Hello,
my name is Sara I am 22 from Ontario, Canada. I went backpacking to Southeast Asia this past spring and things haven't been the same since! While I was on my trip i was mugged on the beach leaving me with a leg injury. I was admitted to hospital there (more like a portable clinic on an island) and was left in a bed there doped up on narcotics for 9 days. After I could leave the island I was flown home. A couple weeks later the doctors found a blood clot in my leg and I was put on blood thinners. By the end of the summer I was walking and becoming more mobile very slowly. Late summer/early fall I began to notice bowel differences- they looked strange and unhealthy. As summer turned to fall I mentioned it to my doctor. Around October I began to get tested for parasites witch I was likely to have picked up on my trip. My bowel movements were increasing in frequency and decreasing in volume, becoming less formed and harder to control/pass. The increasing tiredness that I assumed to be from the blood thinners increased and I began to feel exhausted. I was nauseous after eating. The stool tests showed positive for the parasite blastocystis hominis and I began a flagyl treatment. I couldn't tolerate the flagyl and for seven days and nights I lied on the bed or my floor in pain so sick to my stomach I thought nothing could ever feel worse. I vomited and tried to wait it out.
I finished the seven days but couldn't finish my last three days. My symptoms continued to get worse and I was referred to an infectious disease doctor and eventually GI. I had a colonoscopy and upper endoscopy revealing inflammation and possibly ulcers. My doctor says I either have ulcerative colitis or crohn's colitis but he suspects crohns. I often have a pain/cramp in my lower right abdomen and my stools have been completely off for months now. Either straight watery or small stringy green pieces that are hard to pass. I pass large amounts of mucous but I don't think I pass much or any blood as far as I can see. Often i see oil on the toilet water. I've lost about 15 pounds or so and my exhaustion is affecting every aspect of my life. I'm exhausted when I get up, have about an hour or two midday of clarity before I get foggy and tired again. I can't concentrate, I'm depressed and I can't see to get my emotions in check whatsoever. I have been on 4 pills of mezavant for 14 days with no improvement. I have been on the SCD diet for 7 days which has taken my cramps/nausea away but I assume thats because I'm barely eating now and living on about 300cals/day. I am told today that I am to start on prednisone soon to see if that will work.
Im pretty devastated by this news as I wanted to try anything and everything else to try and avoid taking steroids. I am going to attempt to make Rick Simpson oil this weekend because I hear the results are fantastic. I am also doing research about the fecal transplants. I think I've covered just about everything, sorry for the graphic descriptions but i figure this is the place to be honest! All in all I know that my Crohn's is not severe and I still maintain a quality of life right now so I hate to complain because i know so many others are worse off, but i can't help feeling really sad right now. I selfishly wish that I had a little more time to be youthful and have fun and travel, eat food, stay at my friends house without care, continue working outdoors without a bathroom close by.. I used to be so energetic and adventurous and now I feel like a different person, sad and tired. i feel like I'm missing out. Anyways that's where I am now, kind of in a limbo between this and taking the prednisone, hoping for some good luck. Thanks for reading
my name is Sara I am 22 from Ontario, Canada. I went backpacking to Southeast Asia this past spring and things haven't been the same since! While I was on my trip i was mugged on the beach leaving me with a leg injury. I was admitted to hospital there (more like a portable clinic on an island) and was left in a bed there doped up on narcotics for 9 days. After I could leave the island I was flown home. A couple weeks later the doctors found a blood clot in my leg and I was put on blood thinners. By the end of the summer I was walking and becoming more mobile very slowly. Late summer/early fall I began to notice bowel differences- they looked strange and unhealthy. As summer turned to fall I mentioned it to my doctor. Around October I began to get tested for parasites witch I was likely to have picked up on my trip. My bowel movements were increasing in frequency and decreasing in volume, becoming less formed and harder to control/pass. The increasing tiredness that I assumed to be from the blood thinners increased and I began to feel exhausted. I was nauseous after eating. The stool tests showed positive for the parasite blastocystis hominis and I began a flagyl treatment. I couldn't tolerate the flagyl and for seven days and nights I lied on the bed or my floor in pain so sick to my stomach I thought nothing could ever feel worse. I vomited and tried to wait it out.
I finished the seven days but couldn't finish my last three days. My symptoms continued to get worse and I was referred to an infectious disease doctor and eventually GI. I had a colonoscopy and upper endoscopy revealing inflammation and possibly ulcers. My doctor says I either have ulcerative colitis or crohn's colitis but he suspects crohns. I often have a pain/cramp in my lower right abdomen and my stools have been completely off for months now. Either straight watery or small stringy green pieces that are hard to pass. I pass large amounts of mucous but I don't think I pass much or any blood as far as I can see. Often i see oil on the toilet water. I've lost about 15 pounds or so and my exhaustion is affecting every aspect of my life. I'm exhausted when I get up, have about an hour or two midday of clarity before I get foggy and tired again. I can't concentrate, I'm depressed and I can't see to get my emotions in check whatsoever. I have been on 4 pills of mezavant for 14 days with no improvement. I have been on the SCD diet for 7 days which has taken my cramps/nausea away but I assume thats because I'm barely eating now and living on about 300cals/day. I am told today that I am to start on prednisone soon to see if that will work.
Im pretty devastated by this news as I wanted to try anything and everything else to try and avoid taking steroids. I am going to attempt to make Rick Simpson oil this weekend because I hear the results are fantastic. I am also doing research about the fecal transplants. I think I've covered just about everything, sorry for the graphic descriptions but i figure this is the place to be honest! All in all I know that my Crohn's is not severe and I still maintain a quality of life right now so I hate to complain because i know so many others are worse off, but i can't help feeling really sad right now. I selfishly wish that I had a little more time to be youthful and have fun and travel, eat food, stay at my friends house without care, continue working outdoors without a bathroom close by.. I used to be so energetic and adventurous and now I feel like a different person, sad and tired. i feel like I'm missing out. Anyways that's where I am now, kind of in a limbo between this and taking the prednisone, hoping for some good luck. Thanks for reading
