Thanks :) And yeah, this website has been an amazing resource for me. Not just with the factual stuff, learning about symptoms, meds, alternative treatments, but with just not feeling alone. As much...
Update: My pre-certification is still "pending"... *sigh* Luckily I'm doing well on the pred (tapering) + aza. And the communication with the doctor's office has improved. So I'm not feeling as...
^^good point. I forgot to mention-if trying supplements and diet changes, be careful not to try them all at once so you can tell what works and what doesnt....
jujub- Yeah I saw that on the form and wondered why that was the case. Interesting. They also won't help if you don't have any insurance, but I did find in my research that there are other programs...
Hey uc022016, welcome :) What is the extent and severity of your UC? How have you been feeling since increasing lialda and adding prednisone? No (visible) blood is a good thing, but improvement with...
This happened to me too, a few years ago on Pred, and I have a feeling it will happen again soon (although I lost so much weight with this flare it seems to be taking longer!). It's really difficult,...
Good luck!! Even though it's not what you wanted to do, hopefully it will make things more comfortable for you. :)...
Yeah i feel more assured now that I know the process is at least begun, before I had no idea if anyone even submitted the request, or if they had and gotten approval and just didn't bother to tell...
I currently take turmeric capsules 400 mg 4x/day (for a total of 1.6 grams). I've also done those 6x/day (2.4 g). And I've tried a different brand (these were standardized turmeric 95% curcuminoids,...
Update: -called the insurance company today. They said they didn't have a request in their system for Remicade. they also said it can take 15 days to process. -called the doctor's office, left a...
thanks gizmo, i've looked into remistart to help with the copays as well as other organizations that would help if not covered under insurance. i'm glad to hear remicade is working for you, and that...
glad to hear VSL #3 is helping you! eating solid foods again is such a nice feeling :) (well...for a while anyways, haha.) i'm suprised my doctor hasn't mentioned the vsl as i've read good stuff...
egg rolls & fried wonton definitely have gluten--the wrapper is a wheat flour product. (unless you're going to a place that has specialty gluten free stuff, i know of only 1 restaurant that has...
Thank you everyone :) katmom- yeah this medical group seems like they probably do this routinely--they even have their own infusion center. didn't realize it could be a few weeks from my convos with...
Hey everyone, So I saw the doctor on Tuesday, we decided on Remicade + azathioprine. She said her assistant would contact the insurance company for authorization. I called the office on Wednesday, to...
Hey, sorry youre not feeling well. If diet helps your symptoms, thats great. I stopped my first flare (before i knew i had uc) by eliminating gluten. Found out Im gluten intolerant, and noticed...
cat1211, we have kind of a similar situation. i was diagnosed 4 years ago. i reacted badly to asacol hd back in 2012 so spent much of that time not on medications. I handled my flares with salofalk...
I'm definitely not an expert on the healthcare systems, but from all I've read here, the different processes people in the US vs. UK/Canada go through to get their medications, it seems like this: US...
Thanks, I'm really hoping for the best here and definitely want to live my life again already. That shouldn't be too bad. Mentally it'll be sad--I have light skin but love getting a nice tan,...
Pretty cool, I'd love to be able to test foods for gluten :) Hopefully it'll become affordable in a year or two!...
hey, i'm definitely not an expert here, but i agree that the urgency sounds like there's still inflammation in the rectum. rectal meds do sound like a good idea. plus, when was the last time you had...
Hey iPoop, so after a little freaking out I got into my research, read studies about the safety and efficacy of immunomodulators and biologics, and reconciled myself to the idea, haha. -i saw the...
So happy for you that you're in good health! Wishing you another successful surgery tomorrow :)...
i use sunwarrior also. vega brand is really good too--they have a nutritional shake (lots of stuff in there, read it all to make sure you can handle all of it. it does have greens which is why i...
i had a colonoscopy last week and i'm in an active flare (controlled somewhat by prednisone, but still there). my doctor didn't offer not prepping as an option. i used the prepopik prep (it's a...
