HELP

Michael,

I wish I had some better ideas, but here is the few things I've learned over the last 15 years:

Gatorade has a lot of sugar, and that can add to the diarrhea. One of my doctors suggested I cut it down to a 50/50 mix of Gatorade and water. Check into things like Pedialyte, which is a no sugar re hydration drink for children. I noticed that sometimes the Gatorade tended to make things worse, or even trigger problems with me.

Saltines are good, but if you can tolerate it, something with a little more "bulk" or fiber might slow things down a bit. I understand that not all of us can tolerate the fiber though.

It was recommended that I try Citrucel or some similar thing to help slow down the "flow" Again, fiber, so you really have to be careful if you have gut narrowing.

As for the sore corn chute, diaper rash cream works for me. I've never tried baths, but I've heard some say they help.


And...
What I've learned from my hospital stays...

They have always put me on NPO, nothing by mouth. Unless you can do your own IV's, this is a real pain. You would need some sort of fluid. Anyway, stopping all solid food for a couple of days seems to help a bit, that and all the drugs. Prednisone seems to be the trick, but I wouldn't suggest messing with that without a DR. around.

Basically, fluid in small quantities and watch out for sugar.

I hope you get it sorted out. I know without health insurance I couldn't afford to be sick.

Wheat bread, if you can handle it. Mashed potatoes are a big favorite for the Crohn's crowd. White rice, Bananas, toast.

Fish works well for me. Something simple, it digests easily and is generally good for you.

I guess some of it depends on which way your Crohn's goes. If you get a lot of diarrhea, things to slow it down work well. If you have constrictions in your gut from scar tissue, then fiber heavy things will cause a lot of pain, and maybe even blockage.

I've found that if I try something new, start slow and in small quantities, I can figure things out without getting in to much trouble. Like while bananas work well for some, they cause me a lot of pain. Mashed potatoes are almost always workable when I'm in flare.

Beware of milk and dairy products. Even if you are not lactose intolerant, you can have issues when things are in flare.

Stress is an issue, even though they say the disease is not caused by it, it does play a roll. At least for me it does.

With all the fluid loss, also watch out for kidney stones. Sounds like you are doing your best to stay hydrated. I have a big issue in this department. Whenever my disease starts to kick up, and it is summer time, I can almost always count on kicking out a stone or two in the next few months. I just had one a few weeks ago. Watch out for lower back pain, on one side or the other. They are not fun.

This has been extremely helpful from each of you, thanks

Curley, It is called CHIPS-Comprehensive Health Insurance Program, for the state of Nebraska. Truthfully, I have a wonderful mother and father in law who are both pharmists, so I went to an Emergency Care place that wrote me a script and they filled it for me. That is the only way I have gotten this far without going to the ER.

I really appreciate everyones advice, as many of you know, it can be very easy to become emotionally weak from a bad flare up, so right now this was the support I needed. Being 24, this seems a little rough for so young, but a few weeks back I did some autograph signing at a Crohns and Colitis walk in Omaha, NE and saw manyyoung childern, I cant imagine how they must take it. So blessings to all, thanks again

First off so sorry you are so ill.
I cant take Ensure it gives me the runs really bad.
Have you been offically told you have crohns? i not you need to be checked for C-diff and Haaba syndrome please google both.

Go the the hospital your health is worth more than dying wasting away. They cant do you anything just pay 5 dollars a month on the bills you cant go to jail for not paying medical bills.What state are you in??
hugs,sm

Someone suggested diaper rash cream- calmoseptine has been a life saver for me.  It's got menthol in it, and I find it very cooling and soothing, as well as giving you a moisture barrier.  Drug stores don't seem to carry it routinely, but they can order it for you.  Just don't use it on a baby.  My surgeon said that a baby's nerves will interpret the tingling of the menthol as pain.  For me, it was a little itchy the first time or two, but after that it's been a huge relief.

Good luck.