Posted by Phoebe Offenberg on September 24, 2019
My name is Phoebe and I am 16 years old. I have Crohn’s disease and I was diagnosed one year ago. One thing most people don’t know about me is that I do aerial silks.
The greatest struggle for me has been living in constant pain. It’s hard to do everyday activities, such as focus on school or get enough rest, when you have bad stomach cramps. It affects the people around me because I feel like I spend less time with them when I’m not feeling good. It’s hard to hang out with friends or go out of the house for long periods of time. Especially when I’m really tired.
Pain and exhaustion don’t feel like struggles I can really overcome on my own, without medicine and doctors. But I always try to stay positive, even when I don’t feel the greatest, because it’s the best thing I can do for myself and the people around me. I am very lucky to have such supportive and understanding friends and family to help me through this disease. I think that helps a lot. I think having Crohn’s has made me realize how strong I actually am. And how determined I am to not let it take control of my life.
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