Runner With Crohns Disease Receives Inspiration From Doctor
Ezra’s journey to the finish line of the New York City Marathon began, strangely enough, in the middle of the night the summer before his senior year in high school. He lay curled up on his bathroom floor with severe abdominal pain the night before he was supposed to leave home to start working at a summer camp. Due to Crohn’s disease, which he was soon diagnosed with, Ezra, who loved weight-lifting, had to stay home that summer and became rail-thin.
Running Helped Him Cope
Ezra says, “I’m still not sure when the switch happened, but, at some point in my senior year, I began to be less interested in weights and more into running.” He found that going on runs became “a good gauge of how I was feeling in terms of my Crohn’s. There were many times when I was forced to turn back or not go at all because of stomach pains or fatigue.” But running helped Ezra cope with stress and seemed to help ease his symptoms, too.
After competing in a number of 5K races, Ezra set his sights on running a half marathon. He trained for months, but, for him, the 13.1 mile race itself went by in a flash. “It felt like no time at all, and I was sprinting down the final 100 yards with my family shouting their support in the background.” But the biggest running challenge still lay ahead: a full marathon through the streets of New York.
Sharing the Same Passion
When Ezra went to see Keith Benkov, MD, at Mount Sinai, he found a kindred spirit. Not only did Dr. Benkov guide Ezra and his parents through important decisions on medications, they talked about their shared passion for running. Dr. Benkov also loves to run and heads-up the TCS New York City Marathon each year for the Children’s IBD Program at Mount Sinai. To help manage Ezra’s symptoms and the pain, Dr. Benkov prescribed him with a specific medicine to decrease the inflammation that was a result of his Crohn’s disease and also recommended that he eat healthy, continue running, and rest when he could. By treating the symptoms, Ezra was in less pain which gave his body strength and more energy which he needed to run.
“I had always wanted to be a part of Team IBDkids,” said Ezra. At the end of May he committed to run the 26.2 mile TCS New York City Marathon that November, accomplishing his ultimate goal while raising awareness about IBD and funds to support the work of Mount Sinai’s Children’s IBD Program. It was the greatest marathon experience he ever had.
“I might have Crohn’s but I am in the 26.2 mile club,” said Ezra. “I’ll never let the disease stop me and dictate how I must live my life.”
Unique Experience at Kravis Children’s Hospital
Ezra shares that he had the unique experience of seeing and experiencing the tremendous quality and care of the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology & Hepatology at Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital from both sides. First as a patient, getting guidance and care, at moments when he needed it most, from Dr. Keith Benkov, and then while working in the lab with David Dunkin, MD. Today, Ezra is feeling so much better and he does not need to see Dr. Benkov as often but he continues to take the medicine regularly that was prescribed for him.
Ezra said, “It gave me an appreciation and true understanding that the Pediatric Gastroenterology & Hepatology team at the Kravis Children’s Hospital and at the Children’s IBD Program at Mount Sinai are really good at what they do.”