Dealing with doctors If you are living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, there is a good chance you are going to have a fair amount of interaction with the health system. Especially early on during diagnosis or during a flare. This usually involves a lot of doctors appointments. Unfortunately, this is just a fact of life for many of those with IBD. Picture this: you are sitting in a small exam room waiting to…
Surviving and (thriving?) with prednisone In the last post, I described the love-hate relationship most people have with prednisone. As I mentioned before, prednisone is one of the best medications available for calming IBD symptoms and bringing you out of a flare. Unfortunately, few things in life are free… The problem, of course, is that prednisone itself can cause a smorgasbord of weird and nasty side-effects that may, at times, have you thinking, “Is being…
In the beginning The road to diagnosing IBD is often a frustrating process – overwhelming, scary, and embarrassing. Your whole world can feel like it’s being turned upside down. IBD can be a pain in the butt to diagnose (sorry, bad pun). Symptoms vary person-to-person. You may experience varying degrees of diarrhea, nausea, cramping, bloating, or fatigue. Initially, many chalk it up to nothing. IBD can be mistaken for a laundry list of different issues,…
Looking back… If only I had a time machine. If I could relay some wellness advice to the “me” of 4 or 5 years ago (the “me” that was sick and struggling and suffering), what would I say to that person? There are a few things I know today that I sure as heck wish I knew then. Things nobody told me. Things I learned the hard way. Some by trial and error. Some I…
