Hello All,
I was delighted to come across this forum by a friendly nudge.
I suppose to start, I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease almost a year ago. I had been feeling unwell really for the previous 12 months and in total lost about 6 stone. Honestly, from the first couple of weeks of feeling symptoms I had a suspicion that it was Crohn's. I should also explain that I have a sister that was diagnosed when she was 13, about 16 years ago. She has had 3 surgeries and is on humira at the moment, so it is safe to say I wasn't a stranger to the disease.
I remember, vividly, the day my diagnosis got confirmed, I wasn't upset for me but the thoughts of telling my family was overwhelming. I should mention that I am 32 and live independantly but I knew what a blow this would be to my family and specifically my sister. She had been with me all the way through being diagnosed, all the tests, most coming back with nothing and people telling me I was insane ! I suppose I was always the rock for my sister and was there through all her surgeries and all her hospital visits, and was the one she would come to if she was feeling low or needed help with anything.......now it was me !
The day that I told my family about my illness, I cried and cried. But the funny thing was, I wasn't crying for myself as I accepted that I had it, I cried for them because I knew how upset they would be. It is very difficult for me to accept help, being the oldest child I think always gives you more of an air of responsability than the rest, so it is now very hard for me to express when I am feeling crappy or when I am feeling unwell. As we are all probably aware, stress is a big factor in this illness and I was so scared that this would really affect my sister - She is a big worrier and I now almost feel selfish for making her worry about me, even though there is no need to !
I know there is no reason I should be feeling guilt for a Crohn's diagnosis but I can't quite seem to shake it. I am sure I will eventually get to grips with it....like all things it takes time.
Nice to be a part of this community and can't week to see what new experiences await me ! :ycool:
I was delighted to come across this forum by a friendly nudge.
I suppose to start, I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease almost a year ago. I had been feeling unwell really for the previous 12 months and in total lost about 6 stone. Honestly, from the first couple of weeks of feeling symptoms I had a suspicion that it was Crohn's. I should also explain that I have a sister that was diagnosed when she was 13, about 16 years ago. She has had 3 surgeries and is on humira at the moment, so it is safe to say I wasn't a stranger to the disease.
I remember, vividly, the day my diagnosis got confirmed, I wasn't upset for me but the thoughts of telling my family was overwhelming. I should mention that I am 32 and live independantly but I knew what a blow this would be to my family and specifically my sister. She had been with me all the way through being diagnosed, all the tests, most coming back with nothing and people telling me I was insane ! I suppose I was always the rock for my sister and was there through all her surgeries and all her hospital visits, and was the one she would come to if she was feeling low or needed help with anything.......now it was me !
The day that I told my family about my illness, I cried and cried. But the funny thing was, I wasn't crying for myself as I accepted that I had it, I cried for them because I knew how upset they would be. It is very difficult for me to accept help, being the oldest child I think always gives you more of an air of responsability than the rest, so it is now very hard for me to express when I am feeling crappy or when I am feeling unwell. As we are all probably aware, stress is a big factor in this illness and I was so scared that this would really affect my sister - She is a big worrier and I now almost feel selfish for making her worry about me, even though there is no need to !
I know there is no reason I should be feeling guilt for a Crohn's diagnosis but I can't quite seem to shake it. I am sure I will eventually get to grips with it....like all things it takes time.
Nice to be a part of this community and can't week to see what new experiences await me ! :ycool:
