Crohn's Disease Reflection

Crohn’s Disease was named after an American gastroenterologist, Dr. Burrill Bernard Crohn, in 1932. He and his colleagues discovered an abnormal pathogen, Mycobacterium paratuberculosis while studying a related disease, ulcerative colitis, which belongs to a larger group if illnesses called Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). The discovery was made while studying the effects of ulcerative colitis in cattle and noticing the similar characteristics in humans. The infections had an abnormal response with the body’s immune system in both the cattle and humans.

In 2013 I lost my job due to an accident incurred at work. I was diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome. When I finally returned to work it made me realize how vital it is to be prepared for the unexpected in life. This was an experience humbling me financially and personally. This taught me not to lay victim in my circumstances. Had I become comfortable with life’s problems, it would have be the ongoing setback for my future successes in life.

Crohn’s disease is a chronic condition that affects a person’s digestive system with no known cause. When Crohn’s disease strikes, it can affect any part of your digestive system ranging from your mouth, all the way to your anus. Crohn’s disease is chronic and there is no known cure for this condition. So basically, once someone is diagnosed with this condition, they might as well get used to living out the remainder of their life being affected by Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s is not, shall we say, “constant”. The symptoms happen on and off in what are usually called “flare-ups”.

I am not going to go over what it is, or its symptoms. Right now, with great medical care and a better understanding of myself, I am fine. However, in my first two years of high school, I was anything but normal. Despite my attempts at masking and denying my issues, Crohn’s affected my life, and less importantly, my performance in school. But for the last outcome, I would not even mention it in my application. With only my recorded performance those two years, you would not be able to evaluate me adequately.

Crohn 's disease is one of two conditions referred to by the term "Inflammatory Bowel Disease" (IBD). The other condition that is referred to as an IBD is called Ulcerative Colitis. Both Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis are conditions that cause recurring or persistent inflammation in one or more sections of the intestine. The literal definition of "inflammation" is "being set on fire". It is a protective reaction that happens when tissue is injured or destroyed. There are two types of inflammations. The first is acute inflammation, which is defined by heat, redness, pain and swelling. The

especially in the colon. This drug can be used for as long as needed, and it

An inflammatory bowel disease is characterized by intermittent and recurrent abdominal pain associated with ulceration in bowel function. Inflammatory bowel disease is a group of chronic disorders that cause inflammation or ulceration in the small and large intestines. Most often, inflammatory bowel disease is classified as ulceration colitis or Crohn’s disease but may be referred to as colitis, enteritis, ileitis, or proctitis (Crohn's disease-website).

They say Crohn’s Disease is not very common, so when my sister and I got diagnosed with it in the same year, all I could think was “why me?”. Crohn’s Disease is an autoimmune disorder that affects a person’s intestines. It can be very life threatening in some cases, and just a slight annoyance in other cases. It affects what I can and cannot eat, and I have to go to the hospital every six weeks for remicade treatments. Crohn’s Disease changed my life in many ways, both positive and negative.

Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). It causes inflammation of the lining of your digestive tract, which can lead to abdominal pain, severe diarrhea and even malnutrition. Inflammation caused by Crohn's disease can involve different areas of the digestive tract in different people. The inflammation caused by Crohn's disease often spreads deep into the layers of affected bowel tissue. Like ulcerative colitis, another common IBD, Crohn's disease can be both painful and debilitating, and sometimes may lead to life-threatening complications. Although it may involve any part of the digestive tract from the mouth to the anus, it most commonly affects the last part of the small intestine (ileum) and/or the large

Dealing with Crohn’s Disease is similar to standing on the side of an Olympic-sized swimming pool with a cinderblock attached to your feet. When it is flaring up, it feels as if the cinderblock has been kicked inside the pool, you’re constantly trying to swim upwards to try and get a breath. The depression will weigh you down, the pain will weigh you down, the self-doubt will weigh you down. If you’re given a life raft, you take

Crohn’s disease is a debilitating disease that can affect your entire life and lifestyle if you allow it to. It affects someone that is very dear to me, my best friend’s mother, Stephanie. I see her live through this day in and day out, and it has raised many questions in my mind. Questions like how you get it, why you get it, and what you really go through when you have it. It is something I have little knowledge of, and by learning more information on it, I feel as if I can possibly help her cope with it in the future.

“I will keep fighting,” is what I remind myself as soon as the sun peaks up. Many people are not aware of Crohn’s, nor did I when I was diagnosed at age 8. I have learned Crohn’s is not just a simple disease; it changes lives. My experiences with Crohn’s built me into a stronger person, both physically and mentally. Crohn’s caused me to grow up rapidly, faster than my fellow classmates. Entering high school with Crohn’s had been a remarkably frightening experience, yet at the end of each day, I decided I was not going to allow my disease to define who I am. So when you walk through those high school doors, remember: be who you are, not what Crohn’s makes you. Participate in activities you loved to do before you got Crohns- just modify them.

Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that causes an inflammation of the GI tract. The symptoms of this disease are mild to severe, and they commonly include varying degrees of abdominal pain, frequent diarrhea, fatigue, rectal bleeding, and unexplained weight loss. Crohn’s disease is a lifelong and progressive condition that leaves approximately seven-hundred thousand Americans without a cure. As disheartening as it is, it has proven my little sister to be the fighter of my family and has lead me to admire her for it. Her battle with her new health condition has shown me how to brave and optimistic in the most trying of situations.

The summer after my sophomore year I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. I didn’t have some deadly disease but sometimes I wish I did. Then, I would have an end date, the kind of end date where I could cheer for myself because I won. The term "survivor" sounds so much grander than being temporarily “under control”. To manage the illness, doctors hopped me up on steroids and I was eating everything. My face swelled up like a balloon and I gained 30 pounds. I was so restless that I barely slept and the twenty-minute drive for blood work was a nightmare. Those were some dark days.

At first, the worst aspect of Ulcerative Colitis was the isolation I felt. Middle school was