IBD Impact Archives •

Life Lately | What Exactly is Going On?

I always get nervous … because I always wonder if I should or could go without my medication. It is not a matter of fighting for the funding like it has been before, but its more about how my body and disease will cope without medication. It is a catch 22 situation of whether I […]

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- Crohns
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“How do you know when you’re flaring?”

I’ll admit this openly, but flare-ups used to scare the heck out of me. After I was officially diagnosed in late 2011 I had several bad flare-ups back to back, which always led to me being hospitalised. Luckily, that doesn’t happen so often now, because I have become better at reading my own body’s warning […]

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- Blog
- Crohns
- IBD Impact
“Will you always need check-ups for your IBD?”

Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Yes but here is why: Getting diagnosed with IBD for most is a great relief. It ends the months, even years, of needing answers but them being dismissed or ignored. But diagnosis is just the first step in a lifetime of appointments, scans, procedures and consults with a specialist team […]

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- Blog
- Crohns
- IBD Impact
“Does caffeine affect your IBD?”

Where would I be without my morning cup of coffee? Probably still in bed and probably still asleep. It’s been used for decades as a popular morning beverage to get us up, awake, alert and ready for a new day. We then added it to drinks to keep us full of energy during the day, […]

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“How different are scans when you have a bag?”

The most common way for IBD to diagnosed and monitored is via endoscopy. Unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on your viewpoint – a colonoscopy can only show so much of the bowel. If you have IBD of the colon or rectum, you are fine with having just a colonoscopy regularly. But those with small bowel […]

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- Crohns
- IBD Impact
I AM SCARED, despite being in such a joyous season

December always feels like the most scary month for me. I have no triggers or flashbacks for this month in particular, but there is such a drive away from routine and towards joy, that it makes it a hard time. The last time I felt like this was back in 2015. I had been having […]

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Never Give Up Hope

Every October and November, I feel nostalgic. I feel the swirl of memories flood my mind, of being taken back to days in the hospital for treatment, of being hooked up to an IV stand. The first time was October 2013, when I moved from Humira to Infliximab. Going from an at-home self-injection to a […]

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Hernias & Stomas

I remember sitting in my hospital bed, after my first solo stoma bag change back in 2016 and my nurse said “you must always try and avoid a hernia. You are more susceptible to them now”. I was four or five days post op and I just nodded along. It was never a big worry […]

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- Crohns
- IBD Impact
Remaining Strong in the Face of Chronic Illness

“Just because you carry it well, does not mean it’s not heavy” I find myself thinking about this quote more and more frequently these days. Not sure if it’s lockdown impacting on my brain or the fact that life has been forever changed by the pandemic , but there is something to be said about […]

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Being [Unexpectedly] Medication Free for a Year

I remember vividly two days that began my journey with Vedolizumab; “she returned my call, the long and short of it being that “no, this isn’t working“; agreeing with my doubts since Monday. It’s not a decision to be taken lightly and it certainly wasn’t a happy and cheerful conversation but it was honest and […]

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Having Major Surgery During a Pandemic

I know almost all of us did not expect nor predict that 2020 would be how it has been thus far. It has been without a doubt the most challenging year for a very long time. However, when you have a chronic illness, you go through periods where you are indeed isolated and out of […]

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- Crohns
- IBD Impact
Being and Staying Positive

“May the flowers remind us why the rain was necessary” “One day at a time” “Be gentle with yourself, you’re doing the best you can” We hear ‘positive‘ quotes all day long in the chronic illness community. From helping us get through a tough day, to reminding someone else they are stronger than their mind […]

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