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Posted 1/26/2013 5:41 AM (GMT 0)
The only thing that works for me is fasting, juice and/or water. Juice should be fresh not bottled and ideally organic. Your body may be able to heal naturally.
Do research first, and consult a doctor if you want but juice fasting is safe even for extended periods (and as far as I know, safe for kids too).
Worth a try at least.
Posted 1/26/2013 8:06 AM (GMT 0)
oy. welcome to the forum. Looking forward to more serious dialogue such as your UC, meds, symptoms, etc.

q
Posted 1/26/2013 8:33 AM (GMT 0)
UC diagnosed in 2004ish. No further incident until December '12.
Symptoms are moderate to heavy bleeding (my estimate is 4-6 ounces/day, though could easily be more). Inability to tolerate any food whatsoever;
Blood pressure and heart rate rise significantly, palpitations. Severe cramps and bloating. Multiple (4+) painful BMs. Constant worsening of condition.

I did a 3 day juice fast January 1-3 (with a day of preparation before, ie just fruit) and was totally asymptomatic. I then crashed on really bad foods and all symptoms returned with a vengeance. Now even a piece of fruit leaves me wreathing in pain.

Currently at the end of day 1 of a new fast. This one will be mostly water with some juice if I need and will hopefully last 10+ days. Some mild pain and bloating today (probably due to improper preparation) but nothing to complain about.

I refuse to take medications unless there is no other option. But I think fasting will benefit most people here. Thats the reason I signed up, ust wanted to let people know
Posted 1/26/2013 8:39 AM (GMT 0)
Oh another symptom, I didn't see this listed anywhere but I get chest pains too after eating (possibly connected to the increased bp/pulse) which linger all day. No chest pain during fasting.
And FYI, my resting heart rate normally is 55, bp is 110/55.
After I eat, and lasting a long time, my heart rate goes up to mid 70s, bp approx 136/74 to 145/78, and my heart pounds against my chest (makes it impossible to sleep too)
Posted 1/26/2013 11:37 AM (GMT 0)
What had you eaten that causes your heart to pound? It appears that you are allergic to it.
Posted 1/26/2013 12:21 PM (GMT 0)
I think tap has a point. You might have eaten something you can't tolerate, thus the fast pulse. That happens to me sometimes

As far as fasting is concerned, it makes some sense to allow the bowels /digestion to rest. Glad you found something that works for you.
Posted 1/26/2013 12:45 PM (GMT 0)
i gotta say, UC is a bit of a blanket diagnosis, meaning that it has many causes which differ between one UCer and another. One of the possible reasons could be food allergy. And what you described re chest pains, BP going up, diarrhoea, cramps etc all strongly suggest food allergy. This type of allergy may not be detectable thru blood tests as it's not a true IgE allergy. Rather, it sounds like a 'food chemical intolerance' eg intolerance to one or more of the natural/ or artificial food chemicals. You need to see a dietitian to work through this and then you may be able to actually eat foods that don't give you allergies.
Posted 1/26/2013 1:30 PM (GMT 0)
I have to agree that there is more here than meets the eye, such as food allergies or intolerances or both. Fasting and juicing may make you feel better short term but you can't fast and juice forever. It only makes you feel better while you are doing it but it will not cure you.
Posted 1/26/2013 2:45 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome to Healingwell.

