Crohn's Chronicles: A blog about Crohn's Disease

I'm going a little off script today. The official prompt is to name a mascot, and I think we all know that I would just spend another post talking about Myrtle. (Because she's pretty much my mascot already.) I've done that a lot recently, though, and what I have to say today is something new. So, strap in. After writing my Gloria Steinem post yesterday, I've been thinking even more about the importance of names. I've also been thinking about one specific name that we in the Crohn's community often use to describe ourselves.  Crohnie.

I know, I missed yesterday. I'm sorry. But it does say in the rules that we have two free days and I had a good reason, I promise. Maybe one of these days I'll write two to make up for it. So, back to writing. I'm going to use yesterday's prompt because I kind of love it and I've got something to say about it. The question is: Why? Why do I feel the need to write my story? And my answer boils down to one simple answer. Because it's important for these stories to be told. It's important that there's some information out there about the day-to-day activity of living with illness. Often, when we talk about disease, we focus on research and cures and treatments. While I understand, support, and engage in these conversations, I'm far more interested in sharing experiences. I'm interested in the community that can form out of those shared experiences. I'm interested in the change that these communities and their stories can make within a large...

I'm trying something new. On Fridays, I'm going to highlight something happening in the Crohn's community, either online or IRL. Us crohnies are always up to something interesting and I want to make sure I'm doing my part to support other bloggers, activists, tweeters, and anyone else who is out there trying to raise awareness for IBD. I'm currently trying to think up a snappy name for this series, but nothing's coming to mind yet. I'll get back to you. Anyway, here goes. Earlier this week I received an email from Crohn's Disease Support Network (CDSN) announcing that they are partnering with A Girl With Guts to hold The IBD Commercial Contest . I'm sure most of you have seen the "Living With Crohn's Disease" commercial. If not, here it is:

I went to this panel/performance at Access Living  last Friday. It was on the intersections between disability, race and community. Very interesting. There was one thing that the moderator said, though, that really struck me. It's something I've read and taken note of before, but for some reason hearing it in this context really drove the point home. He made the point that disability and disease challenge the idea of "the individual." In American society, we're pretty much taught to take care of ourselves. Individualism is extremely important to the way we conceptualize our bodies and our minds. The "I" is at the center of the American dream. If I work hard and educate myself, I can rise through the ranks of society. So, what happens to this concept when a body must depend on others to perform certain tasks, or even to make it through the day? This is more of an issue for some types of disability than others. With Crohn's, for instance, as long a...