I’m treated at Brigham and Womens in MA and am really happy with my care. I go to their office in Chestnut Hill, MA, but I believe one or two of their doctors also practice in Foxboro, MA. Not sure...
I wanted to chime in and say that I’ve tried many natural meds. I’ve now come to see that natural meds work together with my biologic therapy. I eat paleo, take turmeric, practice yoga, go to...
Hi Everyone, Thanks for all of your great feedback. This thread sort of took off — which I didn’t expect! Unfortunately, my early Feb Entyvio infusion was denied by insurance because my employer...
Thank you all so very much for sharing your perspective and wisdom. It's given me lots to think about this week. I will write more later but for now I wanted to let you know that I really appreciate...
Thank you so much for your words of support! It's a mess. Someone is calling me this afternoon to fill me in on what is going on. My last Entyvio claim has been processing for 2 weeks and I'm...
Hi, I’m wondering if people disclose their diagnosis to HR departments at work? I discovered this past weekend that my employer accidentally switched me to a new health insurance plan on Feb 1. It’s...
Thank you! I hope I have many years of success with Entyvio like you. My fingers are crossed....
I did well for several years on Humira. I had to increase the dose to weekly injections, but overall it was a good med for me. I stopped in 2022 because of side effects and have now switched to...
Hi All, I posted in January and wanted to give an update here. I started Entyvio in October and then had COVID twice (Nov and Dec). Needless to say, my GI system was a mess this winter! I had another...
Hi Everyone, Thank you for your suggestion and words of support! My apologies that it took me a long time to get back to this thread. My GI was dealing with a family emergency when I initially...
Thank you all for your responses and support. To clarify, when I last saw my GI, I was experiencing symptoms but doing a bit better than this, so we made a plan to check in at end of January — my...
Thank you, OldHat! It feels like a flare. There’s urgency and pain. Having COVID twice this winter definitely wasn’t fun and I’m wondering if it threw my body off track and made the flare worse. It’s...
Thanks for your perspective! The more I think about it, I think I’m willing to hand over some money for probiotics— I know there’s data on them. My other concern is that my GI typically advises only...
Hi All, I read and browse the forum often, but haven’t posted for a long time. I’ve had UC for 5 years (diagnosed in 2017 I think? I’ve lost track!) I was stable on weekly Humira injections for many...
The Crohns and Colitis center at Brigham and Womens hospital. It’s in Chestnut Hill, MA. I see Josh Korzenik but hear good things about all the docs....
Thank you both so much! I just emailed my doctor to see if I could get blood work and stool test before our apt in mid-Aug. He's a great doctor and I know he would have done all of that at the apt,...
Thanks for responding! Yes, during my initial flares (when I was diagnosed years ago) my ankles were super swollen. I have no other extra-intentional symptoms. I’ve never had problems with my eyes or...
Hi! My UC has been well controlled for a few years with weekly Humira. I’m now experiencing daily loose stools and very swollen ankles. I’m switching to a super simple diet and after emailing with my...
Dr. Josh Korzenik at Brigham and Women’s is great. He used to be at MGH but moved over to Brigham (Chestnut Hill, MA) within the past 10 years. Wonderful, forward thinking care....
That’s good news! I’m hoping it works for you!...
Don’t give up hope yet! I struggled at first with Humira and weekly injections have been my sweet spot. I’m now in remission. Hoping the insurance comes through quickly for you....
Hi Sarah, I’ve experimented a good amount with diet. Right now I eat modified Paleo. That with Humira keeps me in remission. I LOVE Danielle Walker’s cookbooks (she has 4). Not all of her recipes are...
I'm in Boston where there have been a few cases. I take weekly Humira and saw my GI last week. Overall, I'm doing well, so my GI encouraged me to keep on with life as usual. However, the doc did want...
I'm low in magnesium and therefore take 400 mg of Magnesium Glycinate daily. I couldn't tolerate this while I was flaring and I'd advise be careful with this supp -- it can cause diarrhea. If you're...
