Learn with Comfizz
Crohn's Disease

Hi lovelies! It's Amy here, or as some of you may know me, ibdwarriorprincess on Instagram.  I hope you all enjoyed Halloween (if you celebrate). I decked our house out with some decorations, we had a pumpkin carving night & really enjoyed it!  Now the weather is getting colder, it can be handy to be aware of the ways that it can affect having an ileostomy, especially when it comes to your equipment and skin etc for your bag to adhere to. Before I get started, I'd like to just remind you that this isn't medical advice. This post is drawn from my own experiences of living with an ileostomy & my own research.  Warm output I'll start with this...

September 4th is #NationalWildlifeDay so I thought I would take this opportunity to talk to you about how my relationship with the outdoors has changed since my stoma surgery in 2011. Rewind to pre 2011 & pre surgery Especially when flaring with Crohn's Disease, I experienced...

My name is Alex Bolton I'm 28. I've had Crohn's Disease since I was 14. I've had every biological medication there is. I chose to have an ileostomy in February 2019 then a sub colectomy in May 2020. After having my surgery in 2020 my Crohn's is gone, I know what good health is again. I wake up every day feeling fantastic; when you're used to feeling so poorly everyday and that's the norm, you forget what feeling good feels like and that's what my stoma "Norma" gave me, I wish I'd had the surgery 10 years ago 😊 My advice to anybody knew or existing ostomates is: Always wear your hernia belt whilst training at the gym or lifting...

  What are lectins? Lectins are a type of protein found in many foods, but which are difficult to digest. One of the Lectins most people have heard of is Gluten. They are a kind of built-in defence system for plants to make themselves less appetising to animals that might eat them. Also, their seeds (due to the lectins in them making them indigestible) can pass through the animal or birds digestive tract unaffected, so the animal/bird can become a good means of dispersing the seeds far and wide. Some would term lectins as an “anti-nutrient” due to the attention they have received through popular media citing lectins as the cause of obesity, chronic inflammation, GI problems, leaky gut syndrome,...

For many people with Crohn's, chocolate can irritate the the lining of their bowels. If in doubt, I'd say it's best to avoid it in my experience, especially if you aren't in remission (flaring). Chocolate usually contains caffeine as it's contained in cocoa beans. Foods rich in caffeine can often cause Crohn's to become aggravated. Compared to a standard cup of coffee...

Crohn’s Disease can affect anywhere in the digestive system, from the mouth to the anus. It causes inflammation which can then lead to symptoms such as abdominal pain, fatigue, blood and mucus in your stool, diarrhoea or constipation, weight loss & mouth ulcers.

May is National Teen Self Esteem month. As I'm sure many of you can unfortunately relate to, having Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) as anyone of any age, let alone being a teenager, definitely can come with impacts on self esteem to varying extents. That being said, there is thankfully a lot of treatments for IBD and coping mechanisms to put in place to help that, but still, it can be quite the minefield to work through when you're right in the midst of it.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) & Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) are two different conditions and it is vital that the right diagnosis is made in order to have the best chance of managing and treating either condition.

Seeing your child ill, whatever age, is never easy. As a mother, I felt I'd failed Amy, It was my fault she was born with this illness. Amy had frequent problems which intensified as she started Junior School. She had school work sent home many times as she was so weak she couldn't attend her classes.

It’s important to remember that Crohn’s Disease affects everyone in different ways and different severities. Some medication that doesn’t help one person may really benefit the other and vice versa. There is no “one size fits all” approach for treating Crohn’s and unfortunately no way of predicting which treatments may be successful or not.