Hi. My name is Deena and I was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. I've had Crohn's since I was born, but the doctors didn't figure it out until I was 10. I kept going to the doctor when I was a baby because I kept having diarrhea but the doctor. just blew it off and pretty much ignored my mom. Then when I was about 9 or 10 I started having blood in my stool, so we found a new pediatrician, who sent me to a GI doctor. I missed about 20 days of school in 4th grade because my abdominal pain was so out of control I would be crying. I also missed because of all the doctor appointments. It was scope after scope after scope, but they all came back normal.

Then there was a new symptom. My wrist was hurting, but I'm pretty tough so I just figured it was from playing sports. The next day my elbow was hurting and my arm swelled, and again I just blew it off. Then it was my knee, then my ankle, then my hip. I was in so much pain I couldn't move. It was just on the right side, then it spread to my left. So we went to the doctor and he thought he knew what it was, but he sent me to a rheumatologist, who diagnosed me with juvenile arthritis. Then we went back to my GI doctor, who made me take the pill cam where it takes pictures of your insides. That's when they found out I had Crohn's in my small intestine and GERD and ulcers in my colon. I was scared when I found out.

I am 12 now and I'm on Remicade every 5 weeks, which really helps. I have problems with my weight; I am too skinny because the Crohn's in my small intestine takes away most of the nutrients I need to gain weight and grow. I'm pretty short. I also have anemia, which means I don't absorb enough nutrients, like iron (which helps oxygen flow through the body).

I am glad I found this website and know I'm not alone! There were some pretty scary things going on, but now that I know what it is, I'm not scared anymore. It's a crazy life, but it's my life. Thanks for reading my story!