All the Updates that You can Handle!

Sorry for the lack of updates but Blogger has been down for the last few days making it impossible to add any new content. But thankfully it's back up and what was not blogged about can now be written!

First of all, congrats to all we are now at $4005! Great job you guys!
Second of all here is the list of events that are soon to come.

From Amira Shaif

Have you ever wanted to help loved ones understand what you're going through with IBD, but not quite sure how to do it? Need a night out with friends? Want to help CCFA and Take Steps spread the word about an awesome fundraiser? Ben has suffered from Crohn's Disease for many years and has created the perfect performance. Although we know there is nothing "funny" about having IBD Ben shares his story with humor and gives the audience the opportunity to laugh along with him as he discusses what is sometimes considered the "un-discussable"....
PAIN IN THE BUTT - Benefiting CCFA LA Take Steps
Don't just join us, but tell your friends to come too!

http://online.ccfa.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=82664.0&dlv_id=85385
Hollywood Improv
8162 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90046
Thursday 05/19/2011
6PM Dinner & Silent Auction, 8PM Comedy Show
Tickets ae $25

REGISTER TODAY
For this FREE Teleconference/Webcast
This educational event will help patients, caregivers, and pediatricians understand the unique medical and psychosocial needs of children with CD and the importance of continual care. Pediatric gastroenterologist Dr. Sandra Kim and clinical social worker Janis Arnold will discuss:

Important differences between pediatric and adult Crohn's disease
The medical management of pediatric CD
The critical role of nutrition
Growth and development of the pediatric Crohn's patient
Quality of life and support systems


Thursday, May 19, 2011

8:00 PM to 9:15 PM Eastern Time
7:00 PM to 8:15 PM Central Time
6:00 PM to 7:15 PM Mountain Time
5:00 PM to 6:15 PM Pacific Time

First Annual Digestive Health and Wellness Expo - Orange County

Join us on May 21st from 1:00pm to 4:00pm

to learn new ways to facilitate total mind and body wellness.
Expo with be held at In Motion OC
17332 Von Karman Ave Suite 120
Irvine, CA 92614

Come and speak with doctors one on one, acupuncturists, Pilates instructors, yoga instructors, and many more.

We are excited to announce that The Bite Market, a gluten free market, will be at the expo with baked goods samples. Along with Bari Rooney, an IBD nutritionist.
For more information or if you would like a booth
contact Joslynn at jbroun@ccfa.org or 646-717-6208

AND DARRIN HAS OFFERED TO DRIVE!!!

Mid-Week Update and More Jazz

Greetings all! This is your midweek update, first of all let me congratulate you all as we have surpassed 50% of our Take Steps goal and are currently at $3340 $3365! Great job you guys, we are almost there!

On a similar note do not forget that this weekend, May 7th will be the day that we are holding our yard sale fundraiser at Allison's place. If you have anything to donate to the cause or simply wish to hang out please contact Allison so that she can give you all the pertinent info or contact me and I'll do the same. Darrin is also more than happy to pick up any large objects that you can't transport so please contact him if you need someone with muscles and a big truck. Contact me if you need someone with a dolly and an excuse on why I can't lift heavy boxes.

On to other things!

Upcoming Events:
MAY 19TH: Pediatric Crohn's: Finding the Right Path to Care. For info click here.
MAY 19TH: CCFA TAKE STEPS LA Presents: Ben Morrison: Pain in the Butt. For info and tickets go here.
MAY 21ST: First Annual Digestive Health and Wellness Expo.
Time: 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Where: MOTION OC
17332 Von Karman Ave, Suite 120
Irvine, CA, 92614
Talk to health professionals, hear about acupuncture and yoga and check out the latest body wellness techniques!
For more information contact Joslynn at jbroun@ccfa.org

Just in Time for the Playoffs!

That's right as most of us have probably not noticed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for that barely heard of and even less understood sport from our cousins upstairs, Hockey, are in full swing. Chicago Blackhawks right winger is one such player that will be participating in them. He is also one of many that suffer the effects of ulcerative colitis. I found his PSA spot for LIVINGwithUC.com a helpful site from which I may borrow material from. Feel free to visit the site and remember that you are not alone in your battle with IBD. Be sure to take in a hockey game this post-season and Enjoy!

