Living with IBD or chronic illness can oftentimes make us feel trapped—especially when we’re flaring. In 2018, I was hospitalized for the worst ulcerative colitis flare of my life. However, this awful flare actually improved my perspective on life! When I was finally able to leave my house and travel, I found a new appreciation […]
Chronic Illness and Loneliness: A Poem From My Journal
Coping with loneliness is not uncommon for us spoonies in the chronic illness community. Things like declining plans to stay home and rest, being home-bound due to pain or flares, and self-quarantining can sometimes make us feel alone. When I was recovering from my hospitalization in the fall of 2018, I had to drop out […]
Book Haul: How Reading Converted Me Into a Self-Care Enthusiast
It wasn’t until December of 2018 that I fell in love with reading and fully understood the importance of self-care! In this post, I share the three books that taught me to rest—not only as I recovered from my hospitalization, but as a daily habit to integrate into my lifestyle. Let’s jump in! Self-Care and […]
Health and Life Update: 4 Crazy Big Changes That Happened to Me in 2018
Thank you for stopping by on this blustery, rainy, beautifully cloudy first day of December! I hope you’re toasty warm by the fire with a cup of coffee or cocoa in hand. (I know I sure am, along with mittens and two pairs of socks thanks to my perpetually cold hands and feet LOL). Today […]
2 Simple Ways You Can Support the PSC Community, Even if You Don’t Have the Disease
What is primary sclerosing cholangitis, how is it connected to IBD, and why is there an organ shortage for those on the liver transplant list? I’ll answer all these questions in today’s PSC Awareness Day blog post and share how you can support the PSC community—even if you don’t know anyone with the disease! What […]
The Strange Link Between Elevated Liver Numbers and Failing Remicade
Near the end of 2017, I had elevated liver numbers while I simultaneously began to lose response to Remicade without developing Remicade antibodies. The combination of these two red flags is a sign that there might be something deeper at play than just ulcerative colitis. A lot of the time, these signs point to a […]