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Reflecting on Crohn’s and Colitis Awareness Week 2020
There is fear, there is pain, there is darkness, but amidst all of these – there is hope, beauty and endurance.
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Finding Hope Now
When you come out of a flare, you see the marvels around you with a new lens. This is hope.
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Guilt and Remission
One day in and I want to give up. Trying to find the time to write a to do list is hard enough, carving out time to make this happen for 30 days is excruciatingly difficult. But it needs to happen. I can feel my jaw tighten at the end of the day because I am empty, empty, empty after giving it all away. I used to enjoy doing this. It used to give something back to me. Blogging. Letting the feelings flow from my fingertips to the keyboard and leaving it there. So, here I am, trying again. These posts are going to ramble, and be raw and real…
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November Thanks and Giving
November brings in a lot of oppositions. The colors have faded from the trees and there’s glimpses of snow, winter and holidays right around the corner. The cold brings a sense of cozy and thoughts of relaxing into warm blankets and flickering candles as you snuggle up with a good Netflix or maybe even (!) a book. Then you venture outside into the gusty winds and stomp through a freezing puddle soaking through your shoes and suddenly your shoulders are up to your ears as tears form in your eyes from the icy blast of air smacking your face. Thoughts of spending Thanksgiving with family and friends bring up feelings…
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Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease
Were you just diagnosed with a form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease? I’m sure you’re going through a lot of emotions right now as you begin to search for information on this autoimmune disease. As you navigate through the pages of the internet looking for answers, please remember this: Your body is exactly that. Your body. Designed to fit you and you alone. You have choices. What works for someone else might not work for you. Do the research to empower yourself to be your own advocate. Trust me, you will need to be. You are not alone! Here are links to some amazing IBD resources and patient advocates, and they…
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Getting Married With IBD
How to Enjoy Your Wedding Day When You Have A Chronic Illness Originally Published June 4, 2017 I’ve received a lot of requests for this post over the last year, and figured our first anniversary would be a good time to answer those questions. Here are my top 5 tips for enjoying your wedding day despite a chronic illness. Make time for yourself. Eaton Rapids Wedding Photography – Millers Dairy Farm – Phil Black Photography The morning of our wedding was absolutely gorgeous. I spent some time alone in the morning before everyone arrived at the house doing yoga, sipping on a cup of coffee and writing a letter to my…
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World IBD Day 2017
My World IBD Day/Birthday Wish Originally Published May 19, 2017 My birthday wish this year is not for a cure for IBD. This year, I’m asking for something that might be much harder to accomplish: better care for patients. My wish is that no one ever wakes up post colonoscopy to be told: “You have a disease with no cure, come back in two weeks.” Instead, I wish for an IBD army of advocates to be in every hospital, with arsenals of accurate information and resources they are ready to provide to that new patient so they are filled with hope instead of fear. Let’s avoid the Doctor Google search and…
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Reflecting on 2016
Originally Posted on December 31, 2016 What. A. Year. Globally and nationally the world has seen a lot of tragedies and set backs, and there are a lot of people who are ready to put this year behind them and move forward with hopes that 2017 has to be better. It feels almost awful to say this due to the sadness I’ve seen across the globe, and please don’t view me as someone who doesn’t see these things happen and who isn’t affected by them. My heart has been broken over and over again and I can’t count the amount of times I’ve said I’m losing faith in humanity, or…
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A Letter to My Newly Diagnosed Self
Originally Posted November 6, 2016 Dear Self: By now you are probably coming down from the anesthesia and are realizing that while you finally have a diagnosis of Ulcerative Colitis, you have no idea what that is. The doctor told you to go to the internet to do some research, and I am here to tell you that there is a lot of scary stuff out there, so be careful and cautious about what you read. Start building up a support team, right now. Make sure you have a GI you can trust, a primary care doctor who stands up for you and supports you, a yoga practice that…
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Will Essential Oils Cure IBD?
Originally Published August 14, 2016 No, they won’t. There is not a cure for IBD. They do, however, smell amazing and have some pretty cool benefits that could improve your attitude and maybe ease some physical symptoms, and perhaps much more. (Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, I am not providing advice, I’m sharing what I learned at this workshop and my experience with essential oils thus far. I encourage you to do your own research.) I took an essential oils workshop last week at Hilltop Yoga in Oldtown and really gave my scent sorter a workout. It was very interesting and educational, and I took away a few…
