Crohn's Disease

What is Crohn's Disease?  To be blunt, it is a shitty disease- Literally.

I was diagnosed May 2006 with this disease.  I had never heard of this disease but apparently it contributed to the early birth of my 1st child, a son, 12 weeks premature.  My first question that came up was, "Am I going to die?"  The simple answer was no.

Crohn's Disease can affect the gastrointestinal tract from your mouth down to your anus.  It does not discriminate and could care less which part of your guts it attacks.

It has only been in the last 5 years or so, that Crohn's Disease as come to the for front of being acknowledged.  There are walks organized to raise money, there is T.V. commericals about the disease and alot more research is being done all over the world to try to pinpoint the cause of this disease.

Since 2006, I have been on just about every hardcore drug they offer to help manage this disease.  When I was first diagnosed, I was placed on four Asacol a day and Prednisone.  The Prednisone is a steroid and requires a taper.  Normally, I would start at 40mg and work my way down to .5mg.  The steroids helped me a lot but when I got down to 10mg, my body would go back into the routine of diaherra 7 days straight.  Then the dose was raised again.  Even to this day, I'm on Prednisone.

Prednisone comes with alot of risk.  Your body takes a huge hit from his drug.  It is a steroid.  You gain alot of weight and you get what they call the "Moon Face".  This drug can also shut my kidneys down.  So, doctors don't like you being on it for a long period of time.

October 2006, I found out I was pregnant with our second child.  My regular Gastroenterologist (GI), Dr. Barry Ross, referred me to Yale University to be monitored through my pregnancy by the top notch doctor's in the country.  He had never treated a pregnant patient with Crohn's and being on the drugs I were on.  For him to refer me just goes to show how much of a doctor he truly is and how much he cares about his patients to get the right treatments.

June 2007, I gave birth to a little baby girl 5 weeks early.  She was very healthy weighing 5lbs 15oz.  During that pregnancy I took Prednisone throughout the pregnancy; throttled on 20mg a day.  To this day, there is no evidence that my medication affected my daughter.

Later that year, my family and I moved back home to Alabama.  It was recommended for me to meet my new GI doctor and it was also recommended that I start Remicade.  Indeed, I was prescribed this IV Therapy.  January 2008 my husband and I found that we were pregnant with our third child.  This was not expected.  Matter of fact, I stayed in denial just about the entire pregnancy.  It was decided that we would continue my Remicade treatment which was every 8 weeks.  My GI and OB doctor worked together to manage my care.

With me being pregnant was a job in itself.  I have what is know as a Bicornuate Uterus.  The second strike against me was my body didn't produce Progesterone.  Weeks 6 until 15 weeks I took progesterone pills daily.  From weeks 15 until weeks 28, I had to take progesterone shots.  Crohn's Disease, strike three.

We continued with my IV therapy until week 32.  The doctors were afraid that the Remicade would cross my placenta into the baby so this was the reason for the stop.

Dealing with Depression, 2 small children, a step-son that was rebelling, and dealing with a pregnancy was enough for one person to bare.  However, I can happily say that my third child was my only full term baby.  I went into labor on my own at 37 weeks 5 days.  She was also my heavist baby weighing in at 7lb 4oz.  She was very healthy and to this day there is no evidence that my Remicade treatments affected her at all.

Crohn's Disease can suck the life out of you.  It is always in the front of your mind.  Going out in public you map out the bathrooms.  Explaining the disease is embarassing.  Sharing your health issues with family or close friends can be very embarassing, leaving you with depression and asking yourself, "Why me?"

I cannot say I've had it easy.  It has been a very long road, even to this day.  I spent 5 days in the hospital beginning of July 2010 for severe dehydration.  I had 3 weeks of diaherra.  Yes, you saw that correctly.  Three weeks.  After 9 bags of IV fluids and 5 bags of steroids, I finally felt like myself again.

I'm currently on Humira.  I have to give myself shots every 2 weeks.  I have also been placed back on Prednisone.  I currently see a Rheumatologist for Rheumatoid Arthritis.  When my Crohn's flares, my joints tend to swell.  I am also on other medication for dry eyes and mouth as the disease dries you up.  I have also been warned that all my teeth will eventually fall out.

You try not to dwell on the negatives of this disease and you try to follow all that your doctor has asked of you, but sometimes that can be difficult as your body does what it wants too.  I am very pleased that Crohn's Disease is coming to the for front to educate individuals.  People need to understand this disease and not judge us.  We may look normal on the outside but on the inside we are fighting a never ending war.

Please Support the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America!  We need all the help we can get and find a cure for this disease!

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