I say that juicing is good to do but you have to eat as well. Pure juicing doesnt sound too helpful in the long run.
Posted 1/26/2013 3:13 PM (GMT 0)
I drank prune juice just to get things moving, and boy it did....then only ate tiny portions of food as needed....lots of water..amd if I wasnt hungry I juat didnt eat..maybe a small bite of something.....it seemed to take my flare away....
Posted 1/26/2013 4:15 PM (GMT 0)
So if you are saying, windmark, that the solution to your bowel inflammation is to stop eating, I gotta say that is a pretty nutty idea. Plenty of people with IBD become anorexic - not as a psychiatric disorder but as an aversion to food - and weight loss is common. However, your body needs food to work, including your heart (which perhaps is having problems because of your fasting). Medications are intended to resolve the inflammation in your bowel and allow you to properly nourish yourself.
Posted 1/26/2013 4:35 PM (GMT 0)
Re kazbern: actually you can live for months on just juice. Research 'juice fast' and 'juice feast'.
Anorexia is an image disorder, it has nothing to do with an aversion to food. What you mean is they become underweight/malnourished. These are EXACTLY the people who would benefit from juicing. You can still get all the required calories without the unpleasant effects of eating, in a densely nutritious package. 'Juice feasting' is a term that would be more applicable.
Research Fast and you will see that it is not at all a nutty idea. It allows your body to heal naturally but these days people always go for a pill first.

Re:allergies, thanks for the advice but its not an allergy. Its the same symptoms as I had 8 years ago when I was diagnosed with UC after a colonoscopy. This time its just worse. The heart symptoms I think are from an underlying heart issue that is being aggravated somehow from the UC.

I didn't come on here for advice or to argue, just to tell people to research fasting, maybe try a 3 day juice fast (totally harmless), then decide for yourself. It is ONE possible solution for SOME people, but not many know about it.

Re: madcat + gary, its not exactly a long term alternative to eating, its more to give your body a break from food, allow the effected areas to heal, and if you are 'fasting' (as oppose to feasting) your body kicks into a natural healing state.

For all that are interested, here is a BBC Horizon documentary illustrating some of the benefits of fasting.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/pD3ug4EaKb0

Post Edited (windmark) : 1/26/2013 10:01:02 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 1/26/2013 5:04 PM (GMT 0)
I have to say that recently I either had food poisoning or a bad stomach virus. I had so much diarrhea that I almost wound up in the hospital. By the time I was done there was absolutely nothing left in my digestive tract. They could have done a colonoscopy on me with no problem. I was very surpised to find out that my "bm's" were actually more frequent than normal afterwards. I went to the bathroom every hour or two, expelling nothing but gas and mucus. This is with an empty system. Once I began eating again and having something back in my tract I went back to about 6 per day. In other words, juicing wouldn't have been good for me, it would have probably made me worse. Please be careful dispensing advise on juicing. What works for one doesn't translate into working for others. Many here who have juiced got much worse doing it. I didn't look at the links you provided but while doing research on UC I found a lot of info saying that juicing was bad for UC. This is a disease with much conflicting information. In the end everyone has to find out which strategy works best for them.
Posted 1/26/2013 5:12 PM (GMT 0)
First, I repeatedly stated that people should do their own research, ie I was careful. I said it might work for some not all.
Second, I don't see what your virus/poisoning has to do with this thread. Its about fasting for UC.
And third, you didn't look at the link, didn't research thoroughly, and didn't try juicing, 'it would have PROBABLY made me worse' - how does your speculation benefit anyone including yourself

Anyway, I'm leaving this forum now, I have done what I came here to do which is make more people aware of fasting and it may just help even one person. If you have a problem with fasting then the solution is simple, don't do it.

So long and good luck.

Post Edited (windmark) : 1/26/2013 10:16:08 AM (GMT-7)

Posted 1/26/2013 6:00 PM (GMT 0)
Perhaps windmark is talking about a liquid diet (total parenteral nutrition) in which case there is a lot of data. Otherwise, I'm having a hard time understanding how juicing gets you the proteins you need to live on.

VIEW IMAGE
Posted 1/26/2013 6:10 PM (GMT 0)
No I am NOT talking about a liquid diet but a JUICE diet. ie nothing but freshly squeezed (organic) fruit and vegetable juices, just the juice no pulp.

Do your research, people have done 100+ days of nothing but juice.

