Life with Crohn’s Disease
Hi, welcome to Gma’sPhoto! Today I would like to share my life with Crohn’s Disease. First and foremost**-
Nothing on this website should be considered medical advice. Always consult a doctor before making any changes to your diet, medical plan, or exercise routine. Please refer to the disclaimer.
Let me first begin with, ‘What is Crohn’s disease?‘ To get a complete explanation, click the link. In my words, it’s the sshitz….. literally.
I was diagnosed at age 17. It took many years to understand what foods I could eat without triggering the horrible side affects of the disease. Stress interrupted my food intake, what my gut could and could not tolerate at that moment in my life. The weeks leading up to me qualifying for my CDL and learning a new route was a stressful time for me. Keep this in mind as you are reading….
Past employers have been wonderful working with me and my need to have restroom access as needed. However, my newest job is a tricky one. My supervisor has been wonderful. There was an incident that I could have lost my job because of the actions I took at the time of one of those restroom needs.
At this moment and time of my life, I have had to make another adjustment to my lifestyle. This will include carrying a bag of necessities on the bus. This bag will include an extra pair of pants, panties, baby wipes and a potty pad. You heard correct, a potty pad. I am now a CDL Bus driver. Thank goodness, my longest route is 2 to 2.5 hours. There is no bathroom on a bus. So guess what? I will need to pooh my britches if a bathroom urge strikes. Not looking forward to this. One of my requests was no cloth seat 🙂 I will be sitting on a potty pad!
The incident I referenced above, I could have lost my job because I did not pooh my britches. It was necessary for the administration correction taken. There is a plan now in place. Luckily the superintendent of the district is aware of Crohn’s and understood the meaning of, ‘I need to go now’! Of course, I had to provide a doctor’s note stating my diagnosis and what was needed medically for me to be successful. All is good for now. I am sure this will provide opportunities of some humorous post follow ups 😂
In all seriousness, Crohn’s is not a fun diagnosis to live with. On the other hand, I would much prefer to talk about it instead of talking about it when an ‘accident’ occurs and I am very embarrassed. Granted talking about pooh for most is embarrassing butt (pun intended), could you image how embarrassing it would be if you had to pooh your britches?
Should you have experience with Crohn’s or Ulcerative colitis, let me know. We can share tips and tricks to avoid those embarrassing moments.
Take Care. Best wishes, Debra
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