You haven’t asked, but I’m answering anyways 🙂

Crohn’s is an inflammatory bowel disease which causes inflammation in the gut, intestines and digestive tract. Mostly affecting the small intestine and colon. But, it can affect anywhere from rectum to mouth.

What causes Crohn’s? Well, it’s unknown truly what causes one to have Crohn’s disease. But many believe that it’s caused by a combination of the environment, an overreaction of the immune system, or genetic. The true known cause is a mystery, and sometimes it seems it could just be the luck of the draw.

Crohn’s can lead to symptoms like abdominal pain, diarrhea, fatigue, dehydration, and malnutrition. Some people, like in my case, experience the severe and more ‘rare’ complications, like abscesses, fistulas, perforations, bowel obstructions/blockages, and frequent infections.

Crohn’s is an autoimmune condition, meaning that a person with Crohn’s immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue causes inflammation. Basically, the immune system has been rewired to believe that its own body is a foreign invader, and it spends its time tirelessly fighting itself.

How is Crohn’s diagnosed? There are several ways to be diagnosed with Crohn’s.

• Colonoscopies
• Stool Cultures
• Blood Tests
• Upper Endoscopy
• Biopsies
• CT Scan/MRI
• Capsule Endoscopy
• Upper/Lower GI Series

Some Facts

Now, the real question everyone is wondering, is there a cure?

No, there is no cure for Crohn’s disease. There are only ways to try and achieve remission or alleviate the symptoms. Infusion therapy, biologics, steroids (which cannot be long term as those can cause serious irreparable damage to the body), Medications (like opioids and temporary painkillers). There are surgical procedures done to many as well, including fistula repairs, and the obvious most well known – ostomies (ileostomy or permanent colostomies where the colon is removed). Self care alone can cause some positive change, but is often times not ever enough. As a Crohn’s patient we sadly are often reliant on many drugs as it can often be our only way to function.

As a woman who has had Crohn’s for nearly seven years now, it can be quite frustrating not knowing how or why I developed this disease at just nineteen years old. And it’s even more frustrating when it can seem like there is no end in sight for thronging complications and symptoms. Crohn’s is a spectrum, so while some have mild to moderate disease, and some achieve remission rather quickly, I like many others, have a severe complex and rare case which comes with several hospitalizations and Er visits a year, 20 surgeries thus far, and long term opioid dependency just to be able to experience a pain scale level of 6 on good days. But now, with an Ostomy, we can hopefully begin to see some positive change in the perianal Crohn’s (my fistulas and recurring abscesses) which has so often caused me to have no quality of life.

Patients like myself devote most of our lives dedicated to trying to understand our own bodies, what we can and can’t eat, what limits we have with physical activities, and just figuring out ways to get through each and every day. Advocating for research, preaching awareness, and sometimes screaming from the roof tops for just anyone to listen to us and believe us. This disease can make you feel gaslit, crazy and like it’s all in your head. Finding good, empathetic and validating doctors can also be a major challenge, but once you do, it’s like a weight is lifted off of you, and you can take the load of advocating for yourself off, as your GI should be the one doing it for you.

So as always, if you or anyone you know suffer through this terrible illness, please remember you are not alone. And remind yourself that you are allowed to mourn the part of you that died with your diagnosis. No one expects constant positivity and you are allowed as many bad days as you need to properly heal. Just don’t ever give up. I know it feels as though it’s all you can do, but believe me, there is more to you and your life than Crohn’s. It may have stolen so much from you, but you are in the position to take it all back.