Live Pediatric Webcast on Crohn's. Register Today!

From the CCFA:

REGISTER TODAY
For this FREE Teleconference/Webcast

Thursday, May 19, 2010

8:00 PM to 9:15 PM Eastern Time
7:00 PM to 8:15 PM Central Time
6:00 PM to 7:15 PM Mountain Time
5:00 PM to 6:15 PM Pacific Time

This educational event will help patients, caregivers, and pediatricians understand the unique medical and psychosocial needs of children with CD and the importance of continual care. Pediatric gastroenterologist Dr. Sandra Kim and clinical social worker Janis Arnold will discuss:

* Important differences between pediatric and adult Crohn's disease
* The medical management of pediatric CD
* The critical role of nutrition
* Growth and development of the pediatric Crohn's patient
* Quality of life and support systems


Sandra C. Kim, MD is also an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics -
Division of Gastroenterology at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC.

Janis Arnold, MA, LICSW is a clinical social worker at the Division of Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Children's Hospital Boston in Boston, MA.

The speakers will also answer audience questions during an interactive Q & A session! Register online today, or register by calling toll-free: (877) 264-4949, ext. 3!

Odds and Ends and Videos

First off don't forget that the Spring 2011 IBD Patient and Family Education Conference: How to Manage IBD is this Saturday, April 16th at UCLA's Covel Common's Building. See the post before this one for registration information as well as directions to get there and parking.

In other news we are almost at $2000 folks. That's right we are currently at $1890! We are almost there and will surely reach our goal!

And lastly here is a video for you kids, it's one part humor and another part how to put on a colostomy bag so if you are squeamish at the sight of a stoma then you may want to skip watching the first video and just watch the second one simply deals with colonoscopy prep. Some mild NSFW language.

Final Reminder

Don't forget to register for the The Los Angeles Spring 2011 IBD Patient and Family Education Conference: How to Manage IBD which will be held Saturday, April 16, 2011
8:15 AM - 2:00 PM

Covel Commons Building (map & parking)
Sunset Village, UCLA

The Patient and Family Education Conference is designed to educate the IBD patient community about new developments in treatment, surgical techniques, use of complementary and alternative therapies, research, nutrition, and psychosocial issues. This year's Conference sessions are:

Workshop 1

1A -- Preventive Care: Vaccinations and Cancer Screenings Gil Melmed, MD
1B -- IBD 101: The Nuts and Bolts of IBD Jennifer Choi, MD
1C -- Enterostomal Therapy Jonathan Sack, MD; Dane Deluca, RN
1D -- Navigating the Treatment Maze Jeremy Herman, MD 

Workshop 2

2A -- Real People, Real Stories - Living with IBD Alex Akers, Sherry Porat, Adi Bodenstein, Michelle Schwartz
2B -- Alternative Therapies for IBD Nimisha Parekh, MD
2C -- Food and Inflammation: Fertilizing the Weeds Doron Kahana, MD
2D -- Mind, Brain, Body Approaches to IBD Emeran Mayer, MD 

Workshop 3

3A -- Food and Inflammation: Fertilizing the Weeds Doron Kahana, MD
3B -- New Frontiers in IBD Research David Shih, MD
3C -- Controlling Your Child’s IBD through Knowledge David Ziring, MD
3D -- Alternative Therapies for IBD Nimisha Parekh, MD


For more information contact Lindsay Brown at LBrown@ccfa.org, or call (310) 478-4500.

The Kick Off Events

Both the Los Angeles County and Orange County Kick Off events were fun and wonderful events that provided fun, entertainment and food for all that came. I won't say which event was better as both were fabulous and I was able to talk to many CCFA staff members, volunteers and also fellow IBD sufferers who were more than happy to talk about their experiences battling their respective illness. I had a good time at both events whether people watching at the Santa Monica Pier and enjoying the crisp, cool ocean breeze, or doing the same at Disneyland while dodging strollers. I recommend that everyone should go to one of these events or any other event for that matter if only to see that not only are you not alone in your struggles but that there are people out there that genuinely care about your health and state of being.

