My Journey As A Collegiate Athlete with Crohn’s Disease

By Sydney Large

I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease during my junior year of high school. Making a transition from high school to college was difficult. However, during my time at the University of Minnesota I was able to walk on to a D1 Rowing program as a coxswain and jump start my career working in sports. Stress has been my biggest trigger since being diagnosed, which provided a lot of challenges throughout college. Here are some thing I learned throughout my journey:

1. Be communicative & educate

I had a fast-paced college schedule between juggling practice, class, and work. I had to pay extra attention to my diet and my medications because I didn’t want Crohn’s to slow me down. However, on some days it caught up to me.

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