Phosphoral emptying the colon and fasting to stop the flare

Be very careful to keep up with fluid intake, do not get dehydrated. A better approach might be to do a "low residue" diet which gives the gut a rest. I've tried intermittent fasting (there are older threads here about this) and liked it but it's not a long term solution.
Personally I would never do what you are doing because I hate the colon prep solutions. There are less stressful ways to achieve what you are trying to do.

Search this forum for "low residue diet". I have never done it but have read that doctors recommend it. Also search for 'Whey protein shakes" maybe under InSoFla's postings, she's more in the know about protein shakes. Not talking about doing a total liquid diet although that would be possible also if you got enough calories. In my opinion most of the commercial liquid nutrition drinks like Ensure have too much crap that my colon would object greatly to.

BTW are you also using rectal meds? You might want to go to your "Profile" and list what meds you are on, have taken in the past, etc. so you don't have to answer the same questions next time you post.

I agree that fasting is not the answer to UC but I and others like you agree that after a c-scope our colons seem happier not having to work for a day or 2.

My other suggestion is to eliminate fiber right now (that goes along with going "low residue"). As part of my prep one week before my c-scope my GI had me stop eating nuts and most other fiber. It was then I noticed how much happier my gut was. As a result, after the scope I eliminated whole nuts and other insoluble fiber and have much less C now. I still eat almond butter but not too much daily.

I promised to give some kind of report.

The bleeding is over, but still very, very loose stools. I do not know if I can recommend what I did, but at least it might have been helping to get into the healing process. Now I am trying to take it forward with diets

engblom said...
I have had a really long lasting bad flare that is getting worse for each day. I remembered that before I got slightly better from emptying the colon before endoscopy (just a couple of days better). Now I am desperate enough to try to empty the colon followed by a short fasting.

My reasoning here is that a normal fasting is too hard on a ill person as it takes too long time of no food to empty the colon. Things might even get worse because of lack of nutrition. By emptying it with a laxative like Phosphoral, i can shorten the fasting and hopefully get out of the flare.

I will report how it is succeeding. I begun taking Phosphoral today.

engbom- the flush works for me too, and it gets things moving in the right direction , i am about to do one, my dr will perscibe the colon flush for me every 3 months, i have avoided it hoping i didnt have to ,but this flare persists, and have been too sick to feel comfortable to do it, but i will and  i know it will help ... always has always will. i had a colonscopy in dec and i went from 9plus bloody d's a day to complete remission , no meds at all , for 3 and half weeks. i went crazy eating and had a death in the family , much travel and stress and flare came back... of  all things we do  a flush wouldnt be the worst ! lol just sayin! but stay HEALTHY!! :) 

I really think this is a crock. While you might get some respite by fasting it will be very short lived. Our body's immune system has run amok, damaging our colons in the process. Simply healing the colon is not a cure because the immune problem still persists. So, even if you were to totally 100% heal the colon, the same thing that happened which damaged the colon in the first place WILL happen again and then you will be back to square one. That is why, even in remission, it is necessary to take mtnc meds to constantly fight the amok immune system, even after meds have totally healed the colon. There may be a select few who were misdiagnosed with UC who merely had colitis where a fast might be the cure but if you have UC, you have UC, and a fast isn't going to cure it.

(Removed for bickering)

Post Edited By Moderator (iPoop) : 10/3/2015 3:34:41 PM (GMT-6)

I know for myself, when I had the thought if I ate less I would poop less, it never really worked out that way, I did it for decades and I would fast as well to try and get breaks from bowel movements but it never helped with inflammation and IBS decided to rear it's ugly head too (as well as developing lactose intolerance).

I don't know what the answer is or how anyone else is affected by fasting during a flare but I don't believe it can bring on remission unless being on maintenance meds makes a difference which is something I wasn't on in the past when I ate way less and fasted.

Plus, this is a really old post from 2012 lol

I want to chime in here, about fasting, as someone who is not a medical expert - only a lay person who has read widely from many legitimate medical sources as well as had my own experiences of struggling to manage this disease for more than 15 years. I have spent a lot of time on this site & learned a great deal from our members' postings, including and especially the veterans and those who keep up with the most current science. There are a range of opinions here of course, but I have come to rely on advice from some of the posters who to me seem very knowledgeable.

It's from my own experiences that I offer a few thoughts about this thread:

We are each different, so there's no one right way to manage a flare. We have to explore and experiment with what works for each of us, and that may change over time.

When I'm severely flaring and I eat less, the symptoms are not as severe (less poop, less cramping, less blood). As was said, less input means less output. Fasting gives the illusion that I'm getting better but I know that less input is not treating the disease, even if my symptoms improve. I don't see how fasting can bring us into remission. It is also potentially dangerous to deplete our systems & organs of what they need to function.

