HealingWell
Search Close Search
☰

No pain relief

Support Forums
>
Ulcerative Colitis
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply
❬ ❬ Previous Thread |Next Thread ❭ ❭
Posted 7/18/2015 5:23 PM (GMT 0)

I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis within the last month.  Spent a week in the hospital getting the flare up more manageable.  I have been home for two weeks now and the pain seems to have gotten worse and the medications are no longer helping. My GI doctor has increased my Prednisone to 60mg and Dicyclomine to 20mg x 4 daily and has recommended we begin Remacaid as soon as all my lab results come back.  Today I can barely stand the pain.  I am still only eating low res foods. Does anyone have recommendations for how to manage this pain for the next week? 

Posted 7/18/2015 7:11 PM (GMT 0)
The only pain relief we can take sadly is Tylenol I take the extra strength turn
Posted 7/18/2015 9:58 PM (GMT 0)
you could ask for Tylenol II w/ coding - but since not everyone with UC gets pain, not every GI is ready to use stronger pain meds. Can't hurt to ask.
Posted 7/18/2015 10:05 PM (GMT 0)
I use tramadol and hyoscyamine for pain. You are on no maintenance drug at moment. The Dicyclomine is not a maintenance drug for UC... Remicade is one of the higher tier drugs. I'm surprised he won't put you on any 5-ASA first.

Edit: Tylenol is NOT the only pain med we can take. I already mention two above. Also, depending on where you live, you could get novaminsulfon. It's banned in the US though.
Posted 7/19/2015 4:34 AM (GMT 0)
Tramadol is safe for ibd
You can use Tylenol as others have mentioned
You can also alternate hot and cold packs
Also I know people are scared to recommend this bit maybe don't eat anything but clear liquids for a couple of days to give your bowels some rest
Posted 8/31/2015 11:03 AM (GMT 0)
I agree with Dikid, it can really help your digestive system recover if you go on a liquid diet. Some G.I. doctors will recommend it too after a flare up. One option is the elemental diet. It's pretty awful tasting but you're basically drinking straight vitamins and calories in liquid form. That way your intestines don't have to work. It's expensive as well but a lot of people see results. Here's a study on people with UC and crohns disease, 44% of the patients went into remission with the diet change alone. Another 18% went into remission combining the elemental diet with prednisone. Promising results ...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/0000834975
Posted 8/31/2015 11:08 AM (GMT 0)
Here's a good article going over some different treatment options including diet. http://www.everydayhealth.com/news/is-liquid-diet-right-your-ibd/

"The "World Journal of Gastroenterology" study found that in addition to avoiding the adverse effects of corticosteroids, EEN therapy in children with Crohn’s led to:

Higher rates of mucosal healing
Greater weight gain
Decreased disease activity
Reduced inflammation
Improved bone health
Better quality of life after treatment"

Personally anytime I have any kind of digestive flare up I pretty much can't eat for a couple days. And that's the only way I seem to be able to recover. That may not be right for you, basically I just try to listen to my body and not put any food in it that I can't handle. Otherwise I'll be in misery again. I definitely eat well whenever I can, but unfortunately that's not always the case. Just to give you some tips on what works for me, I do best on a low residue diet and I also have to stay away from wheat soy and yeast. Its definitely challenging but it really helps. I think you just have to figure out what some of your trigger foods are. For example for me luckily I seem to be ok with dairy. But not everyone is. Everyone's different.

Post Edited (Kelli) : 8/31/2015 5:24:12 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 8/31/2015 11:23 AM (GMT 0)
I have been able to pull myself out of a couple of flares with gut rest. The only time it didn't work was when I was too underweight (last flare.....I think my body needed food to heal at that point.)

I usually do a pure liquid diet for 3 days. (water, broth). On the third day, I start to incorporate some oils - flax seed, olive oil or coconut oil. This will calm the hunger and reduce inflammation. Think of your colon as one big wound. Every time you have a bm, that wound scrapes open. On the 4th day, start to slowly introduce low residue foods again. I will warn you....it's not going to be easy. Fasting is tough! I find the second day is the toughest.

50mg of tramadol + 1000mg tylenol will not only reduce the pain but also kill your hunger.

here is your fasting motivation: If you end up in the hospital, they are going to most likely put you on gut rest anyway. I always get starved in the hospital. I would much rather be starved at home.
Posted 8/31/2015 11:28 AM (GMT 0)
I agree, fasting is crazy hard but so worth it if you've got a flare up going on.
✚ New Topic ✚ Reply