Newbie with question

I was diagnosed with a mild case of chrons a little over a year ago.  I have some abdominal pain and bloating. I usually have one bowel movement a day in the morning but after going to the bathroom is the time when I am in the most discomfort. Its not a pain its just a feeling that I didnt completely empty and I get a lump in my throat. This could last all day or just a few hours. It really is depressing feeling like this. I was doing ok with it until I decided to do some research on chrons a few weeks ago and then I became majorly depressed. Some of the patients conditions that they talked about on some of the different web forums is horrible. After reading some peoples stories I feel like I have death sentence and am just waiting for the day I have diarea 20 times a day and am bedridden. I am glad I stumbled across this web site as the people here seem less hopeless and more intouch with the disease. My big question is do all people with a mild case of chrons progress to the extreme or could I stay milde or moderate for ever?  I am just waiting for my condition to get worse and it is really stressing me out. I am currently taking 500 mg of Pentasa 2 pills four times a day. I am currently looking for a new job but again after reading some peoples stories I feel like I wont be able to work much as some people have said there condition is so bad they are unable to work. I guess I just need some assurance that people can live a normal and complete life with this disease. Any answers to my questions would be greatly appreaciated.

Hi Ramman:

The best predictor of future course in the disease is your past. If you begin with mild crohn's disease, generally speaking usually you aren't going to progress to a pan-colitis. So you are really lucky that you have been diagnosed with crohn's in its mild form.

That being said, sometimes with mild crohn's, if it is not appropriately managed, the disease's effects can become cumulative. Over time, the damage done by the slowly simmering inflammation can cause scar tissue that requires surgical intervention etc. So it is really important, to treat the mild forms of crohn's too. you want to slow down the rate at which inflammation spreads and deepens so that you can postpone for as long as possible surgical interventions. That's because surgery doesn't cure crohn's and after surgery it will most likely return at the site of the resected bowel.

I had mild crohn's when I was diagnosed 30 years ago. Unfortunately, my symptoms were manageable enough that I probably didn't treat my disease as seriously as I should have. I have had three major surgeries, suffered from abscesses and fistulas. I had hemhorraged internally, required blood transfusions, suffered from dozens and dozens of obstructive episodes. But all of those things were due to the cumulative effect of a simmering crohn's that was under-medicated.


Finally after my most recent surgery, I think I am finally being appropriately medicated and i know what it feels like to actually be in remission, rather than always feeling just a little bit unwell.

You live in a great time if you have to be diagnosed with this disease. A lot of research is going on, new medical therapies being developed and there is everry likelihood that you will enjoy many "normal" years. Don't self-limit yourself, but do stay rooted in reality and when it hurts and when you are tired listen to what your body is telling you. You will be fine.

If you stress too much then it will get worse. Thats what I did I spent too much time at first thinking about how I used to feel and not focusing on the things that are really important. None of us asked for this disease and we can't help that it happened, but by thinking possitive you will increase your chances of feeling better. Hope everything works out for you! :)

 

Hi Ramman, welcome to our forum family! First of all, don't get all freaked out by reading about just how bad CD can be, everyone of us with this disease is affected differently, obviously some people with CD go thru horrific medical ordeals but there are others who manage their CD and have much less prominent symptoms. I'm afraid that if you get depressed or freaked about "what if" then you will make yourself more ill and you certainly don't want that to happen. Stay informed about your condition but don't let worries consume you, it won't help at all. If you need anything just let us know. Take care!