# Education and Academic Life with IBD Support Group



## Crohn2357 (Jun 13, 2014)

Education and Academic Life with IBD Support Group.


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## Daisy123 (Jun 14, 2014)

I'll start. I am an academic in the UK. I am hourly paid. The situation is so bad that after I was made redundant I haven't been able to find another job. I write about horror cinema and at the moment about East Asian horror. My illness prevented me getting a job somewhere I worked, very difficult to prove discrimination. I am a bit tired so struggling to write this.

I love my job


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## Allegra (Aug 15, 2014)

I'm struggling with a bad flare-up at the moment and due to start college/university in two weeks, seriously considering deferring for a year


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## Cosmojo (Aug 19, 2014)

Allegra is your GI starting new meds? Are you optimistic that they will help? I know at most US universities have disability directors so students who deal with these things have resources and someone to intermediate between profs and students- does where you are enrolled have anything like that?


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## Allegra (Aug 19, 2014)

Yeah I'm getting a new GI in a few weeks and they're starting new meds, I saw my doctor yesterday and he told me to take this year off because he knows I won't be able for this year and I will miss a lot of time


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## Cosmojo (Aug 19, 2014)

Yea I would for sure take the year off then, I hope that you get results with your new treatment keeps us updated


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## astarks (Nov 15, 2014)

I'm a university student at the moment, going into my senior year.

Other than a flare my first semester as a freshman, I'd had things pretty well under control with Imuran, but this past few months, I've got into a relatively bad flare, lost 20 lbs, passed out and ended up in the ER twice in under a month, contracted pneumonia, been restarted on Remicade...it's been a rough semester.

But, I've cut down my class schedule to 14 hours next semester, and I'm hoping that restarting the Remicade will get me back into remission, despite the annoying side effects. Here's hoping that I can get to graduation in one piece!

Allegra: Definitely take a bit of time off! Having some R&R instead of having work and/or school constantly stressing you out makes all the difference in the world, at least to my disease.


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## aideen33 (Nov 17, 2014)

Im on leave of absence from my graduate program (Masters in Social Work) because it was just all too much right now and my advisor and i feared that if i didnt take some time off id end up in a worse situation or having to quit entirely.


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## Allegra (Nov 17, 2014)

Have deferred for the year until next September and my GI started me on Remicade which I am responding well to, thank God!


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## acrohn42 (Nov 23, 2014)

Allegra said:


> Have deferred for the year until next September and my GI started me on Remicade which I am responding well to, thank God!


 I am sorry to hear you had to deffer from school. BUT I am happy to hear remicade is working well for you! I've been on it for over a year. I had to deffer from college as well, two weeks before starting. I go to community college now and try to make the best of it.


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## anmonk (Apr 18, 2015)

Hi guys I was diagnosed with crohn's in 2012 and subsequently underwent surgery due to which I had to take a year break when I was in my final year of under graduation in biotechnology (I have posted my story in Time for second surgery.... my story forum)due to which I was completely depressed. I had to reject my confirmed post graduation admission from Dublin university since my parents decided it's better if I studied in India. However after recovery I managed to finish my under graduation with distinction and enrolled for post graduation away from hometown in one of the best Indian university.

Fast forward to present day 2015. Again the same situation I have been having severe pain, no bowel movements and vomiting I am diagnosed with intestinal stricturing and doctor suggested that I must undergo a second surgery. Since I lost major portion of my intestines in the pervious surgery I decided to take ayruvedic treatment to avoid surgery. Since ayruvedic treatment is for a duration I have decided to take a year break again  it's really annoying to take another off from academic since I am completely involved in research and studies I am feeling alone since all my friends and batch mates are moving ahead and I am still suffering due to my illness.  Having scored GPA of 9.6 on 10 it's frustrating to keep breaking my studies. I am really depressed......

Kindly let me know if anyone has had similar experiences and has managed to continue their career. Kindly share your experiences I would really be inspiring......


