Crohns Disease

1930 Words4 Pages

Crohn’s Disease

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 know that Stephanie’s intestines are severely affected by it, and I think the disease eats away at your intestines. You can only imagine how painful that sounds, and this woman experiences it. Certain foods can trigger a flare up, such as peanuts, sometimes chocolate, and so on. This becomes a hassle and an unwanted burden when you are trying to enjoy quality time with your family. I know that it gives you chronic diarrhea and unbearable stomach cramps. I have even seen her lay out of work for days due to extreme pain and flare ups of the diarrhea. She has also been hospitalized because it became so severe at one time. It can control your life, and you sometimes have to plan your activities around it. For example, when we go on trips, we always have to stop frequently at a rest area when it becomes bad. In order to fight the disease, Stephanie takes numerous amounts of pills and medicines, and she has even taken up to 25-30 pills a day.

In order to answer the questions I have about Crohn’s disease, I have looked through the books and web articles to try and satisfy my need for understanding it. But still, there are many things that I don’t know about it, things beyond what I physically see Stephanie experience. I have often wondered how she got Crohn’s disease. Is it something that you can catch, or can it fully develop and mature at any point in your life? Also, what are the ways in preventing yourself from getting it, if any? I think one of the main questions is what happens to your body and can the affects be deadly? Another thing I wonder about is whether or not it will ever go away, or is it just going to take her on a roller-coaster ride, up and down, up and down?

Crohn’s disease is something that I want to know more about so I can help a victim of it. I feel that the next time Stephanie has a bad exp...

... middle of paper ...

...ny other disease, the realization can never be grasped efficiently. I hope, in the near future, the fight for the cure will end in a victory and victims everywhere will be allowed their normal lifestyles back.

Work’s Cited

Goldstein, Laura. “Peppermint Oil May Soothe Crohn’s Symptoms.” Prevention, Mar. 2001. 5 Apr. 2001.

Lewis, Carol. “Crohn’s Disease: New Drug may help when others fail.” Food and Drug

Administration. Sept./Oct. 1999. 5 Apr. 2001.

National Foundation of Ileitis & Colitis. The Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis Fact

Book. Macmillian: USA 1983.

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. “Crohn’s Disease.”

Feb. 1998. 5 Apr. 2001.

NIDDK. “Crohn’s Disease.” 12 Apr. 2001

http://www.webmd.lycos.com/content/article/1680.50985

Recer, Paul. “Drug for Crohn’s Disease OK’d.” (News). News & Observer (Raleigh,

NC), August 25, 1998. 29 Mar. 2001

Works Consulted

“Biologic Therapy Helps Fight Crohn’s Disease.” USA Today; New York; Feb. 2001.

5 Apr. 2001.

Bland, Elizabeth L.; Lisa Granastein. “Health Report.” Time, 10/20/97. 16 Apr. 2001.

HealthCite Physician Staff. “Crohn’s Disease.” 2001. 29 Mar. 2001.

More about Crohns Disease

Open Document