That said it was great to see Nelson, Jacklyn and Paula at the OC event and I was sorry to hear that Darrin couldn't attend. Regardless of that we were able to survive without our fearless leader. As for our current fundraising efforts, we are at $1760 with 77 days to go which means that so far we have achieved 35% of our goal. Congratulations you guys and I am more than confident that we can not only achieve our goal but surpass it as well.

How life's little lessons can teach you a world of experience.

Over the last week or so I have heard been hearing a small screeching sound from the front passenger side tire. Thinking that it was possibly the brakes warning me that it was time to change them I waited until the weekend to look at them as that was the only day I had free. Sunday came and I raised my truck only to discover that the brakes were fine, but something else wasn't.

If you look at the picture where the legs of the upside down A looking part hooks on to the vehicle you would notice that the right side is almost completely removed from the rubber bushings that it houses. The only thing stopping the part from completely coming off and leading to disastrous results was that some designer decided to place two bolts in such a way to prevent such thing from happening.

For those that don't know much about cars let me explain what would have most likely happened in this situation had the bolts not held. I drive an average of 200 or so miles a week, most of it on freeway and most of the time I drive in excess of 80 miles per hour. Yeah I know I'm bad. Had the part failed then the vehicle as well as the three other wheels would have been pointing forward while the wheel that this is attached to would have most likely decided to point to the right causing a spectacular roll over that would have most likely tested the integrity of the vehicle far beyond any test performed by Nissan. Furthermore on the highway at a high rate of speed the likelihood of my steel tumbleweed smashing into other cars and causing a horrific chain reaction would have been most certain.

Now what point am I trying to get to with this example? That's easy. Our bodies are our vehicle and we are our own drivers and sometimes we hear strange things, or feel strange things and most often than not we put off getting them checked out because we assume that it's nothing big. And although most of the time that is the case there are those few times when it's not what we thought it was but instead something far, far worse that could have been preventable. So take it from me, when you get those strange aches and pains, when you feel odd or something just doesn't feel right don't be afraid to get checked out by your GI or doctor, sure it may be nothing more than gas but all the same better safe than sorry.

You knew it was coming.... "C. Diff.:" A Tik Tok Parody

I think that this song is only marginally better than the original. As catchy as it may be I doubt it will ever make the Top 40.

Don't forget to bring your ink cartridges and used cellphones to tomorrow's support group meeting!!!

Take Steps Kickoff Events

Ladies and Gentlemen we have two quasi local kick off events coming up the first week of April, one for the Los Angeles Take Steps Walk and the other for the Orange County Take Steps Walk. Both promise to be fun and awesome and great and I encourage you all to attend at least one. You can find more information on the CCFA Events page but here are the basics. Bring your friends and family to show them what their support means to you!

Los Angeles Take Steps Kickoff
Saturday, April 9th
6:00pm-8:00pm
Carousel at the Santa Monica Pier
RSVP by April 1st at ashaif@ccfa.org or by calling (310) 478-4513

Orange County Take Steps Kickoff
Sunday, April 10th
11:00am to 1:00pm
ESPN Zone at Downtown Disney
For more information or to RSVP contact Joslynn at jbroun@ccfa.org or (646) 717-6208. Please do so by April 1st.

And please don't forget our next Support Group meeting is on March 28th! Same place, same time and please don't forget to bring your old cellphones and ink cartridges! *Update: We are currently at $1465.00, let's try to make it to $2000 by the end of the month please!

Upcoming CCFA events

There are two CCFA events coming up soon, these are educational and informative events for those suffering from an IBD and their families and loved ones. The presenters are great, very knowledgeable and know what it feels like to suffer the suffering that we suffer. If you can please try to attend one of the following two events, they may have cookies and donuts!

Understanding Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: What Every Patient Needs to Know.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
1:00 - 3:00 PM
Courtyard Marriott, Riverside, CA

and

The Los Angeles Spring 2011 IBD Patient and Family Education Conference: How to Manage IBD

Saturday, April 16, 2011
8:15 AM - 2:00 PM
Covel Commons Building
Sunset Village, UCLA
Los Angeles, CA.
List of Speakers is five posts down.

For more information on either event please feel free to contact Lindsay Brown at LBrown@ccfa.org, or call (310) 478-4500