When flaring, I have dramatically changed my diet, as many have here, experimenting with what makes it worse or not. Sometimes I wouldn't eat or drink so I could go to work, and then at night I'd try to eat some plain broth and protein. It wasn't sustainable but it worked for the short term. Food journal has been key. Many here offer great ideas for non-drug supplements that have been effective for them. Well worth exploring, and there's plenty working for many members of the forum.

My UC has gotten far worse with each flare, it has now extended way up through ascending colon. I have not been on a maintenance drug, as I was evaluating my options after remicade. I knew it was a big risk to do that.

As I've managed my current severe flare over the past two months, the worst ever, a few weeks ago I went to a liquid diet. I first tried fasting for a few days but it was very dangerous in my weakened state with so much blood loss, & I was spiraling into a real crisis situation. I pulled out of it with high dose prednisone, Cortenemas (helped reduce tenesmus), lots of electrolyte replacement drinks, and finally--after extensive searching--identifying a protein shake that is very easy for me to digest (vegan orgain). This drink has saved my life, as I have been getting essential nutrients and calories into me that I desperately needed, and it's lactose fee, gluten free, not much sugar, some easy to digest fat, etc. (As a result, the weight loss has stopped, and it was at a dangerously low level).

Sticking with these liquids only for a few weeks has helped me. Thankfully the flare symptoms have been subsiding while I do this regime -- and prednisone helping as a bridge to maintenance medication-- i believe is essential in getting to remission. I have been allergic to all UC maintenance drugs that I've tried. I have begun Entyvio. I am hopeful & optimistic.

I offer this update just to reinforce the fact that we each have to find our own path, to affirm the enormous value I've found from the posts here - especially the kindness and support, and the wisdom shared by others who have shared their our struggles to manage both flares & maintenance of remission. It is all very humbling, exhausting, and at times overwhelming. There is no one right way or quick fix to remission. We are in this for the long haul. I can't imagine what it would've been like to go through this without having had the benefit of your responsiveness and posts with advice & support. I realize this reply is beyond the question in the OP (which is very old), but I thought it'd be a good opportunity to weigh in about fasting, in the context of a big picture perspective and with much gratitude.

Back on point, fasting is difficult and not for everyone, but quickly brings frequency of BMs under control and, if done correctly, can reliably induce a remission of symptoms.

The rationale is that your digestive tract does not have a chance to rest and heal, when you're constantly pushing food down it. Inflammation in the body requires rest of the afflicted organ, and our bodies naturally lose appetite when inflamed for this reason -- our biology is hardwired towards fasting. Dogs or horses, also, will naturally fast when digestive issues or illness occur for them.

When I am in the midst of a flare, I too naturally lose appetite -- only, unlike dogs or horses, we don't listen to what our body is telling us, and overintellectualize its simple message "I NEED REST! GIVE ME A BREAK! IT'S A MESS DOWN HERE!" and start cramming food down the system anyway, getting sicker and sicker as a result.

That being said, no amount of clean living or attained remission can contend with a bacon double cheeseburger or meat lovers pizza every other day. Those sorts of choices will reverse the work and healing attained from a fast, and send you spiraling back into bleeding and pain. This fact does not take away from the efficacy of the fast, only indicates that you, for whatever reason, insist on learning the hard way that a lifestyle change is in order...

Post Edited (Inward Flame) : 10/3/2015 2:46:52 PM (GMT-6)

Amazing how fasting cures both fibromyalgia and uc, based on this persons post history...

I think a temporary bowel rest helps to a degree (it's used in surgeries). However, in flares one is rapidly loosing weight as it is, so caution should be advised for fasting.

For me, in a nutshell, fasting didn't improve things enough for me to continue doing it, I always got severe headaches from it for one thing and the feeling of lethargy grew much worse as well as dizziness and just a general unwell feeling for me when fasting as well. It might help some people symptom wise but it doesn't likely heal inflammation plus you deprive yourself of needed nutrients especially when your body is constantly fighting inflammation and the fact that having inflammation already interferes with obtaining nutrients. I even have a hard time fasting for 12 hours to get certain blood work done for cholesterol. I see fasting along the same lines as feminine douching, women aren't suppose to douche because it messes up the natural ph levels in the vagina, the vagina is designed to self-clean and the intestines are designed to self-clean by passing stool through it.

Wow reading my posts from 2012 feels strange but interesting. Intermittent fasting was beneficial to my path to remission but looking back I only did that for a few months while searching for the diet my gut would tolerate while healing.

What intermittent fasting taught me was that it was not a bad thing to try. I didn't become anorexic or bulimic or fear food (I love food). But I have only been underweight once long ago so never had to deal with that worry while fasting and that is an important consideration. My body was not breaking down muscle during IF (intermittent fasting) just burning fat reserves while the gut took a rest.