Posted 1/4/2009 1:44 PM (GMT 0)
Hi and welcome to Healingwell :) Of course you slid backwards after missing a few doses of a steroid enema. You need to think of the enema like a bandaid - if you have a cut on your finger that is bleeding like crazy and you take the bandaid off too early, will it not start to bleed again/still? You need to be consistant with your medication, especially a steroid AND you have to taper when your symptoms simmer down. It can take a long time before a flare can get under control. It depends on many factors such as how well you are responding to the medication, how severe your flare is etc. However, left sided is, according to my GI, one of the most stubborn to treat. Since you have left sided, I recommend that you ask your doc to replace your Asacol with Colazal. Colazal works really well for left siders. It is designed to release on the left side as opposed to Asacol which release at the beginning of the colon and disperses down. Asacol can sometimes not reach the targeted area for left siders.
Also, have you looked into probiotics yet? If not, I recommend you start one asap. A probiotic is basically good bacteria to replace the overabundant bad in your colon. Your colon is overrun with bad bacteria and that is what is causing most of the grief. You need to create a better flora in your colon so it can heal faster.