My Diagnosis

I am wondering if taking anxiety meds might be a good way to control the UC? It's obvious my IBS is caused by anxiety, which induces Diarrhoea which then in turn inflames the colon which can then bleed and become ulcerated. It's a viscious circle started by stress and anxiety.

IBS can not cause your intestines to bleed nor ulcerate it. It is obvious you have either CD or UC. Stress can affect us very severely in many ways but never can it cause a person with IBS to ulcerate and bleed. However it CAN make a person who has an IBD ulcerate and bleed. I have read so many websites that say stress plays no part in IBD and flares - that to me is total garbage - so nope, on to another website that is more up to date. Now that you know (somewhat) what you are dealing with, take a step forward, drop the resentment, and move on. It is NOT a death sentence even though it can feel like one. You've been dealing with the symptoms for a little while now so it's not like the diagnosis just jumped in your lap. The diagnosis is more of a confirmation then anything else.

Also, don't freak out about the possibility of cancer. Like everyone said, we get scoped so often that even if we were to get it, it would be caught early. The cancer risk increases with various scenarios such as a family history of colon cancer, the length and severity of the inflammation etc. I have had this for 16 years and since I am past the 10 year mark, my risk has increased a bit which is why I go in for more frequent scopes. But it doesn't worry me about getting cancer because I trust my GI. It is important that you have a good relationship with your doctor. If you don't trust your doctor, see about getting another and another until you feel comfortable with the one you are with. After all, he/she is in with you on this - sort of a partnership.

London, this is all good.  I understand that you are upset and worried and anxious and angry and resentful. I am sure that every single person on this forum has gone through each one of those emotions.  No one is denying that hearing a diagnosis that doesn't involve the words, all clear, you'll be fine it's curable etc.  But, okay I'm just going to say it straight out...at a risk of upsetting...but I feel your last post was a bit of a slap on the hand for Red who was trying to ease your worries and help. Minimising the 'risks' of one sufferer to lift your own is not the way to go.

Just my opinion. 

 

We all have those days London...it will be fine, it will be okay, it's not the end of the world but that doesn't take away from the fact that you've just been diagnosed....I know when I was diagnosed with it came relief that it wasn't something more sinister - it was a little c instead of The Big C. Thankful as I was it still left me with a total lack of knowledge as to what I was dealing with and that frightened me. Although every day isn't good I really do try to tell myself that I am in control as much as I can be, looking after myself, taking my meds, watching for trigger foods, (should be) getting enough rest. So I have taken some control even though it's unpredictable. I can help myself. And I do think that attitude is very much part of it. You can either let it control you mentally as well as physically or you can decide as much as possible to be positive about it. Keep the 'maybes' and 'what ifs' at bay and deal with what is.

You'll get through this. Focusing on the 'what might' happen for me is not the way to go as it will only add to my anxiety. I have enough stress to deal with as it is. You have new job to look forward to and you are lucky that your symptoms aren't painful and uncomfortable. I hope that continues for you as it will give you less to worry about when it comes to starting the new job.

Chin up ;-)

Sue how does the pouch work? Do you live a normal life as before UC?

How is it different from pre-UC days? And why don't many more of us get the pouch? Also can the pouch replace the whole colon or just the rectum?

It's different in that most non-IBD people have one bowel movement per day. With a jpouch you have 6-8. Of course with a jpouch emptying it is as quick as urinating so you don't have the prolonged times on the toilet as you do with a colon. If you opt for any surgery to remove UC you must remove the rectum and the entire colon or you run the risk of having UC return to the parts that weren't removed. The jpouch technically replaces the rectum but also starts behaving like a colon by picking up water absorption over time. It has been shown that after 10 years with a jpouch the cells of the jpouch look like colon cells. It is also truen that only 20-30% of people will ever have surgery to remove their colon due to UC. The reason why the other 70-80% don't have surgery is that they are successfully able to manage their disease and have a very high quality of life. Surgery should only be considered if traditional medical therapies fail, the patient is prednisone dependent, a diagnosis of dysplasia is given, or if the patient has a very low quality of life (unable to work or engage in activities).

Sue

I guess that goes for those with Chrohn's Colitis too? As he Chrohn's is restricted to the large bowel?

So how does it work? How do you know when to go? Do you still have an anus that controls it?

Unfortunately, it doesn't go for those with Crohn's colitis, because if you've got Crohn's it can reappear in the small bowel that's used to make the j-pouch. That's one of the reasons why getting those biopsies is so important--it helps to define your treatment options better. (The flip side of this is that there are some medical treatments that appear to work better in Crohn's than in UC, and in Crohn's there is the surgical option of resecting affected parts and leaving unaffected parts--which no knowledgeable surgeon ever does in UC.)

With the j-pouch, you retain the anus (the opening to the exterior), the anal transition zone (the piece of tissue in which the mucosa changes from anus to rectum), and, depending on anatomy and surgical technique, a tiny amount of the rectal tissue itself (a centimeter or so; normally, the rectum is about 12 cm long). The nerves there, and all the nerves that innervate the rest of the pelvic floor, allow you to feel when there's stuff in the pouch. But as long as there's no inflammation there (see above re: Crohn's), the need to empty it is not urgent.

It had been so many years since I had a non-urgent bathroom visit that I have had to query some (carefully selected!) friends to find out how the sensation compares to their experience with healthy colons. As far as I can tell, it is almost the same--it just happens more times in a day.

But don't put the cart before the horse. I'm chiming in just to say that the surgical options for treatment are there, they are real, and they can be very, very helpful. When I was first diagnosed I thought of surgery as the place I never wanted to go; hearing it mentioned made me despair. I should have thought of it as a real option sooner. Even the three months with the ostomy were much, much better than life with active UC.

Post Edited (Charlotte Gilman) : 8/12/2008 11:43:49 AM (GMT-6)

LondonRed said...
I have just taken my first 5mg of Clipper Steroids along with 2g of Pentasa. Wish me luck!

LR im probably being a bit dense but what are Clipper Steroids ?

Kerry