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My name is Maegan Johnson. I’m 42 years old, married and I have four daughters. Reese and Rylee are 13-year-old and twins. Colbie is 8 and Caylah is 7. Two of my daughters have special needs, Rylee has Autism and Caylah has a rare genetic disorder. Our house is always busy, but it brings SO much more into my life than I ever thought possible. It’s because of them that I fight as hard as I do at everything.

In 2018, I ran the FedEx Pittsburgh Marathon Relay with some of my friends, and it was the most inspiring event in my life. Never have I witnessed such strength, determination, and passion. It made me hungry for the half marathon, something I never expected to be able to achieve in my life.

Around the age of 10, I started to get sick. It wasn’t until I was 12 years old that I was finally diagnosed with Crohn's Disease, and any sports activities were very difficult because of my lack of nutrition and fatigue. Running wasn’t a part of my life until 2016 when my brother-in-law, Mike, told me about an app that he was using to help build him up to running a 5K. I had already decided that I wanted to try for the same thing, but having a run buddy made it even more exciting. I trained and ran my first-ever 5K with Mike and my husband Mark, and after that, I was hooked. Running had not only become just a goal but a healthy lifestyle choice. I started to feel the benefits of running, not just physically but mentally, too. My anxiety was so much better controlled, and I found myself craving a run when things got tough. My Crohn’s was in remission, and I was the healthiest I’d ever been which led to the 2018 FedEx Pittsburgh Marathon Relay. Shortly after, I committed to the 2019 UPMC Health Plan Pittsburgh Half Marathon.

As I started training in January of 2019, I could feel my health starting to decline. My Crohn’s was flaring and making things extremely difficult, but I was determined to not quit. Unfortunately, this flare was set on stopping any plans that I had. It progressed VERY quickly and by February, I was in the hospital with a full bowel obstruction and in need again of another bowel resection. This would be my 10th bowel surgery. I was unable to eat and drink anything without pain or getting sick. Even with a six-week recovery, getting my runs back to where they were was going to be near impossible. I had to give up on the half.

I ended up spending the next several months in and out of the hospital with complications. I needed another bowel resection and this time, I suffered from a perforation after the surgery and I ended up in the ICU with sepsis. I woke from the surgery with an ileostomy and no energy. This was the toughest recovery I had ever faced with my Crohn’s Disease. I had to learn to be patient with my body and its recovery. It was 6 months before my full energy came back and it was then that I found out that we could reverse my ileostomy.

After months of recovering from this surgery and working hard to maintain my nutrition and hydration, I finally felt like I was in a place where I could try to start running again. Only this time, I wanted to run for a cause. Run for something that has meaning to me and for many others out there suffering with IBD. I wanted to run to show others with IBD, that there is a life after our diagnosis. I want others to know that there is life after diagnosis!

So here I am, training and determined to run the half for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. Awareness, early diagnosis, and treatment are key to beating this disease. My hope is that I can raise money to help the foundation out, and also bring some more awareness to this disease. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not easy. I have to choose every single day to not let this disease own me. It’s had its turn, now it’s mine!

Most of all, I want my daughters to see that we are not our labels, we are not servants to the things that make us sick, anxious, or sad. We are SO much more than that, and we can achieve anything that we are determined to accomplish.

Written by Maegan Johnson