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what are your UC symptoms?

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Posted 7/7/2013 4:31 AM (GMT 0)
I would like to hear from anyone what your physical UC symptoms are, which would include, beginning a flare and during a flare. I'm curious how my symptoms compare :)

Here are mine:

-mucus in stool
-blood in stool
-constipation (more so than diarrhea)
-diarrhea (sometimes)
-abdominal cramping
-nausea (sometimes extreme)
-urgency
-vomiting (only if I'm in a really bad, uncontrollable flare, has happened, but not often)
-loss of appetite
-weight loss
-fatigue (sometimes extreme)
-lower back pain (mainly if I have been going to the bathroom ALOT, as not every day with UC is the same as the previous day - atleast not for me - I have good days and then really bad days)
-swelling of joints (only noticed this problem in my feet, around my ankles and also when I was on prednisone)
-inflammation of eyes (I almost always have red, inflamed eyes when I am in a flare)

What about you?
Posted 7/7/2013 1:39 PM (GMT 0)
Mine are same as yours except I noticed joint pain before the flare this time.

I don't have blood in stool...I have stool in blood.
I bled more than I thought a person could survive.

Oh, and I have never had noticable weight loss, no matter that I can't keep any foood in my body longer than a few min when flaring.
Posted 7/7/2013 3:46 PM (GMT 0)
during my flare i had:
-blood in stool
-mucus in stool
-diarrhea always
-high frequency (sometimes going almost every hour)
-weight loss
-loss of appetite
-fatigue
-nausea (only once in a while though)
-alot of abdominal pain when going to the bathroom
-anxiety

now as i'm getting closer to remission, urgency seems to be my main issue, although still alot of diarrhea & fatigue as well.
Posted 7/7/2013 6:11 PM (GMT 0)
geeker-

After reading your post, I realized I should edit my post......I am like you, I have stool in blood lol.
Posted 7/7/2013 8:57 PM (GMT 0)
Diarrhea, blood, mucous, fatigue, weight loss, anxiety/depression, pain in abdomen, urgency. All the fun stuff
Posted 7/7/2013 9:00 PM (GMT 0)
bleeding, weight loss, anemia, pain, cramping, diarrhea, urgency, vomiting, nausea, fevers, no appetite but will starve if I don't eat something.
Posted 7/7/2013 10:36 PM (GMT 0)
Urgency, frequency, painful machine gun-like passing of gas, false alarms aka tenesmus, occasional blood/mucus, numbness/tingling in my feet due to flagyl and or usage. The tingling/numbness is going away slowly, but surely.
Posted 7/7/2013 10:42 PM (GMT 0)
pain in the asssssssss !

 

Posted 7/7/2013 11:57 PM (GMT 0)
Yep to all of the above except vomiting. I rarely vomit. I think the hardest thing is the pain. I have such horrible cramping and a red hot burning when I go to where I'm to the point of passing out.

Thank god I'm in remission!
Posted 7/8/2013 2:48 AM (GMT 0)
I have been in a flare for about a month and a half. Came on during my menstrual cycle and has continued. Symptoms started out as gas, then abdominal cramping (which wasn't sure if it was from UC or the other), sudden onset of having to use the bathroom, and now bleeding. I was put on a double dose of Asacol 3x's/day and it helped for a week. Then menstruation began again and they returned. Mostly blood now, and have started taking a multi-vitamin due to my lack of eating. I had a blood test when I went to see my GI last month and everything is fine. I also take iron daily (was severely dehydrated and anemic last year right before I was diagnosed with left sided UC). Was out of work for 4 months, but after I got a blood transfusion and the numerous doctor visits, I was able to return a week after that. This is my first flare since. Using wet wipes and an occasional Tucks pad cuz my butt's so tender :( Might have to go on pred if it doesn't get any better in the 6wks of double Asacol.
Posted 7/8/2013 3:01 AM (GMT 0)
red, I agree. my pain makes me throw up or wish I was dead. I always cross my hands like i'm praying to try and distract myself and I always crack my fingers/knuckles. i'm surprised I haven't broken a finger yet. what would I say to the doctor? oh I broke my finger going to the bathroom.
Posted 7/8/2013 3:14 AM (GMT 0)
ugh, when I had really bad pain during BMs I would get into "airplane crash" position (bent at the waist, and I'd press my palms against the floor) and sometimes scream :-\. I never vomited but I sometimes had rectal spasms that were so bad that I felt like they went up through my entire torso. Seriously I felt like I couldnt breathe or like my heart was going to stop because all the muscles in my abs and chest would clench and spasm at once.

