencing a very rare complication called an enterocutaneous fistula. 🥺 I’m disappointed this is happening, but I’m not exactly surprised since my whole medical case with Mitochondrial DNA Depletion Syndrome has been rare from the very beginning.. I also don’t heal well due to connective tissue problems from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (case in point: my port site issues back in May when I had to have a new one surgically placed on the other side of my chest).. 😞 The clinic told me to keep emptying the ostomy bag and monitor the output. It wasn’t a fun 2 days. This whole process has definitely made me so grateful to God that I’ve never needed something like an ileostomy! TMI, but I lost almost a whole pound of fluid because so much was gushing/spurting out of the stoma every time I ate or drank. Losing so many electrolytes, I started experiencing symptoms of dehydration—weakness, high heart rate, and headaches. So yesterday, I had to go back and see the surgery resident who basically placed another j-tube (it was so painful again!). 😭 This is a temporary “plug,” and I’m bummed to say that I have to go to the operating room to have the jejunostomy tract taken down and the fistula repaired. This surgery will be happening as early as next week (it depends on my surgeon’s schedule).. She said it will be complex, especially because adhesions (scar tissue) form when a person has multiple abdominal surgeries.. I lost count what number this surgery/procedure will be, but I do know I’ve had more than 20! 😞 I know God is with me wherever I go and will supply me with the strength to endure yet another surgery like he always does. But, I’m still sad that I have to have more incisions added to my body. I shared the lyrics to this song before on an old blog post (the song is called It Is Well With My Soul by Matt Redman), but it immediately came to mind again when I was thinking of scars. As the song below said, it’s a reminder to me that my scars can be a testimony to others of God’s grace in my life and how he has brought me through every single pain and sorrow. In the Bible, I’ve always thought it’s so neat that Jesus still had his scars after he rose from the dead—he had a new body, and yet, his scars were still visible. ❤️ Our scars are a sign of grace in our lives Oh Father, how You brought us through When deep were the wounds And dark was the night The promise of Your love, You proved Now every battle still to come Let this be our song It is well (it is well) With my soul (with my soul) It is well, it is well with my soul