Categories
arthritis doctor patient relationship extra-intestinal manifestations extraintestinal

Extraintestinal manifestations in Crohn’s disease

I’ve been reminded recently — for several reasons and by many folks — of the unfamiliarity of extraintestinal manifestations (EIM or EIMs) in Crohn’s disease. Since I’m becoming a patient-expert on EIMs (through personal experience), I thought I’d share a bit more about what I know now.

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Whac-a-mole cat (via Reddit)

EIMs occur in at least 25% of all patients dealing with Crohn’s and have been the primary focus of my care for going on 5 years now. My intestinal issues (knock on wood) have been mostly in remission. My EIMs though have been what my brother and husband call a game of whac-a-mole — just as one issue subsides (my knees), a new one seems to pop-up (my neck).

What’s been most helpful throughout the progression of this particular part of my disease course? Communication between my rheumatologist, my gastroenterologist, my dermatologist, my trainer, my perinatologist (when appropriate), my acupuncturist, and of course, me! Particularly with my knee-related inflammatory arthritis, I’ve found that low-impact exercise (biking, swimming, surfing, elliptical, and TRX), high-rep with low-weight exercises, and stretching are key for me.

Some more great resources on Crohn’s related EIMs here:

+ Extraintestinal Manifestations of Inflammatory Bowel Disease via the NIH
+ Extraintestinal Manifestations of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Focus on the Musculoskeletal, Dermatologic, and Ocular Manifestations via Medscape
+ Arthritis complications via the CCFA

Categories
colonoscopy health wellness

The importance of slowing down

It ironically took a colonoscopy for me to find some time to stop what I was doing and write — so hello from the Saturday after my Friday colonoscopy. I am 5 pounds lighter and a bit slow today, but feeling a-okay about the world since I am not drinking a 32oz Big Gulp of MoviPrep (bleh!) or wearing hospital socks. I’ve actually found the time to pay bills, write a few thank you’s and watch several episodes of The Good Wife while my husband takes good care of me and our sweet, crazy toddler.

With all of that in mind, I thought I’d share an awesome collection of TED videos about the importance of slowing down, something I do not often do. One of my favorites — if you cannot slow down long enough to watch many of them — is by Paolo Cardini who makes a strong case for “monotasking.” It’s fantastic.

Bon week-end!

Categories
crohn's disease diet food health

A beer lover’s Crohn’s diet

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Amongst my top five least favorite things that people often say to me is this statement (or something similar to it): “You can eat that? My friend with Crohn’s can’t eat/drink that.” It makes me mad just thinking about it and is, in my mind, akin to asking someone who cannot eat shellfish why other humans can eat shellfish. Perhaps this is why I love this piece by David Obuchowski so much.

David is a touring musician with a severe case of Crohn’s disease — and he loves craft beer…a lot. Check out his piece on Drunkspin’s The Concourse. Lots to learn about beer here, which I for one, love.

Image by Sam Woolley.