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How to Keep Friendships with IBD

How do you keep friends if you have an inflammatory bowel disease? It’s actually a lot simpler than you’d think!

Firstly, lets talk about how isolating we all know that Crohn’s is. Its hard to keep up with the outside world when all we know is what is consuming us at home. But I want to change your thinking here.

A lot of people say that having Crohn’s ruins friendships and makes you lose friends….

But I say this: It gets rid of those friends who weren’t actually friends to begin with! I say that a friendship that is true couldn’t be ruined by your inability to attend all the parties or get togethers or social events. I actually think that it’s an early prevention culling!

Think about it like this: Who are the friends that stick around during the sh*tty times? Who are the friends that stuck by you when you weren’t up for life? Now, bare in mind that I’m not including the ones that we drive away in our martyring! Cause if you do that, stop it. Stop self-sabotaging. Let those who chose to stay, stay and those who leave – slam that door!

Don’t ask yourself what you did to deserve it! Don’t ask yourself why you weren’t good enough! Because their actions are actually a testament to who they are as a person! That is not on you! I don’t know you, but most likely you are probably pretty spectacular and probably wouldn’t treat someone poorly.

Don’t accept anyone that would treat you poorly.

I have experienced it all. I’ve experienced friendship losses and looked at others going along having fun with all their besties and then theres social media now who makes others lives look oh so much more glorious than our own!

I’ve even lost family along the way, but over the years of over thinking and analysing everything and everyone I asked myself this one question and yet I could never actually answer it….

Why do they deserve better than me? Why do I deserve to be treated badly?

I decided when I had my first surgery that this was actually a great natural opportunity to weed out all the a**holes from my life, leaving only the beautiful people that made my life better.

I am a good person. I swear, I’m completely different to most, but I’m loving and I am kind and so now I only accept those exact kind of people in my life. Because I deserve and you deserve the kind of love and kindness you’d give to your best friends.



  • thedancingcrohnie moderator
    12 months ago

    Well said! If you have “friends” that get upset with your condition, then they were never you friend to begin with.

    I have a beautiful group of supportive friends, because through thick and thin, they have stuck by me and supported me. It’s those people that you want by your side through life, and they only make life more beautiful.

    Cheers to those who stick around! They are gems.

    Always dancing,
    Elizabeth (team member)

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