Archive for October, 2013
Talking About the Hard Stuff
Today’s post is going to be pretty heavy- I am exploring some of the hard stuff (no not alcohol) that we IBD patients and advocates don’t like to talk about.
Most days, I don’t think about how serious Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis can be. I see my husband who, after a few rough years, is living a relatively normal life with little pain. Yes, he still frequents the bathroom and yes he still has cramping but compared to previously, his life has changed for the better.
That’s not the case for many people. This past year has been a rough one for several of my IBD friends. In July, one had her temporary ileostomy made permanent after spending a month in the hospital with uncontrollable inflammation and being under the impression that it was going to be reversed. Another had the last several inches of her colon removed two days after doing a half-marathon and has been struggling with issues at her surgery site. A third has been in and out of the hospital over the past few months with partial blockages.
If you live with a mild to moderate form of IBD, you often aren’t faced with the severity of the disease – in some cases, it can be fatal. This morning, I woke up to find out that a member of one of the IBD Facebook groups I belong to passed away due to complications of her disease. I don’t know the full details of her death but I was told that she had a stricture and trouble breathing, called 9-1-1, and by the time the ambulance arrived, she had passed away. She leaves behind two small children and her husband.
Prior to her death, the only one I had heard of was Jennifer Jaff, who passed away in 2012 from Crohn’s disease complications.
More often than not, IBD patients experience complications from their disease. If not detected and treated early, some of these complications can be extremely harmful and in rare instances, cause death.
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Caring for Crohn's & UC 