Any mom will tell you, she
doesn't wanna miss a moment
with her kids but
that can be tough when
you're dealing with
a health issue.
So, let's meet a mom
who's worked closely with
her doctors to manage
Crohn's disease
so she doesn't miss a
moment of family time.
(slow solemn music)
Marissa Jenkins first started
dealing with recurring
stomach pains and inflammation
when she was just 18.
- A lot of stomach
inflammation pain.
It was so bad, it was like
if you were being stabbed
repeatedly like
a bunch of times.
Very similar to
cramping, contractions,
but maybe magnify that by 20.
You assume the fetal
position for quite some time
until they dissipate.
So, it's pretty miserable.
- [Jane] Soon after,
Marissa was diagnosed
with Crohn's disease.
- Crohn's disease is
an autoimmune disorder
where the body's white
blood cells attack the gut.
That could lead to
inflammation of the intestine,
which will manifest as
diarrhea, bloody diarrhea,
and abdominal pain.
It's partly genetic and
it's partly environmental.
The disease is lifelong.
Sometimes the disease
can enter into remission
and we can deescalate
the therapy,
but it's often a
lifelong therapy.
- [Jane] Marissa started
on medications but
stopped them when she became
pregnant with her daughter.
And that led to a complication
of her Crohn's disease.
(lighthearted rhythmic music)
- She developed ulcerations
in her intestine
and the ulcerations
tunneled so deep,
it went right through the
thickness of the small bowel
into the adjacent
muscle of her thigh.
And we got an MRI
magnetic image,
which showed a pocket
of pus or abscess
in the muscle of her thigh.
- It was like a pain
that was shooting.
I couldn't move.
It was shooting
down through my leg,
making it impossible to walk.
- We don't want mothers
to stop medications
without consulting
their physicians.
It's often safer to continue
whatever medications
makes them well, even
during pregnancy.
If the mother does well,
the baby does well.
- [Jane] Doctors treated
Marissa and drained the abcess.
- And we're able to
cure that abcess.
(mumbles) baby
Zoey did very well.
- She was able to be
delivered close to term.
I'm pretty grateful for that.
I don't want anything
to happen with her.
So, that was my main concern.
- [Jane] Not only did Zoey
do well, so did Marissa.
(exciting fun music)
- I've actually been in
remission for over a year now.
It feels really good.
- Marissa is doing
very well right now.
Her Crohn's is
clinically in remission,
there's no signs of
clinical activity.
Patients with Crohn's
disease should be proactive
and not react to
when things flare up.
It's much better to be
proactive, keep them healed,
and to prevent complications.
- [Jane] Marissa says
her priority now is
focusing on her family
and continuing to work
with her doctors to keep her
Crohn's disease in check.
- Me and the kids do
tons of activities.
We go outside, we do
painting, art, play with toys.
It's very important because
you wanna be 100% for them,
so doing exactly what
I'm supposed to do
is pretty important.
- Our goal is to keep
her in a deep remission,
where we do periodic
colonoscopies to make sure
that there are no ulcerations.
- Have an open, honest
relationship with your doctor,
not a pretty condition to
have but it is manageable
and it is possible to still
have a really happy good life.
So, you just have
to stay strong.
(lighthearted rhythmic music)
- Love seeing Marissa
playing with her kids.
