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say one thing positive about Crohns

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 9/20/2010 7:16 PM (GMT 0)
Has anyone here tried the Gerson Clinic for Crohn's?
Posted 9/20/2010 7:37 PM (GMT 0)
Not me, but I have found that alternative therapies do not work very well for me.
Posted 9/20/2010 8:01 PM (GMT 0)
1)       Get more wear from shoes. This happens when you cannot walk from Neuropathy 2)       Expert on TP 3)       Get to stay up all night, from prednisone freak out 4)       Get to support the health system instead of a new car or trip 5)       Get to learn a lot, about a part of the body I used to think I would never discuss in mixed company 6)       Get to leave church early, because I cannot stand too much heat when doing steroids. 7)       Get to try 4 different steroids in 4 months 8)       Get to no longer eat out in good restaurants, because nothing they serve is SCD compliant 9)       Get a reduced love life, because between feeling poorly and the steroids, neither of us wants to   David  
Posted 9/20/2010 8:04 PM (GMT 0)
I have colitis, might not be crohn's but just having this makes me appreciate a day when I am not glued to the toilet and in pain. The past week or so I have been able to eat fruits and vegetables again for the first time in 1.5 years and I am so grateful for that. I even ate a taco on Saturday. I've had indigestion ever since but at least not diarrhea!!! LOL.....

It also helps me to put things in perspective and take care of myself. Before, I would work too hard and now I know I have to make time to relax and take care of me. I don't feel guilty about that anymore.
Posted 9/20/2010 10:54 PM (GMT 0)
Crohn's makes me appreciate things other people may take for granted. For instance, this summer is the first time in a long while that I could eat raw strawberries. So delicious! I savor every bite. I'm grateful everyday that I feel relatively well. And, I'm always grateful for a nice normal poop smilewinkgrin.
Posted 9/20/2010 11:59 PM (GMT 0)
Eating field: Chewable B12 vitamin, banana smoothies.

Some people think you are some kind of hero.

Deep research in wet wipes usage.

Can develop a friendship with your doc (and nurses).

The need to avoid stress is a handy argument.
Posted 9/21/2010 1:13 AM (GMT 0)
I've had Crohn's for most of 25 years now and suffered almost every indignity it can dish out. I've often joked that I must have been one heck of an SOB in a past life to get this sentence. Having said all of that, I would not trade who it has made me. I truly mean that. It has humbled me. It has strengthened me. It has brought me a valuable sense of mortality. Though I would wish it on no one, I've met few sufferers who aren't stronger for it.
Posted 9/21/2010 2:21 AM (GMT 0)
I would rather have crohn's then cancer, and I am happy to have my cognative abilities intact.  I am definately a stronger, more compassionate person from living with a chronic illness for 30+ years.  It has also taught my kids patience and understanding.  I never forget that no matter how bad it gets, there is always someone worse off than me. 

Julia

 

Posted 9/23/2010 8:41 AM (GMT 0)
It's made me realise that you cannot take life for granted !!!!!
And for that reason I live my life everyday being positive as much as I can, appreciate family and friends who have stuck by me, especially my lovely hubby !!!!

And if I didn't have this disease, I would still be running around ninety miles per hour, never having me time etc etc so this disease has come along and slapped me on my a**e big style !!!! Lol !!!
It's made me stop and appreciate what iv got and not what I want.it's made me have down time etc, it's made me reflect on my life and although I'm not saying I'm glad I've got crohns, it's made me stop and think !!!!

And finally it's made me meet a whole bunch of people all over the world !!!! Yes guys that's you !!!! Whom I would never have known if it wasn't for our diseases !!!!

My god reading this I sound like the dalai lama !!! ( don't think iv spelt it right thou !!!! )
Posted 9/24/2010 3:20 AM (GMT 0)
I'm in med school, eat junk round the clock, and have gained a pound, max, since I started. My friends marvel at my ability to put away an entire box of poptarts.

Now I'm in my second year and laughing because I've been given at least one drug from EVERY SINGLE GROUP OF DRUGS we've been learning about! Crohn's butts its head into every organ system you've got!
Posted 10/3/2010 6:13 PM (GMT 0)
There is nothing positive about having crohns.... but there are positives to be taken from life when experieicing chronic illness. Crohns is horrible BUT it made me grow up and understand other people and it also led me on the path of completing my social work degree when i was in my early 20s... because i had experienced so much loss at such an early age. I became wise before my years and it helped me work with others who are sick or in need, like with home care patients and foster children. so in effect, if i did not get sick at such a young age and in such a severe way, i would not have gained some of the insights i have and thus i may not be in this field of practice today.

however, if given the choice, i would have preferred to not have crohns and to continue naivley (sp?) through life and into the field of marine biology as originally planned ;)

best of luck to all who live each day with this horrific disease. there are truely no words to say when it comes to living with chronic illness- no one except those who suffer with u, truely understand the pain.

B
Posted 10/3/2010 6:35 PM (GMT 0)
I hate Crohn's.

I'm not one whit stronger, one whit more compassionate, not one whit more anything. Why would I be? It's not like I went around laughing at those with chronic illnesses, going "ha ha! you're ill and I'm not!", before I got Crohn's. Do I understand their plight better? No, not really. Again, why would I? If I can't understand that it's horrible to be in pain when I'm well, why would I understand it any better when I'm actually in pain? I can't speak for Crohn's, but I know that formerly depressed people are sometimes the least sympathetic towards depression.
Posted 10/3/2010 7:21 PM (GMT 0)
Thank-you for posting this. I do feel like I am a stronger person, and I see the world with a different view than someone who takes their health for granted. I have to roll with the punches. It's a challenge I have and continue to overcome.

