I started taking the steroid Prednisone on Dec 12 (50mg/day tapering by 5mg/week), and since I started it I've felt great, but the past week (basically Christmas week) I've felt pretty crappy. I don't know if its my inflammation or it's the massive amounts of food I'm eating. Unless I'm super busy at work, my mind is always on food and I stuff my face until I feel sick. Honestly, I'm getting so upset with myself because I know I will feel bad after and I go into eating thinking, "save some for later" but nope...I eat it all then want to throw up because I'm so full. And then I want to eat again shortly after. This medication is making me a monster!!
Generally though, it seems that everytime I eat anything I feel bloated and uncomfortable. I just had some turkey soup and I feel bloated. So now I'm sitting at home for a bit waiting for it to subside before I go out tonight with my friend for coffee.
This isn't too bad though. I don't mind being bloated compared to the pain and general misery I was feeling before the prednisone. I don't even mind the fact that I've gained 10lbs in 2 weeks. I probably will mind if it goes up higher than that though.
So far in 2.5 weeks of prednisone my side effects are: 2 nights of less than 2 hours sleep, slight puffiness in my cheeks, bloated tummy (I look pregnant), and I am super grumpy with strangers. On the other hand, feel pretty good most of the time.
I'm going to have bloodwork done in the next 2 weeks so hopefully I have good results for my inflammation or I think my doctor is putting me on Remicade or Humira.. eek.
Going to relax now :)
Saturday, 29 December 2012
Thursday, 27 December 2012
Where my Crohn's journey started
So where to begin?
I never know where to start explaining my story. The day I found out I had Crohn's? When this round of symptoms started? When I was 18 and was having bowel issues?
I guess it doesn't matter, I can get around to explaining everything.
I am 25 years old. I live in the suburbs outside a large Canadian city. I'm an only child, I have a cat, I went to college. I love love love to travel. I worked 2 jobs for 2 years to pay off my student bills after school and a wonderful summer of travelling (still working on paying off the bills, but have a better, less time consuming job now). I have 4 year old dreams of moving to Europe.
I think it was around January 2012, while working 60+ hours a week, I began to see blood in my stool. Now, you would think this would freak me out. Nope...ok maybe a little. Mostly denial? Well the thing is, when I was 18 I had bleeding as well. I saw a specialist, and he didn't think much of it. He told me to take fiber supplements and see if it went away, which it did. So this year, I thought to myself, no point in going to see a specialist, I know the cure! So fiber it was...and about 2 months later it hadn't stopped. I didn't tell my parents or my best friend partly because I was hoping it would go away and partly because I didn't want to admit there was a problem. Also, there was the issue with me working 2 jobs and having zero days off. Trying to find time to go to a doctor about an issue I was trying to ignore and cure on my own wasn't high on my list of priorities.
In late February I was having awful pains in my stomach. I was in bed trying to relax late at night and every time I breathed I felt sharp pain in my abdomen. I knew deep down it had something to do with the bleeding, so I called my mom in my room and told her that I had pains and that I had been bleeding for almost 2 months. She was obviously upset with me that I was ignoring blatant health issues and we decided to go to the emergency room just in case. The hospital was quiet that night which was nice. The triage nurse ripped into me about ignoring bleeding for 2 months and said neither of my jobs would care if I dropped dead. Point taken. I was seen, given a referral to a general surgeon, was given some pain meds and went home.
And at approximately 11am on March 30, 2012 I felt as though my dreams came crashing down around me. I found out I most likely had Crohn's disease. To be honest I had NO CLUE what Crohn's was. When my doctor saw me in the recovery room after my colonoscopy and told me while I was still woozy from the anesthetics, I cried. What else is a girl to do when she is presented with a possible chronic disease she has no idea about? I cried, my mom freaked, and my doctor told me not to look online about the disease until we have everything sorted out and confirmed it.
So of course, I went online and read absolutely everything I could get my greedy eyes on. The internet can be an evil evil thing. But on the other hand, you don't tell a girl full of hopes and dreams that she has a disease and then mention a follow up appointment for weeks from then. Of course I'm going to do my own research in the meantime.
In my own words..this is how I explain what Crohn's is. And sorry if I don't get this straight, or thoroughly enough. Crohn's is part of IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease). There is also Ulcerative Colitis, which is similar but affects only the large intestine/colon. Crohn's can affect anywhere in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, from your mouth to your rectum. When you are suffering from Crohn's your affected area becomes inflamed and sometimes bleeds, and causes pain. You find yourself going to the bathroom a lot (some more than others). Stress is a trigger, and although doctor's don't seem to admit it, food can be a trigger, or at least an aggravating factor. IBD sufferers generally watch what they eat to ensure they are not worsening the effects of the disease. Surgery is a very real possibility, as well as many visits to the hospital throughout their lives.