When I took Uceris tablets, my GI did have me taper off of them -- I did one day on and one day off (if I remember correctly, it's one 9mg pill and there's no way to break it so that was the only way...
Thanks for letting me know!...
Thanks for all the ideas! I have ACV at home so will try that starting tonight. I've read about the candida diet, but honestly it feels too restrictive (my diet is already pretty restrictive....)...
Hi! This is a minor issue but everyone here seems so helpful so I thought I would ask. I've been experiencing reoccurring oral thrush for the past year. It all started when I want on Humira and I'm...
Hi Crazydad, I tried Uceris during a mild flare. My memory is that my doc said to at least give it at least a week to work. I've been on Turmeric a while, but again my memory is that my doc said to...
I took it while I was on methotrexate. I hated my experience with methotrexate and I don’t think the folic acid helped me much at all. Glad it’s helping you!!...
Sara, How frequently are you taking the Humira? I had to go up to weekly injections to get a good result. My GI tells me that 40% of UC patients need weekly injections. I would get the bloodwork...
Yes, I would agree that the hardest part about it is the "pill burden" as my doc calls it. But I think it's worth it, and certainly worth a try for your son! I follow a diet that is gluten-free and...
Crazydad, I was in a rush when I responded on Friday and I wanted to post a few other thoughts about curcumin and supps in case they help you and your son. While I credit Humira for keeping me in...
I take curcumin And Boswellia Serata — both supps were recommended by my doc and I believe that they help. The dose of curcumin that my doc recommended is pretty high — 1.5 grams twice a day. I...
I'll chime in to say that my GI (who I really like and think is a bit more progressive) has always encouraged diet exploration. I was lucky enough to meet with a dietician at the IBD center that I go...
I’m sorry you’re going through this! Certain psych meds can make you constipated. I don’t know enough about lexapro, lamictal, and zyprexa, but you may ask your psychiatrist if this is a contributing...
You might try taking the trazodone earlier than 10 pm. I take trazodone as a sleep aid and my psychiatrist has recommended taking it 1.5–2 hours before bedtime. I tried Wellbutrin and had to stop as...
I’m in the US. I’m newly in remission and my GI and I just started spacing apts to every 4 months. Before we were meeting every 6-8 weeks. I email most issues over the patient portal and my doctors...
I’m so glad it all worked out for you Sara! I’ve had some leakage before and my doc’s recommendation has been to not inject a second pen. You’re exactly right, it’s impossible to know how much...
My doc recommends curcumin and Boswellia Serrata as supps in addition to mainstream meds. I take curcumin daily. The dose is pretty high to get benefit (3 g which works out to 6 pills for me). I...
I got some immediate relief from the Humira loading doses so my GI and I suspected it was the right med for me. I was on a Pred bridge while the medicine took effect. It's a bit of a blur now (I was...
Sara, I’m sorry to hear about your test results. I’ve had great success with Humira—feel free to ask me any questions about it. It took a few months for me to reach remission and I ended up...
Thanks for all the info — much appreciated!!...
Hi! So far I've tried Pulmicort, Symbicort, and Flovent. It's been trial and error with all of them at different doses. The Flovent seems to work best at the highest dose. However, I'm still having...
Hi! Are you in contact with your Humira nurse ambassador? They are great for questions like this! Also, Humira makes travel cases that you can get for free, I take Humira and have traveled before...
Thank you for the quick responses! Heather: No I'm not on any meds for blood pressure. I've had a chest x ray but haven't had an upper scope in over a year. Both my PCP and GI feel strongly that it's...
Hello, I was diagnosed with UC about 2 years. I tried several medications and now my colitis is well controlled on weekly Humira injections. About 6 months ago I developed a persistent cough that my...
Thanks for the response!...
Is Symbicort a better/stronger medication than Pulmicort? I've been on Pulmicort for two months and seem to be getting worse. I have cough variety asthma. Which means that I'm chronically coughing...
I live in Boston and also see Dr. Josh Korzenik at Brigham and Womens in Chestnut Hill, MA. I highly recommend Josh and the center. Best of luck to you and your daughter! -Lisa...