CBS is doing a special on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback David Garrard (and wife Mary) at 3:30. It will be about his "remarkable journey", and I assume it will focus on or at least highlight the football player's battle with Crohn's Disease.
Stay tuned for details and possibly a link to the inverview. As you know, I am a big football fan, and am dissapointed that I can't really cheer for my favorite athlete with Crohn's disease today...on account of them playing my team....the New England Patriots. Search my blog for several articles detailing David Garrard's Battle with Chron's.
-Scott
More info on his Crohn's (from jacksonville.com interview)
One test came in 2004, when he had surgery for Crohn's disease, a painful inflammation of the intestines. He takes medication every eight weeks, a 3?-hour procedure; his next appointment is Tuesday, three days after playing the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the playoffs tonight.
"It's a horrible disease, something that a lot of people are affected by," he says. "But I think the Lord blessed me with it, so I could talk about it."
To Mary Garrard, her husband's Christian faith is a key to both his personality and his playing style. "About 95 percent of his temperament comes from his faith," she says. "We're both Christians: There's a higher power, God is in charge of everything, there's no reason to worry about anything."
From IBD site:
David Garrard has been fighting Crohn's disease since 2003. He was sidelined from playing football for the NFL and lost 35 pounds. This season he is back in full force, and the Jaguars have won 6 of his last 7 starts. He credits the turnaround in his health to Remicade. With starting quarterback Byron Leftwich possibly sidelined for the rest of the season, Garrard is now likely to start for the Jaguars for the rest of the year.
Most of us with IBD just struggle to get through a day, or a week, at a time. Sometimes a simple everyday activity like a shopping trip or a night out seems like an impossible task, rather than a pleasure. People with IBD such as David Garrard, Pearl Jam Guitarist Mike McCready, and San Diego Chargers legend Rolf Benirschke are good reminders for us--a productive and fulfulling life is possible with IBD!
Original Story of his Crohn's (From USAToday.com)
Jaguars backup quarterback David Garrard will have surgery next week to alleviate symptoms of Crohn's disease and hopes to be back in time for training camp. Garrard will have diseased tissue removed from where his colon meets his small intestine.
Jacksonville Jaguars' second string quaterback David Garrard will have surgery for Crohn's disease.
Crohn's causes blockage in the intestines, resulting in chronic diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever and weight loss. There is no known cause or cure, and it afflicts more than 500,000 people in the United States.
Garrard, 26, said he will have surgery next Thursday at Baptist Medical Center, and be sidelined until mid-July. He hopes to get himself ready for training camp in late July or early August.
Although the surgery will not cure the disease, Garrard said patients sometimes go 15 to 20 years without symptoms after the surgery.
"I'll be done with football by that time," Garrard said. "There shouldn't be any problems. I could have lived with it if I was a normal person."
Garrard decided to have the surgery after he was hospitalized last weekend when he was in constant pain because his intestines had swollen and were pressing on his bladder.
Garrard stared feeling sick in January and was diagnosed in March.
He completed nine of 12 passes last year for 86 yards and a touchdown. Although the Jaguars signed undrafted rookie Bryson Spinner to give them a fourth quarterback, coach Jack Del Rio said he will await Garrard's return.
"Get healed and come back," Del Rio said. "We're not rushing anybody."
Showing posts with label Jaguars Quarterback. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jaguars Quarterback. Show all posts
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Watching David Garrard Play Football - Athlete's with Crohn's
So I am sitting here watching David Garrard play football. I love seeing anyone beat Crohn's but I have a special place in my heart for athletes with Crohn's. David is doing well as the starting quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He is a fighter on the field and is making short work of Crohn's disease. He really put the weight back on quickly and is treating his Chron's with Remicade. Watching him fight on the football field makes me proud. Also makes me want to get my neck healed so I can get back to soccer!
His story is here:
Jacksonville Jaguar Quarterback David Garrard first experienced symptoms of Crohn’s disease at the end of the NFL season, in January 2003. The diagnosis was confirmed with a colonoscopy, and Garrard began treatment. His management plan included Canasa, prednisone, and finally, Remicade. These therapies failed, and Garrard lost 35 pounds from his 6’2” frame. In June of 2004, he underwent surgery to remove about 1 foot of intestine.
After surgery, Garrard recovered quickly and regained the weight he had lost. A post-surgery examination showed that his gastrointestinal tract was free of Crohn’s. After a routine colonoscopy revealed traces of Crohn’s last year, Garrard again underwent treatment with Remicade, and as of July 2006 is Crohn’s-free.
