Living

When I started experiencing daily symptoms of Crohn’s disease in 2009, I had no idea they would become part of my forever. I was naive and unorganized, and I had...

I attended a wedding in Connecticut recently. It was a very nice affair on a pastoral farm in an area that felt more like Iowa. It was nice to gather...

I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease back in 2011, and I feel like I have tried it all. I am sure you feel that way too. Likewise, every Crohn's patient...

I don't think we talk about the kind of tests and procedures we encounter throughout our journey with IBD enough. For me, because there have been so many, and because...

Let’s talk about it. That agonizing feeling. It might be during a bowel movement, it might not be until afterward, but I’m quite positive most people with inflammatory bowel disease...

"Ohhh... my gut!" My adult son was visiting one weekend. He made this exclamation after waking from our evening spent catching up while drinking a few alcoholic beverages. "I think...

I am excited to announce that I am due with my second child in December of this year. Our daughter will turn 2 in September, so having two little ones...

There are moments as an IBD mom when you realize that all you do day in and day out to manage your disease carries over into how your children face...

I have always struggled with iron deficiency anemia since being diagnosed with Crohn’s disease in 2011. Since my diagnosis, I have been prescribed a million different types of iron supplements...

One challenging aspect about IBD is it can interrupt sleep. Most of us need 6 to 8 hours to feel refreshed. This is often difficult with Crohn's disease and ulcerative...

The sight of blood makes me queasy. I've never had a strong stomach for it. Not even fake gore in horror films or television shows. And if it’s my own...

Looking OK does not equal feeling OK, and this is one of the most frustrating things when it comes to having an invisible illness such as ulcerative colitis. Anyone that’s...

In addition to living with Crohn’s disease, I’ve also struggled with infertility. In 2018, I went through almost a year of fertility treatments after a year of trying to get...

Since being diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 2009, I have been on 7 different medications. I started with Pentasa, dabbled in Remicade, Humira, Cimzia, and Azathioprine, tried Stelara, and am...

I have a lot of regrets when I look back on the journey my ulcerative colitis has taken. I can see many times when I should have done things differently...

"Mommy, why do you look like a squirrel with a mouth full of nuts?" When my son was little, he often asked this question as we looked through family photos...

Having ulcerative colitis or an ostomy can make meals out feel daunting. You name it, we've probably considered (and gotten anxious about) it! I also feel paranoid about how long...

My most notable Crohn’s symptom has always been pain. The kind of pain that has me doubled over, curled up in the fetal position, begging the universe for any kind...

I recently wrote an article about the one relationship that is affected most by IBD, and that is the relationship we have with ourselves... Between constant battles with fatigue and...

I wrote an earlier blog post about an intestinal resection, a common type of surgical procedure for Crohn’s disease that I had many years ago. That post seemed to attract...