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## Hattie95 (May 26, 2015)

Hi guys, so glad to have found you! I have just recently been diagnosed with Crohn's and am in my first year of university studying science. The past 8 weeks since I've been ill I've missed a lot of class but my teachers have been amazing! I managed to drag myself to a two hour exam this morning, which I'm proud of myself for, despite feeling crappy throughout and having to run to the toilet 10 minutes from the end. I am aiming to continue going to class, perhaps with some extra support from teachers when I need it! 
anmonk it's sad to hear you've had to postpone your studies but you should be so proud of a 9.6 GPA!! That's incredible! Hopefully you'll get back into it soon, I wish you lots of luck! 
Anyway, I was wondering if any of you have found any tips concerning studying and exams while suffering, for example how do you manage to revise when all you want to do is sleep?! Anything you've discovered would be great to hear! Thanks!


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## anmonk (May 28, 2015)

Hi Hattie95, 
Sorry to hear your diagnosis but anyways once you accept crohn's you will learn to manage it eventually....
Good to hear that you wrote your exams I wish you good grades too. All the best  cheers! !

One very effective method which I have learnt in order to concentrate on studying during my flare ups or while I am terribly tired or sleepy is deep breathing.  This might sound sober but being a student of science I hope you understand deep breathing helps you to eliminate excess of CO2 from your body and taking in more of O2 which will keep your brain alter. The other advantage is it will help you calm and thus acts as a major stress buster during exams (one important note: keep your stress levels always low since stress can trigger flare ups).

Just sit in a calm place in practise deep breathing everyday you will find the difference very evidently.  Just do it 10 times now...I bet you will continue the habit. 

It good to see people talk about acedmics in this forum since we all know the magnitude of effect crohn's has on acedmics. ......reading experiences of other people at least we know we aren't alone...

Let me know your experience with deep breathing technique hattie95...
All the best


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## Hattie95 (May 28, 2015)

Aw thank you anmonk! I have another exam tomorrow and one more on Monday and then I have nothing to do for a week! 
That is definitely helpful actually. Mention scientific stuff and I'm with you haha. I will definitely try it tomorrow morning before my exam to try keep my stress down.
Yes I'm so glad there are other people studying here! It definitely helps. Can I ask what subject you study? And are you doing your bachelors or masters or even higher? 
Have a great day!


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## anmonk (May 29, 2015)

Hi Hattie 95,
I am pursuing master's in Biotechnology and i wish to pursive reasearch in stem cell and regenerative medicine.I love reading physics and cosmology as well. Basically I like everything related to science, lol!!  I am glad to hear that you are interested in science too. Are you pursuing bachelor's degree ?? What is your major subject?


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## Hattie95 (May 29, 2015)

Wow that's so awesome!! Well I hope you find an awesome job that allows you to research what you want, maybe you can discover the cure for Crohn's!! I am studying mainly chemistry, with a bit of biology and physics thrown in. I want to do my masters in sustainable energy technology, mainly solar and hydrogen power. 
Oh and by the way your deep breathing really worked in my exam this morning. I was feeling awful in the middle of it and was starting to panic but then I remembered what you said and it really helped calm me down!! So thank you for that!


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## anmonk (May 29, 2015)

Hi that sounds great!! Good to hear you have started deep breathing and found it helpful. After a few days you can improvise on this technique by taking in air from one nostril while closing the other nostril, later exhaling from the other nostril and repeating the same for 10 minutes for maximum benefits, it sounds complicated but I bet it's damn easy dude. It's called pranayama you can Google to know more about it.

Hope your exam was good. Btw really good choice of subjects chemistry and physics forms the base for all applied subjects and sustainable energy is the future on which the world will be dependent on Period. Feels great to discuss science with like minded people. Cheers!!


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## Hattie95 (May 30, 2015)

Ahh so like alternate nostril breathing! That definitely works, so calming!! 
Haha thanks, I really enjoy what I'm studying. I just really hope I can keep my GPA above 8 as there's a fantastic scholarship at a great university here in the Netherlands that I really hope I get. I'm still so amazed at your 9.6 GPA. That's so incredible, especially while being ill too. Yes that's so true, I'm always happy to talk about science. Have you read any good scientific books recently?