Ah, the good old days...

Did anyone mention burning neon yellow diarrhea yet?
Posted 7/8/2013 3:25 AM (GMT 0)
pluot, yellow diarrhea??? how does that happen? I've had bright green from contrast drinks but never yellow. that would probably scare me.
Posted 7/8/2013 3:37 AM (GMT 0)
severe nosebleed from my bottom end with weird colored D.

A lot of pain, spasms, cold hands/feet, light headed/dizzy and weight loss of course
Posted 7/8/2013 3:52 AM (GMT 0)
thanks for all the symptom comparisons that are being posted....i must admit, i laughed at a few posts...isn't it funny how years of UC/bathroom issues...you have a sense of humor about it?! i def have had nose bleeds from my butt, screamed while in a clenched position on the toilet as my burning insides shot out a fire bomb of poop, blood and mucus as though it came from a machine gun! i guess i could've spared everyone the details =))

i posed the question originally because it isn't often i meet someone with UC..i have felt like i'm all alone in my symptoms and no one understands...also feeling like maybe my symptoms are all in my head. good to know they aren't and others with UC experience the same things.
Posted 7/8/2013 3:56 AM (GMT 0)
Sweating, shaking, glazing of the eyes, nausea, waves of BM's that seem to last for hours, starts with semi-firm BM then works it way to smaller watery squirts with mucus/bloody stuff. Then bum burning (putting triple antibiotic ointment there with a q-tip seems to help that) fatique, depression, thirst and chills. In that order. Sometimes I've seem the skull and crossbones I felt like I was dying.
Posted 7/8/2013 3:57 AM (GMT 0)
Sounds like you covered all the bases..I will say there is stabbing pain and there is cramping pain. Both are a real pain. Hell we even can get pain from the meds we are taking. So you can start off with two different type of pains, take meds and wind up with a third pain...Bottom line here is, I'm not really sure and that is painful too.

Right now I am flaring, with pain, please don't ask me what kind..:-)...I am throwing the kitchen sink at it..40 mg of pred, Cortenema, and Lowering my Azulfidine intake to two tabs (because I believe it was giving me PAIN) and throwing some colazal in the mix...All of course with my GI's blessing. Many years ago, I've had UC 46 years, I went to a Dr who was not a GI. During our conversation he mentioned to me one of the NICE things about UC is there is no PAIN..I told him then I must not have UC cause buddy I got Fu***** PAIN...True story...Sorry for rambling I know it's abit off topic and might be painful to read...My pain is easing a little and am not sure if it's the steroids or the decrease in the Azulfidine. Frankly at this point I don't care....
Rod
Posted 7/8/2013 4:17 AM (GMT 0)

bananagirl said...
pluot, yellow diarrhea??? how does that happen? I've had bright green from contrast drinks but never yellow. that would probably scare me.

bile, baby!
Posted 7/8/2013 4:46 AM (GMT 0)

Rodsr said...
Sounds like you covered all the bases..I will say there is stabbing pain and there is cramping pain. Both are a real pain. Hell we even can get pain from the meds we are taking. So you can start off with two different type of pains, take meds and wind up with a third pain...Bottom line here is, I'm not really sure and that is painful too.

Right now I am flaring, with pain, please don't ask me what kind..:-)...I am throwing the kitchen sink at it..40 mg of pred, Cortenema, and Lowering my Azulfidine intake to two tabs (because I believe it was giving me PAIN) and throwing some colazal in the mix...All of course with my GI's blessing. Many years ago, I've had UC 46 years, I went to a Dr who was not a GI. During our conversation he mentioned to me one of the NICE things about UC is there is no PAIN..I told him then I must not have UC cause buddy I got Fu***** PAIN...True story...Sorry for rambling I know it's abit off topic and might be painful to read...My pain is easing a little and am not sure if it's the steroids or the decrease in the Azulfidine. Frankly at this point I don't care....
Rod

LOL. I feel you man. Let it all out. It's better than holding it in.

In the past when I was on prednisone, I went ape shiett! I was never really a foul mouthed guy(only occasionally when it was necessary) but prednisone made me swear a lot.

When some guy made a risky cut right in front of me when I was on the road(I noticed that it's usually infiniti drivers) I went a bit overboard, revving my engine as loud as possible when passing by him on purpose to let him know who he's messing with. Telling him to shove off and don't pull that crap again.