Garrard has recently entered into a partnership with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America called Team Crohn’s. Team Crohn’s is an initiative sponsored by Centocor Inc that focuses on education about pediatric Crohn’s disease. As part of Team Crohn’s, Garrard is touring Camp Oasis locations around the country. Camp Oasis is a residential program for children with IBD. Doctors diagnosed David Garard with Crohn's disease in 2004. Despite undergoing surgery in June 2004 to remove a nearly 12-inch portion of his intestines, Garrard played during the 2004 NFL season.
Garrard's wife, Mary, gave birth to the couple's first child, a son, Justin Thomas Garrard, on September 17, 2007. Educating the public about the disease is now a priority for Garrard. "Even though a lot of people suffer from Crohn's, it's still a condition many people don't know anything about. Since telling others I have this disease, I've had people who seemed to come out of the blue, saying 'Oh, yes, I have that, too.' It's a funny disease in a funny place in an area you don't normally want to talk about over dinner." He has been so successful in building up his body that his coach recently asked him to shed ten pounds off his 250-pound physique. Garrard, who now weighs about 240 pounds and has a mere 9-percent body fat, eats a high-protein diet. That's not the way it was when he was in college, where he ate lots of junk food and had 15-percent body fat, which Garrard says is at the high end of normal for professional quarterbacks.He now stays far away from junk food and no longer has cravings for fried chicken. "I haven't had fried chicken in such a long time that I don't even have a desire for it anymore." But David still loves food. "Sticking to the right diet for me can be a bit challenging," he says, adding, "That'll always be my weakness. I'm a food connoisseur with a passion for everything from Italian to seafood." When it comes to his future, Garrard's goals are straightforward. "I'll do whatever it takes to avoid any more recurrences of Crohn's disease. I eat as healthy as possible, take my medication on schedule, and listen to my doctor. I want to be the best husband I can be and, when I have children, the best father, too."
His story is here:
Jacksonville Jaguar Quarterback David Garrard first experienced symptoms of Crohn’s disease at the end of the NFL season, in January 2003. The diagnosis was confirmed with a colonoscopy, and Garrard began treatment. His management plan included Canasa, prednisone, and finally, Remicade. These therapies failed, and Garrard lost 35 pounds from his 6’2” frame. In June of 2004, he underwent surgery to remove about 1 foot of intestine.
After surgery, Garrard recovered quickly and regained the weight he had lost. A post-surgery examination showed that his gastrointestinal tract was free of Crohn’s. After a routine colonoscopy revealed traces of Crohn’s last year, Garrard again underwent treatment with Remicade, and as of July 2006 is Crohn’s-free.
Garrard has recently entered into a partnership with the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America called Team Crohn’s. Team Crohn’s is an initiative sponsored by Centocor Inc that focuses on education about pediatric Crohn’s disease. As part of Team Crohn’s, Garrard is touring Camp Oasis locations around the country. Camp Oasis is a residential program for children with IBD. Doctors diagnosed David Garard with Crohn's disease in 2004. Despite undergoing surgery in June 2004 to remove a nearly 12-inch portion of his intestines, Garrard played during the 2004 NFL season.
Garrard's wife, Mary, gave birth to the couple's first child, a son, Justin Thomas Garrard, on September 17, 2007. Educating the public about the disease is now a priority for Garrard. "Even though a lot of people suffer from Crohn's, it's still a condition many people don't know anything about. Since telling others I have this disease, I've had people who seemed to come out of the blue, saying 'Oh, yes, I have that, too.' It's a funny disease in a funny place in an area you don't normally want to talk about over dinner." He has been so successful in building up his body that his coach recently asked him to shed ten pounds off his 250-pound physique. Garrard, who now weighs about 240 pounds and has a mere 9-percent body fat, eats a high-protein diet. That's not the way it was when he was in college, where he ate lots of junk food and had 15-percent body fat, which Garrard says is at the high end of normal for professional quarterbacks.He now stays far away from junk food and no longer has cravings for fried chicken. "I haven't had fried chicken in such a long time that I don't even have a desire for it anymore." But David still loves food. "Sticking to the right diet for me can be a bit challenging," he says, adding, "That'll always be my weakness. I'm a food connoisseur with a passion for everything from Italian to seafood." When it comes to his future, Garrard's goals are straightforward. "I'll do whatever it takes to avoid any more recurrences of Crohn's disease. I eat as healthy as possible, take my medication on schedule, and listen to my doctor. I want to be the best husband I can be and, when I have children, the best father, too."
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