If you have a hard time understanding then use Google, welcome to age of the internet
Posted 1/26/2013 7:08 PM (GMT 0)
There's been lots of discussion on fasting and juicing on this forum...it's nothing new, and the research is discussed often.

in reality...nothing new.

q
Posted 1/26/2013 7:25 PM (GMT 0)
Quincy - it may not be new but it works, and clearly not enough people know about it. Do you think people come on here and search through every post in the entire forum? Obviously not. You have been here since 2003 so yes I'm sure you have seen it discussed, but others like myself who stumble into the site will not have.
That is enough reason to return to the topic.
I'm convinced that people who have been on meds for a long time are in denial about natural remedies because they want to believe they did the right thing. Its understandable.
Posted 1/26/2013 7:51 PM (GMT 0)
Your advice is fleeting and obviously not as interesting as you might believe it is.

If you're actually interested in the forum....Read more to get a feel as to what's REALLY GOING ON in the lives of we who have UC, how we treat, what we do, what we use, etc.

The delusion is yours if you believe you're going to save us with fasting.

Continue to be well,
q
Posted 1/26/2013 8:06 PM (GMT 0)
First, you said that, "I repeatedly stated that people should do their own research" and yet you provided them with links to the research you wanted to stear them to. When I stated that I had done my own research and discovered many places which stated that juicing was not good for UC'rs you attacked me. You also said that, "it might work for some not all", which is exactly what I said. You also said, "people have done 100+ days of nothing but juice" but those were not UC'rs you were talking about and got kind of rude with kazbern, who is taking folic acid, vit. D (2K iu), flax seed oil (2 tsp/day), and has been gluten free as of 5/30/11 . You also got quite rude with Quincy over her post.

If you look at all of the people on this forum you would see that almost every single one of them is doing some form of natural remedy or has tried some form of natural remedy, including me. If you knew me better you would also see that I have so far refused to take Prednisone, Imuran, 6Mp, Remicade, or Humira. You can see by my signature I have taken and am taking many natural remedies. I don't belittle anyone for doing any kind of presciption drugs or natural treatments but I don't think it's right for someone to subtley suggest than one particular thing is a cure all, particularly when there is evidence that it can be bad for UC'rs, such as juicing. Juicing may very well work for some and I have no problem with anyone who wants to give it a try but there is evidence (in UC'rs) that juicing is not normally a good thing to do. I get the impression you feel it is ok for you to post your ideas but those ideas are not to be questioned.
Posted 1/26/2013 8:23 PM (GMT 0)
OK whatever I've had enough of this.
The fact remains: most people don't know that your body can heal naturally with water and/or juice fasting and I tried to inform.
The rest is irrelevant.
Posted 1/26/2013 8:31 PM (GMT 0)
The fact remains: this disease is not a disease that heals itself and goes away forever, no matter what treatments you do, medical or natural. That's why it is listed as a life long chronic disease.
Posted 1/26/2013 8:40 PM (GMT 0)
The disease doesn't heal itself the body does. If not cured, the disease can at least be in remission, and like a dormant volcano asymptomatic for years.
Of course, proper care is needed like macrobiotic diet, stress reduction (eg meditation), exercise and whatever else helps (supplements etc).

Maybe some people will have chronic and ongoing symptoms, but not everyone.
Posted 1/26/2013 8:51 PM (GMT 0)
BTW. I apologise if I came off as rude or arrogant or insensitive, it wasn't intended. Everyone has their own struggle and must deal with it in the best way they can. Everyone's process is unique and thus cannot be judged by others.
Posted 1/26/2013 9:01 PM (GMT 0)
That's great you found something that works for you. However, to say that someone like me is in "denial about natural remedies" because I want to believe I did the right thing is incredibly rude. Yes, I started taking the mesalamine meds without researching them much first. However, then I did and I felt they were safe to use long term, so am incredibly pleased they work so well for me.

I'm not at all in denial that natural remedies work for SOME. Nor do I believe that meds work for ALL. Treating UC is somewhat of a crapshoot in that it is hard to know what'll work for you and for some, nothing works.
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