Yesterday at school I seriously got told that having (potentially in my case) Crohn's wasn't THAT bad. Um what? Excuse me? Did I hear you right? I was in complete shock. Please keep in mind this individual does not have Crohn's. I told this individual while yes there were worse things, Crohn's was definitely not anywhere near the top of my awesome list. This individual then proceed to tell me why she is an expert in all things related to Crohn's. You wanna know why she is an expert? Because her friend is dating someone with Crohn's. Her extent of knowledge was that this friends boyfriend farts uncontrollably because of Crohn's and it put a strain on their relationship. Sweetheart there is a lot more to Crohn's than farting and the bathroom. I realize this is going to become the norm of what people say to me when they find out, if they ever do. People don't understand, and frankly most of them really don't care to understand. And anyway they will never truly understand unless they personally have an IBD. No matter how far society comes, I believe, those who suffer from any disease are treated more like they are the disease, not that they are a person who happens to have a disease. If you really want to help someone, don't play doctor, chances are they want someone to just listen to them and feel valued as a person, not a disease.