It is not the water but the food handlers that will make you sick. Only eat freshly cooked, hot food, or packaged food like chips or cookies. I traveled with gluten free biscotti and peanut butter in...
I learned not to care about the blood. It was urgency that was a problem (until Remicade)....
Don't just use one flavor, divide the mix into two or three flavors so you don't have drink the the same one throughout....
I have had UC for more than 30 years. So, no, don't expect it to go away. Sorry....
Golf. 10 handicap. Yes, I pooped in the woods a lot over the years ~...
Remicade puts me in complete remission. Humira worked not at all. I think you can't know, everyone is different....
One thing I didnt think about when I was young was that this disease does not go away. Unless you do something as drastic as remicade to change your body response, or have surgery, you will continue...
Why would you want to boost the immune system? It is overactive, thats why an immune system supressor works, right?...
I am doing much better already. I had pizza today! I think Lialda helped, too, although I was able to stop asacol eventually, before. I do love cupcakes......
I suffered a long time, physically and emotionally, until Remicade. It healed me....
I tried to switch from Remicade to Humira because I started a new job away from home and away from my doctor during the week, and didnt want to have to take time off - and pay thousands - for...
When Humira failed, I paid more attention to all the new drugs out there, TNF blockers of all sorts. So, whats the difference between them? How can you possibly know what will work? I went back on...
Humira didnt work AT ALL, so I am back on Remicade. Fortunately I wasnt off Remicade very long, so we just started where I left off, every 9 weeks. Doing much better already! Lialda helped, too. I...
I learned years ago it was better not to tell my employer about my UC, and I was very good at hiding it even during bad flares. Nothing good ever comes of your employer viewing you as sickly, in my...
I poked around for advice, but probably didnt post! Demanding new job in DC made infusions a problem, so I thought I would try Humira. It was immediately apparent that it didnt work for me. I'm...
Since Humira is not working for me, I might try to go back on Remicade, which worked great. But I need to find a place to get infusions on the weekend in the DC area. Any info appeciated! I do not...
I have to be so careful about what I eat. I know I will pay if I eat salad greens, nuts, coffee (although it's good for a clean-out). Gluten just makes me bloat and feel crappy. I am surprised you...
I had to switch to my husbands insurance because my cobra finally ran out. There was no way to check what my cost for remicade was going to be, until I was a member of the plan. So, leap of faith...
Wasnt it Christine? I think she finally had surgery, she was in bad shape....
I noticed a difference after the first infusion. On May 19, 2009, I did not need to poo that day for the first time in more than 20 years....
I don't think gluten changes my bathroom habits, but I know it makes me feel and look bloated. Like i over-ate, even if I didn't. For sure it doesn't affect everyone that way....
Doing great! I actually forget to do preemptive bathroom visits now. See my signature....
I had blinding pain when my gut would spasm on the toilet when I was flaring. The walls would close in and I am amazed I didn't pass out. Breathe, breathe, it will pass in a minute, it always does......
Yes, it was constantly on my mind. And I still dream about finding a bathroom....
I have gluten sensitivity, it makes me bloat. But when I was traveling I often had some of the wonderful fresh bread that was offered every morning, and it never bothered me. So I am starting to...
I had a talk with my husband when he was my boyfriend, and was getting impatient with my needs. I told him peace to deal with this was more important to me than any man...and he has stepped up...
Depends on what you mean about not quite getting rid of a flare. Pred would get me out of a flare, but not eliminate all my symptoms. Good enough....
That's what the term "managed care" refers to. Having some controls on treatments which doctors order helps keep health care costs in check, for all our benefit. Doctors can abuse their role. But now...
Wow, can I relate to that! Lines were the worst. When I went through customs in Dallas, the line was easily 1000 people long. No exaggeration, and I was traveling alone, nobody to hold my place. I...
Cut it up and make steak and eggs, yum....
My doctor's office takes the initiative to get the authorizations. They want the business, after all! Once when my company changed insurance we forgot to get a new authorization, but my doc got it...
Distended gut can be very painful! I remember once a suggestion that rolling aroung on the floor can help, believe it or not. But it might require medical intervention if it gets worse....
That Align probiotic is junk. Causes more problems than it solves, for many. Get good ones, the refrigerated kind. You might have to accept seeing blood, and not worry about it as long as you have no...
You are obsessing about this! Take a break from making any decision or thinking about it, just carry on and the right answer may become clear. That's what works for me....
My classmate is general counsel of Microsoft, doing pretty well! Got lucky, really... I have had a less traditional career, good money but not big money. There are very few jobs for new lawyers....
It takes incredible discipline and adjustment to your social life to maintain the kind of diet that will actually help. For example, I think that the best hope is to never eat anything non-organic or...
Allen Ginsberg, with GW Faculty Associates. He was my first GI, knows his stuff, does drug studies too. Doesnt deal with the emotional stuff too well, tho. Hopefully he hasnt retired. I went to GW...
Find a naturopathic doctor. You might waste a lot of money trying all the things people suggest to you here!...
No UC symptoms since I started Remicade, and my doc says no patients have had problems with cancer or the awful things they warn about. It takes about 3 hours and then I go about my day....
I swim a lot, and the chlorine just makes me sneeze....
I think you get used to the probiotics (I expect there is a more accurate description of the process) and the problems subside....
I was the opposite. Because even taking one bite would stimulate my diseased bowels, the less often I ate the more manageable UC was for me....
What meds are you on now? (Can you see how to add that to your signature?)...
Um, the hospital is only required to stabilize you as an ER patient. They do not have to provide you with services otherwise, and are allowed to have different charity care policies, depending on...
I agree, keep supplies in the car, just in case the urgency is too great. An extra-large zip-type plastic bag, and a trash bag and wipes and paper towels and extra underwear. Just the peace of mind...
Please don't be so worried about the blood. I always had some blood, and yet was otherwise very healthy and active. I have also had sinus infections, and even MRSA, neither became serious. Ask your...
Being viewed as a strong person...even though no one even knows about 25+ years with UC....
I always knew all the restrooms along the way, and they knew me. Eat and leave time for the bowels to be stimulated before heading out the door. There are just some things you can't do with UC. Like...
My insurance denied humira, and my doc said remicade works better for UC anyway. I thnk Humira would be approved now. If I. remember right, I was almost done with a prednisone taper, not in a flare...
Even after two decades of using prednisone for flares, my bone density tests fine, good. I walk, strength train, golf, and swim for fitness....