Thank you guys also for your thoughts. :) and thanks again to everyone here-it went well :) Hardest part was gettiing the IV in me(as usual). waking up from the propofol was the nicest feeling ive...
I'm glad the flagyl's working for you. C diff always sounds so scary to me. I hope you feel better soon :)...
Thank you guys!! DBwithUC--Hmm, thank you. I'll just be keeping my fingers crossed at this point!! I've got T minus 2 hours till the prep begins... :shakehead: but I think I can handle this--I just...
Soo I have my 2nd ever colonoscopy scheduled for tomorrow, 7:30 am. I know I need to get through this to see how far my disease has progressed and get on a medication that will help me. But m going...
Wow, this looks really interesting. Thanks for sharing, I wanna keep an eye out for this one! Check this part out, found it on their Ulcerative Colitis page: "Both patients had full resolution of...
I was at 6.4 less than 3 weeks ago. Since it's under 8, the doctor called and told me I should go to the ER for a blood transfusion. But, like the posters above, I had adjusted to this level and I...
I like her fun, positive outlook. Made me smile :smile:...
He should not be doing party drugs with this condition...drug interactions aside, there are way too many risks. Especially if he's in a flare, having bleeding, things can get out of control so...
Is it low or high? I ask because when I went for my iron IV yesterday they had to check my blood pressure twice before beginning because it was too low......
@Worriedgirl3 - I feel like a biologic is probably the best option. That's what I'm looking at now as well. But I didn't realize you were pregnant--my heart goes out to you! Flaring is bad enough,...
Yup. Also, watch out for mood swings as your body adjusts to new levels of Pred. (I've heard not everyone gets them, but they are very common.) I remember being totally unprepared for that my first...
What type of work do you do? I think the way in which you bring it up will depend on that, and your work culture. For instance, do you get to speak directly with your boss or do you communicate with...
Oh wow. I hope it kicks in too!! But I wonder if there is another steroid option cause if you can't do 40 mg, and it already hasn't worked well in the past...its definitely not sounding good. Are you...
I hate it too!! I mean I love what it is doing for my body right now--I can actually eat again. But I remember what it did to my mind last time...and I'm terrified that will happen again. I already...
How many mg's are you taking and for how long so far? I just started 40 mg on Thursday to get a pretty bad flare under control. So far, I am eating a little more without being "punished" for it. I'm...
My first scope was during a mild flare for my diagnosis. That was 4 years ago and my flares have become much worse so my new GI wants a scope in 2 weeks. She already put me on pred tho to get this...
Hey all, So I recently found out that I have severe anemia because of my flare. Found out my hemoglobin is 6.4, and ferritin is 3. i was recommended to go to the ER for a blood transfusion, but was...
hey, it's almost 80 degrees where I am today! @mybellyhurts guess today's the day for remission? :wink: I feel much less alone knowing you guys here get the same comments! Which, btw, got another one...
-Older folks who come into my job and make remarks that "I don't know about sickness/pain/etc." because of my youth. Please, most times they tell me their health problems, and believe me, UC is a...
I had just started a workout routine when my work schedule got out of control, and my flare hit me soon after. My goal, after I get started on my medication and *hopefully* acheive remission, is to...
Hey WorriedUCer, -I know exactly how you feel with the whole "pushing friends away" thing. I do it too. Not exactly intentionally; but when in a flare, it is almost too difficult for me to...
@uniformcharlie, sorry for the delayed response! -Thank you for the info on polysorbate 80! I also saw what coffeemate saw--that the carrageenan can induce colitis. But the study I read on...
Yes, definitely avoid any products with carrageenan! A few years ago, during a very mild flare, I noticed I would react strongly to certain foods that weren't supposed to be irritating...after some...
The brand Natural Vitality makes a product called Natural Calm, it's a powder magnesium citrate. I think it comes in flavors and unflavored. (not sure if I can post a link to the product--I am not...
Thanks again. I'm honestly terrified to try another, because of how severe the reaction was to Asacol HD. It took a mild little flare and just blew it out of the water. But I'm in pretty bad shape...