So needless to say, the time between my colonocopy in March to my definite diagnosis in May was a confusing and emotional time. It still is to be honest, but now that I know what's going on its much easier to deal with it. Some days I tried to forget about it and if I remember correctly, I continued to eat what I wanted throughout that time. I read that everyone's diets were different, which foods would bother you depended on the person. So during that time I just did what I wanted. I was still suffering from the symptoms that had orignally triggered me seeking medical attention.
It's a bit ironic, how I have begged the world to not let me follow the health path of my mother. She has diabetes and a whole mess of other problems. I thought I was in the clear, as I was good up until this year. And then I get diagnosed with a disease that generally follows family history (none) or smokers (I don't). Where did this thing come from?! I hope that question gets answered at some point in my life.
It's getting late and this girl has got to get some sleep. Well you know, as long as my prednisone is kind enough to let me sleep tonight. More on that lovely medication later. Goodnight!
I never know where to start explaining my story. The day I found out I had Crohn's? When this round of symptoms started? When I was 18 and was having bowel issues?
I guess it doesn't matter, I can get around to explaining everything.
I am 25 years old. I live in the suburbs outside a large Canadian city. I'm an only child, I have a cat, I went to college. I love love love to travel. I worked 2 jobs for 2 years to pay off my student bills after school and a wonderful summer of travelling (still working on paying off the bills, but have a better, less time consuming job now). I have 4 year old dreams of moving to Europe.
I think it was around January 2012, while working 60+ hours a week, I began to see blood in my stool. Now, you would think this would freak me out. Nope...ok maybe a little. Mostly denial? Well the thing is, when I was 18 I had bleeding as well. I saw a specialist, and he didn't think much of it. He told me to take fiber supplements and see if it went away, which it did. So this year, I thought to myself, no point in going to see a specialist, I know the cure! So fiber it was...and about 2 months later it hadn't stopped. I didn't tell my parents or my best friend partly because I was hoping it would go away and partly because I didn't want to admit there was a problem. Also, there was the issue with me working 2 jobs and having zero days off. Trying to find time to go to a doctor about an issue I was trying to ignore and cure on my own wasn't high on my list of priorities.
In late February I was having awful pains in my stomach. I was in bed trying to relax late at night and every time I breathed I felt sharp pain in my abdomen. I knew deep down it had something to do with the bleeding, so I called my mom in my room and told her that I had pains and that I had been bleeding for almost 2 months. She was obviously upset with me that I was ignoring blatant health issues and we decided to go to the emergency room just in case. The hospital was quiet that night which was nice. The triage nurse ripped into me about ignoring bleeding for 2 months and said neither of my jobs would care if I dropped dead. Point taken. I was seen, given a referral to a general surgeon, was given some pain meds and went home.
And at approximately 11am on March 30, 2012 I felt as though my dreams came crashing down around me. I found out I most likely had Crohn's disease. To be honest I had NO CLUE what Crohn's was. When my doctor saw me in the recovery room after my colonoscopy and told me while I was still woozy from the anesthetics, I cried. What else is a girl to do when she is presented with a possible chronic disease she has no idea about? I cried, my mom freaked, and my doctor told me not to look online about the disease until we have everything sorted out and confirmed it.
So of course, I went online and read absolutely everything I could get my greedy eyes on. The internet can be an evil evil thing. But on the other hand, you don't tell a girl full of hopes and dreams that she has a disease and then mention a follow up appointment for weeks from then. Of course I'm going to do my own research in the meantime.
In my own words..this is how I explain what Crohn's is. And sorry if I don't get this straight, or thoroughly enough. Crohn's is part of IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease). There is also Ulcerative Colitis, which is similar but affects only the large intestine/colon. Crohn's can affect anywhere in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, from your mouth to your rectum. When you are suffering from Crohn's your affected area becomes inflamed and sometimes bleeds, and causes pain. You find yourself going to the bathroom a lot (some more than others). Stress is a trigger, and although doctor's don't seem to admit it, food can be a trigger, or at least an aggravating factor. IBD sufferers generally watch what they eat to ensure they are not worsening the effects of the disease. Surgery is a very real possibility, as well as many visits to the hospital throughout their lives.
So needless to say, the time between my colonocopy in March to my definite diagnosis in May was a confusing and emotional time. It still is to be honest, but now that I know what's going on its much easier to deal with it. Some days I tried to forget about it and if I remember correctly, I continued to eat what I wanted throughout that time. I read that everyone's diets were different, which foods would bother you depended on the person. So during that time I just did what I wanted. I was still suffering from the symptoms that had orignally triggered me seeking medical attention.
It's a bit ironic, how I have begged the world to not let me follow the health path of my mother. She has diabetes and a whole mess of other problems. I thought I was in the clear, as I was good up until this year. And then I get diagnosed with a disease that generally follows family history (none) or smokers (I don't). Where did this thing come from?! I hope that question gets answered at some point in my life.
It's getting late and this girl has got to get some sleep. Well you know, as long as my prednisone is kind enough to let me sleep tonight. More on that lovely medication later. Goodnight!
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