Xavier senior Ben Helms has taken plenty of hits. After all, he’s the starting center on the Saints’ undefeated football team, and he makes it his business to protect home plate as a catcher on the Xavier baseball team.

But his harshest blow came in an encounter with a serious – and initially mysterious – digestive illness that landed him in the University of Iowa Hospital for 10 days last year. He’ll deal with the condition for the rest of his life.

Helms’ ordeal began during the summer between his sophomore and junior years. “I had bad stomach cramps and was getting really weak and tired,” he recalls. After basic lab tests failed to reveal anything abnormal, he decided he must be suffering from a nasty case of stomach flu.

When his pains intensified, Helms’ family doctor referred him to a gastroenterologist. A colonoscopy revealed that he had ulcerative colitis – an inflammatory bowel disease – which is unusual, but not unheard of, for someone his age.

“It means my colon is lined with little ulcers,” he explains. “They put me on steroids and other medicines to calm my colon down.”

When that failed to bring relief, Helms was referred to a specialist at the University of Iowa, who prescribed a stronger medication and higher doses of steroids to reduce flare-ups in his colon. Meanwhile, he was rapidly losing weight – eventually dropping from his normal 185 pounds to 150 – and struggling to keep playing baseball.

“Some games I was so exhausted I couldn’t play,” he says. The steroids gave him a puffy face and a short fuse, unusual for the normally even-tempered guy.

Support during dark days

As Helms started his junior year, the medications seemed to be helping. “Then I had a week where it was really bad, and there was blood in my stool,” he says. “I knew something wasn’t right. My mom called Iowa City and they decided to admit me.”

For a kid who hates to sit still, the 10 days of hospitalization that followed were a physical and emotional trial. Worse yet, more extensive testing revealed continuing problems with his colon and indicated that he had a liver disease that caused scarring of the liver.

When he was told that, unchecked, the disease could lead to an eventual liver transplant, Helms says, he was “very concerned.”

Those were grim days, he admits, as he faced the uncertainty of his illness, missed playing football and fell behind on his schoolwork. But he fought through them with stubborn resolve, aided by a phalanx of support that he says was beyond all expectations.

“Whenever I was alone, I’d pray to God to watch over me and give me strength to get through it, and I had the best support system anyone could ask for – my family, my friends and their families, really all of Xavier and even people from my middle school, LaSalle.

"The person who honestly kept me positive through it all was my best friend, Bryce Grimm,” he says. Helms and Grimm, a wide receiver for the Saints, have been friends since they were three years old.

“While I was in the hospital everyone on my team was texting me and sending me cards. I talked to my coach every night. That meant more to me than words can express. The principal was talking to my mom the whole time.”

His football coach, Duane Schulte, credits Ben’s parents, Dan and Shelley, with shaping the young man who kept his head throughout his health crisis.

“Who he is has been formulated by his parents, who have four great kids, and he was able to battle through his health problems with the encouragement and support of his family. It all starts with them.”

Helms' illness was clearly a time of bonding for his team as well, Schulte adds. “We’re one big family, all in it together. We relied on the perseverance of Ben and his folks, and his teammates were fantastic. We all just stuck together.”

Finding the path to health

Once out of the hospital, Helms felt he had turned the corner. “I was taking 10 to 12 pills a day, but all my symptoms went away and all winter I was feeling pretty good with only occasional cramps,” he recalls.

In late February, the symptoms started to reappear, and Helms went on another round of steroids. At the same time, his gastroenterologist sent him to a nutrition specialist.

“The nutritionist told me that what I was eating was affecting my everyday life,” Helms says. “He said wheat was killing my stomach and I should never eat wheat again. Also nuts and seeds were bad, and I shouldn’t eat raw veggies. I didn’t want to believe it at first, but my family was very supportive, and my mom even said she would stop eating wheat with me.

“Ever since, it’s pretty much been smooth sailing,” he says brightly. “I don’t eat wheat, tomato-based foods, or nuts. But there are some good gluten-free potatoes and even some good gluten-free desserts. I drink almond milk, which is really good, and eat lactose-free yogurt.”

Helms focuses on eating a substantial gluten-free breakfast at home, but his special diet often requires bringing his own food to the Xavier cafeteria, team dinners and other occasions. It’s nothing to take lightly, but he doesn’t consider it a handicap.

“This summer my strength coach worked with me to rebuild the weight I lost. I take 18 to 20 pills a day to keep my colon and liver healthy, but I feel great and all my friends watch out for me and check to make sure my food is gluten-free or plan meals without gluten.

“It’s something you can control your whole life,” he adds. “The ultimate solution is to remove the colon, but as a 17-year-old I don’t want to do that. I’ll have colonoscopies every three or four years to check it.”

Grateful and upbeat

At 6-foot-1, Helms is on the lean side for a football player even at his healthy weight, but he’s a trusted, battle-hardened competitor on the Xavier line, grateful for the chance to return to the game he loves.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way with what the coaches have done for me,” he says. “I try to keep my health away from the team because I don’t want it to be a distraction to them. We’re pretty focused.”

At the same time, Schulte says, the experience not only changed Helms’ perspective but had an impact on his teammates. “I think it hit home with them to value every opportunity you get.”

Helms, who is also a student senator and a Xavier Ambassador, speaks openly about his deep gratitude to a Xavier community that supported him when he was at his lowest point, and he takes nothing for granted.

“I like to see life as a gift now, and I try to cherish it and make the most of every opportunity.”

He also has a clear vision for his future. “My goal is to be a fire chief,” he says. “I’m the guy that can’t sit behind a desk. I plan to start off at a community college with a fire science degree and work
toward my Master’s.”

Having survived his own trial by fire, he yields nothing to his chronic illness. “I’m not going to let it limit me,” he states. “I believe that I’ve been at my weakest moment, when I was in the hospital, and I feel like I can take on any challenge my health gives me.”