Unfortunately, this disease also makes me feel defective. I can't help thinking that people like me are at an evolutionary disadvantage. In the past, sickly people wouldn't survive. The only reason I am living is because of modern medicine, not because I am intrinsically able to be healthy. It's nice to say that Crohn's patients and other people with conditions are just like everyone else except that we have various health conditions, but that's not realistic. It's not "just your health" because your health dictates everything else. I was told I could do anything I put my mind to, but that's not true. I am limited what my body is capable of- having the focus and energy to study for school, being well enough to leave the house for social occations, etc. It's unfair; however, bad things happen to good people. I just try to focus on the things I can control.
Posted 10/3/2010 7:33 PM (GMT 0)

Spookyhurst said...
It's turned me into a very healthy eater. If I didn't have crohn's, I'd probably still be eating processed crap, drinking pop, etc.

Same here. I always considered myself a healthy eater but now with IBD I really notice how often and how much I cheat.
Posted 10/3/2010 8:01 PM (GMT 0)
I am more understanding to other people and any other illness, I just can understand (even depression)
I learn to accept help and allow my Dh to take care of me
the knowledge I've learned over the years with my diease and others
can't lie I it's a good weight lose tool but I know it's not the right way to lose weight (def not the healthy way)
I get to see who my real friends are and who stick with me even tho I may have to cancel plans a million times (that is the best part knowing who your real friends are)and I am very blessed :)
I can never debt our strang of a person I am. I am tough as rocks!! :)
I can find a million other reason too but I leave it at that lol.

MOST OF ALL I APPRECIATE THE GOOD DAYS I GET EVERY ONCE AND AWHILE!!

Cd is still so frustrating tho no matter how many good things I can find about it, but life is what it is huh! ;)

Posted 10/3/2010 8:59 PM (GMT 0)
If you've had surgery (like I have had), you don't have to worry about high cholesterol.
Posted 10/4/2010 2:00 AM (GMT 0)
1. I feel really lucky to have been able to be home with the kids instead of having them in daycare (worked for a total of 4 months since 2003) ds2 is 2.5 and I haven't needed child care yet, except my mom and sis a few days I absolutely could not stop pooping/vomiting and had an insane fever

2. all the optimum points from my $$$$$$$$ prescriptions (just got a "free" Nintendo DSXL for ds1 for Christmas :)

3. I agree with the person who said it always gives you an excuse to back out of social engagements ..I have social anxiety so it really comes in handy.. and people know I'm severe so they always understand
Posted 10/4/2010 3:38 AM (GMT 0)
Tara, I'm with you on number 1. My dad has crohn's and was a stay at home dad, so I never had to go to day care. While it was really scary when he was sick, I was grateful (even as a kindergartner) to not have to go to day care like many of the other kids did.
Posted 10/4/2010 6:53 AM (GMT 0)

NiceCupOfTea said...
I hate Crohn's.

I'm not one whit stronger, one whit more compassionate, not one whit more anything. Why would I be? It's not like I went around laughing at those with chronic illnesses, going "ha ha! you're ill and I'm not!", before I got Crohn's. Do I understand their plight better? No, not really. Again, why would I? If I can't understand that it's horrible to be in pain when I'm well, why would I understand it any better when I'm actually in pain? I can't speak for Crohn's, but I know that formerly depressed people are sometimes the least sympathetic towards depression.

 

 

I have to say that I totally agree and understand exactly what you mean, I view it the exact same way as you do...I didn't have to get crohn's to "learn any lessons", I was just as good a person then (before getting sick) as I've always been.

Posted 10/5/2010 5:24 AM (GMT 0)
-I have met alot of people I would never have met, and have had some very interesting conversations.
-I have learned how to negotiate the wonderful world of health care, from insurance to doctors to billing to radiology techs to hospital administrators to both good and bad nurses, which has been invaluable knowledge for when my children, my husband, and my grandma have had serious medical issues and I needed to advocate and intervene for them
-I'm on a first name basis with everyone at the pharmacy, and they don't bat an eye at repeat painkiller prescriptions
-I have gained an enormous amount of self-confidence: I know I can make it through any situation somehow, someway, and I have gone from being fairly quiet and not wanting to cause a scene to being quite willing to be the squeaky wheel if I think its necessary
-I am truly able to relate and empathize with people who suffer from chronic pain, chronic illness, or have any sort of major life-affecting conditon. Honestly, I don't know how some posters feel that they would understand these things as well even if they didn't have crohn's (or some other condition); I always understood that it would be hard to lose a parent, but I didn't truly understand the feelings of loss and depth of grief until I lost my mom. Just an example, I'm not disrespecting anyone else's experiences with this disease. It sucks to have Crohn's, it sucks that ANYONE has Crohn's, and I say a prayer every morning for everyone with this disease (say my prayers in the morning because the ambien makes my nighttime prayers a little wacky!)
Posted 10/5/2010 1:10 PM (GMT 0)
This post has gotten really long so I am going to lock it now. If you would like to do a continuation post #2 you are more than welcome to start a new post. Thanks!
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