This informative video from Connecting the Dots With Crohn’s tackles the subject of intimacy when you’re living with Crohn’s disease. Registered GI nurse, Joan Nadin, talks about why some Crohn’s sufferers are concerned about being intimate with a partner and that while this fear is common, there’s really no reason to worry.

Discover five lesser-known symptoms of Crohn’s disease.

Nadin explains that the symptoms of Crohn’s may reduce your sex drive but the disease itself has no effect on sexuality. She reassures patients that Crohn’s disease doesn’t affect fertility or pregnancy, although some of the medications taken for Crohn’s can cause birth defects so it’s important to speak to your doctor before you start a family.

In addition, Crohn’s patient Ashley also offers advice about intimacy and relationships, stressing that the best thing you can do in a new relationship is to be honest about your Crohn’s disease and the symptoms it causes. Accept that during flares, sex is probably the last thing you will want to do and your partner will understand.

Read our six tips for loving your body with inflammatory bowel disease.

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