I wear the words “Be Brave” etched on stainless steel wrapped around my wrist with strips of purple leather that represent the official color of Crohn’s and Colitis awareness.
“You are braver than you believe…” ~Christopher Robin to Winnie the Pooh.
These are the words that get me through each day as a Crohn’s Disease warrior.
When I get out of bed and my first thought is, “How much will I hurt today,” I must be brave.
Each day, I look at my calendar and weigh all the tasks on my to-do list against my level of pain. I wonder, “How am I going to get through this day?” before I look to my wrist and read the answer–“Be Brave.”
When the Young One looks at me with sadness, and asks “When are you going to be done being sick?”, I think to myself, “Be Brave”, as I try to find a way to tell her I will always be sick, but some days will be better than others.
I think of the events on the horizon–dinner parties, birthdays, homecomings, project deadlines, and I know I can’t do it all right now. So I tell myself to “Be Brave” as I make the decision of who to disappoint today. The Hubs? The kids? The boss? Myself?
Some days, giving in and going home is my bravest act.
When food hurts…when another doctor’s appointment interrupts the day…when I ask for another day off…when I need another ride to the hospital…when I reach for the pain meds…when I can’t sleep at night…when I look fine on the outside, but feel like my insides are on fire…when I pray every night that I haven’t passed this horribleness to my son…when I try to find the simplest answer to a polite “How are you?”…I remind myself , “be brave”…”Be Brave”…”BE BRAVE!”
I must be brave to face the challenges of my disease. There is simply no other way to get through it.
Do you or someone you love need to be brave to fight a disease? Check out Bravelets.com to find the one that helps you fight the hardest. Bravelets will donate $10 of your purchase to the associated cause.
***Today’s post is brought to you by Five Minute Friday and the powerful word “Brave”,which, by the way, popped into my head last night as I lay sleepless once more. As I tried to find something positive to think about, my mind wondered with anticipation to what I would find in my inbox when I went searching for today’s word. I was truly shocked when I actually saw that word–my word–as the prompt for today. I guess someone else thinks I need to write about this. Magical things happen on Lisa Jo Baker’s site every Friday. Please join us.
Stiletto Momma 
Praying for you brave warrior.
Thanks!
I am so sad to hear about your condition. Even with Crohns disease, no sickness can keep you from loving. And I think that must bring hope. That even in the midst of a painful disease, it can’t ever take away your ability to love. Your family is blessed by you, by you braving this world and loving them. By you working through pain because of what they mean to you. You are brave. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for your kind words, Hannah. Usually, when I say “Be Brave”, I’m thinking about my family and how I can get through this by being the best wife and mother I can be.
Praying for you! Chronic pain is not fun. Thank you for the link. I had a hard time with today’s 5 min friday…. lol I guess they all can’t be easy.
Your bravery is certainly inspiring. Love that today’s FMF prompt was already on your mind. Glad you found the courage to write about it today. Praying for you…
I almost wish I’d looked at the clock when I had thought, so I could compare it to the post time. But then again, I think that might have freaked me out too much! 🙂
It’s like that word was custom-made for you today. You endure so much, it sounds incredibly hard. What you do in a regular day is more than most healthy women do on average. I’m glad you were made so bravely and I appreciate the courage it took to share! Wish you didn’t need the bracelet but it is very pretty and fitting for a warrior like you.