Thank You All for being here! New to the disease...

Hi Wildfire, welcome to Healingwell :) I'm glad you stopped lurking and joined the conversations :) IBS doesn't graduate into UC. Many on here have had UC for a long time that was misdiagnosed as IBS for a long time because unfortunately some just don't have a clear cut case. Darvocet in UC can actually slow your colon down too much and in Uc'ers that is not always such a good idea. It can lead to complications. But once you get the flare under control the pain will go away too. It's good that you are getting on oral meds in addition to rectal. Do you know where in your colon your Uc is? Sometimes if we know that we can offer more suggestions. Since they found precancerous polyps, what are they going to do?

There are other meds you can try that may work better then the suppositories such as Rowasa enemas or even steroid enemas (Colocort) or steroid foam. The steroid enemas/foam work faster then the Rowasa which is basically Canasa but in liquid form (and reaches higher into the colon). I think there is even a steroid suppository but I'm not sure it's available in the states (I've never used them - so I'm not sure). Usually once a flare is under control, which varies from person to person, then the D, bleeding and pain is controlled. To help stop the D, instead of relying on narcotic pain relievers, you can try fiber supplements. This can help bulk up the stool. Also too, you can try a low residue diet to see if that helps.

Hi wildfire :)

Probiotics are good bacteria...basically IBDers and even IBSers tend to have bacterial over-growth which tends to exacerbate symptoms...taking a good probiotic daily and indefinitely (even during remission) helps keep the bacterial balanced in the gut flora...there have even been studies and more awareness in the medical field that probiotics are a benefit to us.

Generally you can get them at healthfood stores, though some buy from grocery stores I'm just not sure how they would compare...the one I use is called Primadophilus Reuteri made by Natures Way, it's affordable and has benefits for lactose intolerance as well...it's about 30.00cdn for 90 caps and only one/day is needed, they have guaranteed intestinal release. I've been taking them everyday for about 4 yrs now and it's been very helpful.

:)

Thank you all for your input!  Doc has me on asocal 3x daily, canasa supp. also, if needed.  We're going to try it for a couple weeks & see how I'm doing.  I'm going to go off the narcotics as well, if  the asocal will help the pain there's no need for something that isn't all that good for me. 

I must've been misdiagnosed 5-6 yrs ago.  Had IBD the whole time, I sure wish I'd known, life would have been different if I'd just known what was wrong with me.  They say my flare up isn't that bad.  But it is spreading & getting worse. 

I will look for the probiotics too, you are the best, I'm so glad I found you!  I feel so much better knowing I can come here & be understood.  I don't get that here at home.  They haven't adjusted to the fact that I have a chronic disease (me either!), and don't really get it.  Heck, I'm still trying to "get it"!  So, I'll keep coming back to talk.

Welcome Wildfire!! I have found this group of loving, sharing people to have saved my life physically and emotionally. Its pretty hard to believe you have an uncurable disease. People here have taught me how to live with UC and how to make it better. Our doctors don't know everything. The suggestions of probiotics is a very good one. I started to feel better within a couple of weeks.