Crohn's kills and anyone who tells you different is either uninformed or uneducated. Over the last 12 months I've lost three people to Crohn's disease. One was my age two were in their twenties. On one death certificate the doc put complications of Crohn's disease. How dumb is that? She wouldn't have had a complication if she didn't have Crohn's disease.
Now that I've vented I have one dear Crohnie friend who is always suggesting I need to do a blog on famous people with Crohn's, but before I go there I'd like you to understand that Crohn's is not just one disease. It can incorporate many different organs and it comes in mild, moderate and severe forms. I have the nasty kind but it is under relative control with Remicade. Lase week I had a flare but about one week after my infusion the Remi kicked in and I am feeling so much better.
Back to famous people with Crohn's....
Cynthia McFadden is an ABC news correspondent who has had Crohn's since her college years and has had over 15 feet of her intestines removed. She works hard at raising awareness about the disease with the CCFA.
Frank Fitz is one of the starts of my FAVORITE reality show AMERICAN PICKERS! Go Frank! He's had Crohn's for over 25 years.
Mike McCready, the LEAD guitarist for Pear Jam considers himself lucky. He wanted to show the world that you can have a career and a life with Crohn's disease.
David Garrard with the Jacksonville Jaguars also has Crohn's disease. He had over 12 inches of intestine removed and is now the spokes person for CCA's In The Zone for Crohn's which raises money for research.
Mary Ann Mobley, one of my FAVORITE singers. She developed Crohn's just as her singing career took off. She says, "It's a dreadful disease that it affects so many people emotionally." This is from a 1994 Saturday Evening Post in a 1994 interview. Mary Ann has had a pretty rough go. She is a true Steel Magnolia.
Most celebrities do not like to talk about the disease. Shannon Doherty of 90210 has reportedly said, "It's not sexy to say I have to go to the bathroom right now."
She's right. It isn't sexy. And that makes having this disease doubly hard on people. Thank God for my husband who suffers right along with me. I cherish his love and support.
With the rise of processed foods cases of Crohn's have risen dramatically. Somehow, somewhere, something has triggered the gene that sets off this disease. Hopefully there will be a cure in the near future. Now wouldn't that be something?
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