chronic illness
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Starting Rinvoq
After insurance gave me grief with increasing the frequency and dosing of my Remicade infusions, I finally talked to my doctor at the end of March. Instead of pushing back again, we decided to divert course to Rinvoq. Secretly, I’d wanted to switch to Rinvoq from the start of my flare-ups while on the Remicade.… Continue reading
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Almost the Same Thing – A Short Story
I sometimes write fiction, and this one happens to be about feelings I have about being chronically ill in my daily life. The way it changes you, but the way it sometimes doesn’t feel worth speaking up about, how getting a diagnosis feels scarier than living with the pain, how even something “minor” can change… Continue reading
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Flaring Up
Until late September, I was feeling great. Better than I had been in years. The Inflectra/Remicade infusions were doing what they were supposed to do, and after some gentle advocating for myself, even dealing with the infusion center wasn’t so stressful anymore. I was working out, sometimes twice a day. I was able to get… Continue reading
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On Advocating For Yourself (Even if You’re a People Pleaser)
What you probably don’t know about me, because, well, you don’t know me, is I’m a chronic people pleaser. It comes out often in social settings, but, surprisingly (or maybe unsurprisingly) it comes out in medical settings too. The first doctor I saw who diagnosed me with Crohn’s laughed at me when I asked him… Continue reading
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My First Thursday with Humira
Welp, I’m officially immune suppressed. Yay! My experience with starting Humira was a bit of a whirlwind, a mostly administrative one. I went for a follow-up with my doctor after my last colonoscopy in July where we saw continuing inflammation in my esophagus, stomach, and colon despite taking Mesalamine. So, after waiting six weeks for… Continue reading
My Crohn's Diaries 