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JOE COBUCCI: Through my journey,
it's been an ebb and flow.
There's been sniffing
about a time
where I have been really healthy
and my disease has been
in check, but then there's been
times where it has come back.
I was in my early teens
and was having a lot of bathroom
issues, urgency issues out
of nowhere, and it was very
frightening, because I wasn't
telling my parents,
because it was very
embarrassing.
Especially hanging around
with your friends, and all
of a sudden, you just
go to the bathroom
for no reason.
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Having
those additional challenges
were really isolating for me.
I limited myself
from many things.
When asked to do certain things,
I was very conscious of choosing
what I was going to do,
because I wanted to make sure
that I knew I could get
to the bathroom if I needed to.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
Going to the doctor really
opened up my eyes
to that someone's
going to listen to me.
So when I was first diagnosed,
they called it ileitis,
but during that time frame,
things got better.
I was feeling good,
and it wasn't much of an issue.
And then later teens is when it
really came back at me
and really flared up,
and at point is when we got
the full diagnosis of Crohn's
disease.
I started off with a variety
of medications that were
available at the time,
and honestly, they had seemed
to work, and it changed
my attitude.
I felt uplifted.
I felt like there was now
something I could take,
a diagnosis.
I could feel normal,
and it was kind of allowing me
to be open to doing things.
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At one point in my younger life,
I thought, you know, it wasn't
possible to have
a full-time job.
It wasn't possible to travel
to Europe.
It wasn't possible to have
a family.
All of those things
are possible.
I don't want Crohn's disease
to limit myself,
and I don't want to limit all
the patients.
You can have a vibrant life.
One of the things that I've
learned is the medication
is a important part
of my disease journey,
but also trying to alleviate
stress, adding exercise, having
the right amount of sleep.
At this current stage,
I'm taking
an injectable medication that
is really helping me
to flourish.
So along with my physician
and dietitian,
we've found a pathway that's
best for me.
So I try to eat lean meats.
I try to eat vegetables.
Sometimes it's just having rice,
just kind of bland foods.
The main thing that I've done
over the years have tried
to avoid are really raw foods.
They really are not my friend.
This is a lifelong journey.
Sometimes it is challenging,
and I try to be
a positive and resilient person.
It's OK having Crohn's disease
and feeling isolated and having
fear and worry.
But taking control
of your disease,
find the right physician,
and finding a community
is helpful to be able to say,
you know, I want to do that.
I'm going to do that.
I've been
fortunate over the many years
to have run over 60-plus half
marathons and seven marathons.
So I will say for all
the patients that are out there
that suffer with Crohn's
disease,
you know, it's like one
foot in front of the other,
and before you know it,
you're out there,
and you're doing something you
may never have done.
Whatever makes you happy,
but I found a lot of strength
in running.
I'd have not let things slow me
down.