For the last three years of my life, I was living with constant stomach pain. Yes...it took me that long before I decided to go to the doctor. It's not like I was avoiding the doctor, I just became too busy and could never find the time to go. Once the pain started to become unbearable and it took over my life, I went. I listed out my symptoms and was forced to have a colonoscopy (which was absolutely terrible, but that's a story for another day). After that wonderful experience, which I will have to do more of later on in life, the doctor confirmed their suspicions: I have Crohn's disease.
You may be thinking, Crohn's? What? Yeah...it isn't something that a lot of people are familiar with. Luckily for me (I guess?), my sister has been living with Crohn's for about six or seven years. She's been there to help guide me through it and prepare for treatment.
If you've already paused to look up what Crohn's disease is, you're probably grossed out, but that's okay. It isn't pleasant. It's a lot of unwanted bathroom visits and crippling stomach pain that lasts for hours on end, and it's something that a lot of people deal with everyday. Fortunately, Crohn's is a pretty private disease, so people don't have to know about it unless you tell them. It isn't noticeable to anyone, unless they begin to pick up on you crunched over in pain after every meal.
If you've heard of Colitis, the disease is very similar to Crohn's. The only difference is that Colitis pretty much targets the lining of the colon, while Crohn's can affect any area of your digestive tract. This can be accompanied with ulcers and fistulas, all of which are not fun.
However, if there is one thing that Crohn's disease has taught me, it's how to be appreciative of what I have and how much worse my situation could be. I'm familiar with plenty of people who are struggling with Crohn's or Colitis and are in a much more difficult situation than I am. In severe cases, patients may have to have some, if not all, of their colon removed.
In which case, I'm incredibly grateful that my situation is not worse, and I admire those who are dealing with these diseases and are in and out of the hospital constantly. Crohn's disease may be incredibly inconvenient, but I'm thankful for what I do have and try to keep my complaining to a minimum.
Medication is working for me (so far), and I'll continue taking steps to alleviate my symptoms and deal with the situation.
So while my stomach may be a pain (literally and figuratively), I know that it could be much worse.
