LOOP is making an impression on the IBD community!

We enter December 2018 with 60 new posts, shared by 40 ImproveCareNow community members! And 27 people posted for the very first time in 2018. Posts covered topics like: IBD research, mental health, new PAC member intros, ICN event updates, what I wish you knew, and many honest accounts of life with IBD.

We are thankful for each and every one of these stories. Here are the top 10, most viewed, posts of 2018!

Traveling with IBD, whether it be inside or outside the country, isn’t always easy. However, the PAC has created a new tool to answer questions, share experiences, and hopefully help ease some of the stress of traveling with IBD! Initially, we planned to offer information for patients wanting to study abroad. After giving this idea some more thought, PAC members decided a toolkit with general information about traveling is more relatable and would help more people. Thus, the Travel Toolkit was born!

A few years ago, I gave one of my older brothers a children’s book called “It’s Okay to be Different.” The book was downright hilarious. It contained colorful pictures of people “being different” and being okay with it. Didn’t you know that “it’s okay to come in last?” Or, my favorite, “it’s okay to eat macaroni and cheese in the bathtub.” As you might guess, I gave this book to my brother to poke fun at him, not on a serious note. However, the book had a good point. IT IS okay to be different. In fact, it’s pretty flippin’ awesome.

LOOP is making an impression on the IBD community! In 2017 LOOP was recognized twice as a top blog for Crohn’s disease – 19 of 100 by Feedspot and Top 10 by Medical News Today! This is a direct result of the variety and quality of stories and perspectives shared by so many members of the ImproveCareNow community!

In 2017, 50 posts were published by 36 ICN community members! And 18 people posted for the very first time during the year. Posts covered topics like: IBD research, new PAC member intros, ICN event updates, what I wish you knew, and many open & honest accounts of life with IBD.

We are thankful for each and every one of these stories. Here are the top 10, most viewed, LOOP posts of 2017!

I often ask myself if I would rather live my life with or without Crohn’s. The answer, to be honest, is still unclear to me. I obviously would absolutely love to live without the pain that comes with it, but I wouldn’t be the person I am today without it. Surprising as it sounds, I have found that Crohn’s comes with perks that no one talks about. If you Google “Crohn’s” (or any chronic illness for that matter), you’ll likely find some pretty crazy, freaky stuff out there. I think it’s rare to find any of the positives. Well, I’m here to tell you about some of what I’ve noticed in my own life - so buckle up ladies and gentlemen!!

Let's give a warm welcome to - and get to know - five new members of the Patient Advisory Council (PAC). Nicki, Rebecca, Becky, Sarah and Abigail are imPACting the lives of kids with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, by raising awareness about the realities of life with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and building connections and tools to support each other and all young patients with IBD. They are also using their voices and experiences to actively represent over 27,000 patients with IBD across the ImproveCareNow Network and are committed to collaborating and continuously improving outcomes. Let's meet them.