3 Reasons Why There Is Still Hope

When you're living with a condition like inflammatory bowel disease, it's easy to lose hope. You begin to lose hope in your doctors, because after all: why aren't you cured yet? You begin to lose hope in medicine because with all of these medications and remedies on the market, why hasn't anything worked for you? You begin to lose hope in yourself because WHY is YOUR body so different from everyone else's?

But hope is what makes us human. We need hope. Hope is the belief that there will be better days. More than that, hope is the strive to get there. When I lost my hope, I lost my will to fight; my will to live. I just gave up. My hope told me to keep fighting, but my discouragement and disbelief made me deaf to the notion. To have hope isn't to be free of all fear. It's to accept it. You can be scared and still have hope. You can be discouraged and still have hope. You can even lose a little hope and still have hope.

3 reasons why there is still hope with IBD

Because you're still here:

IBD hasn't defeated you. It may have taken things away, maybe even hurt your feelings a bit, but you're not broken. You're still here. You're still fighting. For every day you take a breath, is a day of hope. You deserve a life as much as anyone else, don't lose your faith in better days now.

In spite of how it may seem, you still have options:

It's frustrating seeing a bunch of different specialists, trying different medications, worrying about medical bills. At times it can be easy for us to just let everyone else take the lead and go along with whatever is suggested, but that's not how it has to be. In spite of how it may seem, you still have options. You as the patient hold the power and have the ability to make decisions for yourself. Find hope in your power. Find hope in knowing that if one doctor isn't working, you have the option to find another. If you don't want to try a certain medication, that's your right.

There are people who understand:

The most frustrating thing for me was dealing with my condition alone. It was hard for me because I didn't feel like explaining things to my family and friends. At times I felt like it was pointless because no matter how much I explained, they'd never truly understand what I was feeling. Little did I know, there were people out there who did. Find hope in friendships with people who have a similar story to your own. These online communities have brought me so much support and comfort in my times of need. Don't forget there are also in person support groups and meet ups for people with IBD. We are all human and desire some form of understanding. It can help to speak to people who just get it without so many words needed.