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## anmonk (May 30, 2015)

Good to hear that you started practicing the breathing technique.  Wish you all the best for the scholarship, when you are so serious about science you will definitely get good grades too. 
Yeah recently I have been reading all classical scientific books.....
Double helix -by Watson I finished reading this, it speaks about the series of events which led to the discovery of the structure of DNA.
Origin of species- By Charles Darwin I am half way through this book, it's the first book to change the ideology of people back in the eighties that living beings are not created by God , but by the process of natural selection.  Basically it gives an account of evolution.  
Brief history of time- by Stephen hawking. If you read this book you will fall in love with cosmos,  Hawking explains each in every concept in the simple manner. Without any math calculations involved this book is best suitable for people like me who don't have a hardcore physics background. 

My bucket list is full so many more books to read lol!!
How about you ?? What are you reading in recent times??


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## Hattie95 (May 30, 2015)

Haha oh my word, we're really similar!! I read the double helix in December, great read, especially with rosalind franklin and the prejudices of women in science! 
Origin of species I started but I must admit I got a bit bored, not really my thing. 
And I'm currently just over halfway into The Grand Design also by hawking. Afterwards I want to read the brief history of time. I agree with you about his writing style, so fluid and beautiful in a very nerdy way and I love it. Plus so good laughs too sometimes! 
One of my next planned reads is Awakenings by Oliver Sacks. I heard a podcast about it and so want to read the book. It's about 20 patients with sleeping sickness who are given a new drug and awaken from a decade long sleep! Looks really interesting, I think you'd like it if you haven't read it already!


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## anmonk (May 31, 2015)

Haha yeah we both are very similar...even I felt origin of species a bit boring that's the reason I am half way with the book since many days  Hawking is one of many people I look up in my life especially after my diagnosis with crohn's. ...I feel the contribution what hawking has done to science suffering from motor neuron disease proves that there is no limit for man's determination. ....He is just amazing person. 
Especially this time I am going through very bad flare up I just think of hawking to boost up my morale....
Hey there are two other books which I read recently which isn't scientific genre. ...
The God delusion by Richard Dawkins it helps you resolve many questions regarding god if you ever wondered if god really exists....its more of an atheist book...This book helped a lot changed my attitude completely. ..few chapters are boring though!! I skipped them 
Outliers by malcolm gladwell - I strongly suggest you to read this book..It speaks about complexity of success and with examples it explains the common pattern found in successful people. You will definitely love this book. I was glued and finished reading the book in a couple of days

Awakening sounds very interesting is it a story story on clinical trails or a fiction? ?
Hey I have all the copies of books which I mentioned you yesterday and today I'll be happy to mail you if u need them let me know..


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## Hattie95 (Jun 1, 2015)

I so agree about hawking! Such an amazing and talented man. Did you watch the film about him recently, the theory of everything. Very moving to see how his health deteriorated but a great source of motivation too. 
And I'm sorry to hear you're having a bad flare up, I'm still having my first ever flare up and going to see my GI for the first time today. I hope he's nice! 
Oooh I think I'd really like the god delusion one as I am just not sure, scientifically sometimes I think there must have been something that set it all off. Ohhh that sounds really good too! 
It's a story about the clinical trials written by the doctor who performed them. I'm hoping to start it in the next few days! 
Oh really, that's great! Do you mean hard copies or ebooks as the hard copies might be a very expensive shipment! Haha but if you can email them that would be awesome!!! Thanks!


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## anmonk (Jun 1, 2015)

Yep I watched the movie it's beautiful and Eddie Redmayne's acting is mind blowing...I read an article which said at the special screening of the movie for Hawking, Hawking's nurse saw tears rolling down from his eyes, apparently the actor felt that's more than the Oscar's award. 

I hope all goes well with your meet with GI and don't worry GI are mostly cool especially with crohnies cause they understand us upto a certain extent. 
Yeah mailing you the hard copy will make my pockets empty haha!! I have the e-books which I can e-mail to you, I usually read e-books rather than hard copy....send me your e-mail id on private message. ..I'll mail you. Take care !!


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