#i wonder sometimes if i don't have crohns disease at all and just have these food allergies

[stormyrainyday]

i have GOT to stop eating things i'm allergic to these foods are not giving me energy all they're doing is making my tummy hurt

[nebula-nonhuman]

Off-topic but can people PLEASE learn how to read??? I most likely have Crohn's and much like IBS, trigger foods differ for people, though Crohn's is notoriously more like "If you eat, you will probably suffer" whereas IBS tends to have a specific trigger food. So picture me on the Crohn's subreddit:

Me: Hey I'm wondering if anyone knows a bread recipe that is gluten-free, lactose-free and without oil or animal fats because those are the 3 main problem areas I have, and the Celiac's disease subreddit usually features recipes with lactose or oil and people with lactose intolerance usually can digest gluten so most of the recipes on both forums are useless to me. I know that all of us have different problem foods and that not everyone with Crohn's has these problems but those of you that do, have you ever managed to bake bread? Pls share recipe? I don't have Celiac's or anything, I've been tested for that to hell and back, it just happens that gluten does trigger a flare up for me.

Illiterate person #1: I just use wheat and-

We're all living in America guy: You just think gluten causes you problems, it's because American bread sucks. The bread in Europe doesn't cause me pain, try it sometime when you're on a trip in Europe. (I'm Eastern European)

Illiterate person #2: You have Celiac's. Nobody but celiacs have problems with gluten. If anyone has a problem with gluten they have Celiac's.

Me: That's not true - people with IBS can have problems with wheat and gluten.

Illiterate person #3: IBS and IBD are not the same disease.

Illiterate person #4: I can digest milk and wheat just fine.

[salemroseworld]

So, I thought my first post should be a bit of an introduction, so you know a smidgen about me, my life and what delights you can expect if you decide to stick around! Here we go.....so, I'm Hannah Rose, you can call me Hannah, pleasure to meet you, I'm 39 (I'm clinging on to these last few months of being in my 30s for dear life right now) I live on the south coast of England with my hubster Jack , my 14 year old daughter, 6 year old son and two doggos MJ a 2 year old cavalier king Charles spaniel, and Nova a 13 year old Romanian shepherd, yes I am a crazy dog mama, my pooches are very much family.

My life is different and probably if you were a fly on one of my walls could seem a little strange to you, why? I'm happy you asked, I'm a 'Spoonie' for those who have no idea what I mean, I'm someone who lives with chronic illness, and in my case not just one, I happen to be greedy; I have 6 yes I said SIX diagnosis, which are, in no particular order, Crohns disease, arthritis, fibromyalgia, ankylosing spondylitis, mast cell activation disorder and psoriasis I will go into detail about each of these in later posts, I'm differently abled and use a powerchair, I have a feeding tube for nutrition and a portacath for IV medications, in short I'm in a bit of a pickle 🥴 and my day to day consists of large amounts of medications, pain, trying anything to ease the pain, hospital appointments, hospital admissions, weird symptoms from each illness, fatigue, more medications, not knowing how I'll be feeling one hour to the next and more medications, all while attempting to live some kind of 'normal' life with my family. The funny thing about these illnesses is on a rare good day, if you saw me without my wheelchair or feed connected, I probably wouldn't look sick to you, and sometimes I quite like that, other times not so much, more on that in future posts, the point is, you can never tell just from looking at someone what they have going on. What else...... Well my hubster is my carer and I literally don't know what I would do without him, again there will be a post all about that, and it WILL be mushy just to let you know, he is my twin flame without a doubt and my life changed so much when I met him, he brought ME back. I'm an artist, I love painting and mixed media but a lot of times I'll use my iPad and procreate, as painting in bed on bad pain days can be a little errrrrrr messy (whoops) and lessons have been learned. I also make items with resin, and create South American style beaded jewellery (my heritage is South American) which I CAN do from bed HOORAY! I was making so much that I decided to open a little Etsy shop called Salem Rose Design and share my creations, it's still new but I love it, feel free to check it out....or not, whatevs tickles your fancy. Another facet to me is I'm an eclectic witch and empath, I don't strictly follow one specific 'craft' or ' path' I do what feels right to me, which can be a pick n mix mash up of different traditional and more modern crafts, and that's how I like it. I'm quite a spiritual soul, I love crystals and do tarot and numerology, I'm also currently doing a reiki course in my own time and at my own pace which I will follow with my reiki masters diploma.

So yeah, these are basic snippets of my roller coaster life which can seem like a tragic comedy sketch at times, it's hard going, but can also be wonderful, in going through what I have, I don't take life for granted and I try to be as positive as I can be, whilst also being open and honest about my experiences. And that is what this is all about, honesty and AWARENESS even if one other person reads this or any of my future posts and thinks,ok this is similar to what I feel or go through, and then doesn't feel so alone, then I'm happy. On that note, I'll finish rambling for now, if anyone has any questions or wants a general chat, I'm here and look forward to meeting you!

Stay safe and big love.

Hannah Rose. 💜💜

[cuddlyclaws]

I am more than eczema

It is easy when you write a blog about something to accidentally give the perspective that this is all your life. This is fair enough, it is all you have shared.

I felt it was important to share that eczema is a significant part of my life and has had a hand in shaping me into the person I am today, physically, mentally and emotionally. I am both more resilient and more fragile because of my experiences with eczema. I believe my empathy is higher and my appreciation for some of the smaller things is also higher. When I am in the middle of a flare-up meltdown, eczema is my whole world and it sucks. Even though it may not always seem like it at the time, a flare-up is only temporary, and deep down I know that.

Far surpassing this I have a wonderful life outside of eczema and scratching. I have so many great things and people around me. More than I am able to catch up with as often as I would like. More things to do than I have time for but I love my life and eczema is only a slice. Granted a slice that changes in prominence from time to time, but it subsides (sometimes for long periods) and I get on with my awesome life. 

I believe my experience is not that dissimilar from anyone else suffering from a condition that impacts their health and quality of life. I know people with depression, arthritis, Crohn's disease, cancer, psoriasis and the list goes on. Mine is on the outside and that carries its own weight. But at least people can see when I am suffering. I am not sure which is worse. Yes, it has an impact. Yes, we need to be mindful and sensitive to ourselves during times it impacts us. But don't underestimate the mental game. Life exists beyond the condition. I am not eczema, I am a person who experiences the frustrations of eczema from time to time and the rest is just being mindful and working to keep it at bay. 

I am also the person who has a truly amazing and loving wife, a very supportive extended family and friends, who loves to draw and paint, to be physical, play sport, beat up my nephews and nieces, to wander art galleries, to travel, to watch movies, to cuddle on the couch, to build the business, have dinner with friends, to play computer games, to climb mountains and paddle rivers, to walk on the beach with Ailbe (my dog), to coach sport, to design and create, to have a quiet beer and enjoy walks in the forest. 

I tell you that I am no more eczema than I am any of those things above. It just happens to be a part of me. A visible, frustrating, demoralising, unpredictable part of me. But just a part. Sometimes you need to get out of your own head and remind yourself of the other sides. I am more than eczema.