Hello, As Salaam Alaikum, Bonjour, Hola!!

Hi everyone,

Welcome! I am new to this whole blogging thing – yes, I am living in the 21st century – so please bear with me. As my profile indicates, I have had Crohn’s Disease since I was 16. I never heard of it before, so that made everything that much more difficult. For those who don’t know, Crohn’s Disease is an autoimmune disease that attacks the entire digestive system. Symptoms include diarrhea, constipation, fatigue, anemia, joint pain, rapid weight loss/weight gain, nausea, vomiting, and more. Such an attractive thing, especially for a 16 year old. I have taken so many meds, and have been in the hospital more times that If I never have to eat hospital food again, it will be too soon. Through 12 years of trial and error, I have found a regimen that works for me through meds, Traditional Chinese Medicine (acupuncture and herbal tea) and diet. I will get more into that in future posts.

The reason why I started this blog is because I am participating in the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation’s Team Challenge to walk a half Marathon to raise money for research, trainings, support groups, and other resources for IBD patients. I am hoping that this blog will help not only to reach the goal, but to also get the public to understand what it’s like living with IBD. I will be sharing some personal stuff that I have not been too comfortable in the past. Don’t worry, though, I will leave out the gory details – and for goodness sake, do not look up stuff while you’re eating!

So sit back, relax, drink some herbal tea (or coffee…I do live in Minnesota, home of Peace Coffee), and enjoy. Also, please donate to http://online.ccfa.org/goto/basmah. Thank you! :)