What is the longest amount of time you have been in remission and why?

I had a 15 year remission, with no meds, no symptoms. I drank, I ate processed foods, junk foods, had lots of stress........

I had a 2 year remission where i was very sporadic with taking my asacol, drank alcohol, ate junk processed foods, stress etc etc.

Now i am  in a 4 year flare where i take my medication religiously, have tried diet mod, vsl, alternative stuff, drug trials, etc.  I just did a round of pred and i just started imuran so wish me luck that this works.

I think this disease has no rhyme or reason!

As far as getting out of the flares that i have had, i attribute it to rectal meds.  for this flare   rectal meds are helpng but not enough for remission, and I credit lialda with clearing up the majority of my colon. I went from pancolitis in 2008 to now just one stupid stubborn isolated 4 inch patch in my sigmoid.

I took Asacol for part of that time, then switched to Colazal (3 pills 3xday) about 4 years into remission. 

I didn't follow any particular diet - just stayed away from foods that bothered me like wheat, whole grain, raw veggies, certain fruits.

Other than that I ate what I wanted.  I also exercised alot - about 6 times a week doing cardio and weights, then started taking cardio classes.  I tried to keep my body healthy feeling it helped to fight off any illness I might get.

Whenever I started getting symptoms (no bleeding, just body aches, joint pains, tiredness, upset stomach and abdomen, unformed stools), I would go on the Mesalamine enemas nightly.  about 3 years ago had to take them nightly on a regular basis. Whenever I felt a flare come on, I would take them twice a day after that - I felt tackling the flare before it really got started was the best way to keep remission.

Have been in a flare since January - why?  Because a bad GI I went to (a new one) told me I didn't have UC (after 18 years of having it) and said to stop all my meds. I did and low and behold, I started bleeding for the first time in 10 years. Now blood has stopped but can't get off the Prednisone without flaring again.

Old Hat said...
Subzero, don't forget to factor in food intolerances/chemical allergies + use of antibiotics. A lot of members posting here fell ill with UC after recurrent treatment with antibiotics, including yours truly; they kept getting sinus infections, or had severe acne, etc. Many others are lactose or gluten-sensitive or allergic to multiple things. Still others may have hormone issues, which can also affect the gut. Immunology & endocrinology are extremely complex areas for medical personnel to deal with. / Old Hat (31 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)

Oldhat, have you seen some of the studies that show where kids who were breastfed for atleast 6 months as infants are way less likely to get UC compared to those who were not breastfed. The incidence of UC is astronomically less in those that were breastfed. I was part of the generation where the majority of maothers did not breastfeed (me included), I often wonder how much that contributed to my UC. My mom has told me it's the biggest mistake she ever made and wishes she could go back in time and undo it but it's what their doctors told them to do back then....