Anyways, I don't do this anymore. I've learned my lesson.
Posted 7/8/2013 9:11 AM (GMT 0)
My symptoms are:

mucus
blood
diarrhea
cramps
canker sores
throat ache
weight loss

Can't think of anything else at the moment. The throat ache and canker sores in my mouths are new symptoms which started last year.
Posted 7/8/2013 10:56 AM (GMT 0)
Cannot pass gas. This is my main problem. Have to goto the loo everytime, which is like 5-6 times a day apart from a few BMs in which I actually pass some turds.

Also minor bleeding, mucous and urgency :(
Posted 7/8/2013 2:55 PM (GMT 0)
What are the good things about prednisone? Does it really stop a flare? I just want my flare to end...these frequent trips and blood loss and spasms are wearing on me. My sex life is pretty much a thing of the past. My husband has been very supportive. He's the one who bought me the mulitvitamins and also suggested I look into if menstruation is keeping this flare from ending. Which I did check out. Those who have had hysterectomies have different opinions on how it affected their UC. Are any of you suffering in the intimacy department too? I didn't want to start taking steroids, but are there more good to bad with them? And also want to know how long it takes before it works?

Asacol 800mg 2pills 3x's/daily
Multi-vitamin (taking due to lack of food intake) 1/day
Iron 65mg 1/day
Xanax - for anxiety
Posted 7/8/2013 4:16 PM (GMT 0)
Steroids will work pretty much right away....you should notice a difference within a couple of days if you take them.

There are MANY side effects to them though....I've been on pred twice and thankfully for just a very short period of time (the second time was really only a week) so I didn't have many side effects. The only thing I can really remember is when I tapered off the first time I was extremely exhausted for a day or two but that went away.

I'm personally trying to do everything to get over my current flare without taking any pred...I'm even trying the SCD diet to see if it helps (starting within a few days). I haven't had that many problems with it, but I hear a ton of horror stories and people struggling with it on here that I'm being extremely cautious about taking it.

I will say...I'm not really in any pain, I have a lot of urgency and I go over 10 times a day, but no pain, just discomfort. If I had the pain I had when I was first diagnosed I would jump right into pred, I think.

I think the problem also is, generally, pred stops a flare but the flare tends to come back as soon as you stop the pred?
Posted 7/8/2013 5:48 PM (GMT 0)

wannabenormal said...
What are the good things about prednisone? Does it really stop a flare?

Pred has a purpose, it is a temporary boost, it limits your immune system's attack on your colon/intestine so you can heal. Pred helps many get out of uc flares. However, your other uc meds must be enough to sustain you once your cut off the pred, and get off of it, or else you will flare again. Pred can work within days for some, but for others it can take weeks or months (everyone heals differently, and has varying levels of initial damage from their uc flare that they are trying to heal).

Pred does come with some nuisance side effects, that seem to hit people randomly, and a lot of people fret over those side effects (things like insomnia, acne, increased appetite and with it weight gain, bursts of energy, moonface, and so forth). Everyone seems to get different ones, just not all of them. Once you get off of pred the side effects are gone, so they are temporary as is the med.

It's all a matter of what is the lesser of two evils, being in a nasty uc flare with blood, urgency, and 20 bms a day, or taking a steroid like pred. Generally, the steroid is preferable for the short term in my opinion at least. Pred is kinda like the boogeyman around here, a lot of people fear it in the same sorta way haha.
Posted 7/8/2013 6:07 PM (GMT 0)

wannabenormal said...
Are any of you suffering in the intimacy department too?

When flaring, intimacy and sex were the last things on my mind. As this is a disease that can be both embarrassing and cause a lot of discomfort and pain during flares. My wife was really sweet, she tried her best to make me know she still found me to be attractive and sexy even when I was at the worst of my flare and I, myself, felt like a slime mold haha. However, my libido was pretty much gone while flaring. A few times she got me in the sack out of sympathy and continued pestering, and mostly it was uncomfortable for me (with abdominal discomfort only made worse by the motion and jostling around). And worse yet, I had to run to the bathroom during said act on a couple of those occasions haha.

Once you get out of your flare, things go back to normal though. Just explain to your partner how you are feeling and when it is a good and bad day. He/she has to understand you are going through hell in a uc flare, and intimacy isn't your #1 priority, rather getting better is.
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