Still new and adjusting to Crohn's...

by Chelsea
(St. Louis, Missouri)

My name is Chelsea, and I was diagnosed with Crohn's on my 20th birthday, about 5 months ago. I've had stomach pains and off and on constipation since I was 15, but never went to the doctor. When I finally went to the emergency room and had some tests done, the doctors told me I had Crohn's, which I was already familiar with.
My grandmother died when I was ten, after having surgery for Crohn's, to remove part of her small intestine. My other grandmother has Crohn's as well, and has been dealing with it for about forty years. My doctor didn't give me much information and basically told me to "suck it up", because from now on, I am my disease. I went into a severe depression and felt very alone.
Here it is about 5 months later, and I'm just getting used to the idea of dealing with my disease. It took me a long time to gather up the courage to even research, because I was afraid of what I would find. My GI put me on steroids, which made me gain 20 pounds. I'm off the steroids now, but still trying to loose the weight while trying to stay healthy. I don't want anything to stop me from living out my life and being happy.
I'm thinking about trying yoga to relax, I have bad anxiety and occasional depression. I am a college student, so I'm always on the run. I also have a very crappy job at McDonalds, which doesn't help with stress. I would really appreciate any advice or even encouragement anyone has to give.
Contact me at StrangerThings88 @ yahoo.com