Hello! I'm new!

Hi everyone! I just joined this website after cruising around and seeing the wealth of information! I am 26 and was diagnosed with Pancolitis in 2004 when I was 17. My initial flare was so bad that I was hospitalized for three weeks and there was even talk of removing my colon because I wasn't responding well to medications. Thankfully, I ended up not needing the surgery and 9 years later, I am just taking Asacol and a multivitamin to maintain my remission. At this point in my disease, I have to get colonoscopies every two years because of family history of colon cancer.

I look forward to learning a lot from everyone!

Hi and welcome!

I too was diagnosed with pancolitis, although I didn't need to be hospitalized. I've been in remission for over three years now, just using mesalamine (Apriso and twice-weekly enemas). Have you been in remission the entire 9 years?

"My last flare was in 2011, and I just experienced extreme fatigue and loss of appetite for about 2 months."

i'm not sure that would qualify as a flare -

but as long as it's gone, doesn't matter what you called it -

Hi and welcome to the forum!

soystud said...
"My last flare was in 2011, and I just experienced extreme fatigue and loss of appetite for about 2 months."

i'm not sure that would qualify as a flare -

but as long as it's gone, doesn't matter what you called it -

I didn't think it did either so I kept putting off seeing my GI. When I did finally see him, he said it sounded like a flare.

If my doctor thinks the flare is severe enough, he puts me on a short course of steroids. I tried the probiotic route. Few years ago and I ended up with worse diarrhea than I had not taking the probiotics. Maybe I was just taking the wrong kind.

Welcome and hopefully you will be in remission and only pop in once in a while to encourage others. THat's what I'll be doing when I'm in remission.