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New to this looking for help realy!

new to this looking for help realy!

hi im andy, i have just been diagnosed with crohns, after being messed around for 12 months my the docs! have been given mesalazine, and a course of steroids (prednisolone) and some vitamins! been on them since monday and to me, they dont seem to be having any affect, feel as though have got a football stuck my back end! and the pain going to the toilet is realy bad, sleeping is a joke, have had about an hour a night for the past week! any advice? when do the steriods start to work? thnkyou if you reply. andy x
 
Welcome :)

Everyone is different but I would have thought it should have given you some relief. I would call your doctor and maybe they can help you more if you are still suffering and not getting even a little relieved from the meds. I know this does not help much and I am sorry but my best advice and what I would do is call the doctor.
 
hi Andy, welcome to the forum :)

i agree about giving the doctor a call... are you under a GI yet? if so, you'll probably have a IBD nurse who has a patient telephone line - if so, you could call her instead.

i really don't know how long those meds take to kick in, but certainly steroids are known for reducing inflammation reasonably quickly.. maybe it is working but your inflammation in that area is quite bad, and you're just not feeling the benefit yet.

have you been given dietary advice? sometimes what we eat makes a big difference to the discomfort level.
 
thanks for the advice, havent been given any number to call, or who to contact if have problems apart from my gp! havent been given any dietry advice either! have to have an mri scan next week for the area in question and i think i have developed an ulcer which is problem, (bleeding and sore) but im going to see the doc today and see what they say
 
What dose of pred are you on? If you are having an mri they might have given you a fairly low dose, as pred can mask the inflammation, then they won't know for sure if you have an ulcer or not.
 
i have just started an 8 week course, 8 5mg a day for a week then 7 aday for a week and so on, right down to 1 a day on the 8th week, and im on 400mg of mesalazine 2 tabs 3 times a day!
 

Astra

Moderator
Hi Andy
and welcome fellow Brit

40mg of Pred is the usual dose at first, just give it a few more days, it's only been 5 days, Pred will kick in very quickly soon and you'll notice the difference straight away. The secret of Pred is to stay on this dose for a MONTH, not a week to let it do it's magic, then start tapering down, but bear in mind the doc might want this cos you're having a scan.
As regards to sleeping, Pred can cause insomnia, so take it very early in the morning to reduce these side effects. I used to take mine at 6am.
Try the low residue diet - this will help to reduce diarrhea and give your bowels a rest.
Read what and what not to eat here:

http://www.healthcastle.com/low-residue-[wiki2="Fiber"]fiber[/wiki2]-diet.shtml

Your Pentasa (mesalazine) is an apirin type med, to ward off future flares, to maintain. This won't kick in yet. The Pred will get the inflammation under control, then the Pentasa will maintain.
Make sure your doc has given you CalciChew, this is a calcium med, cos Pred is a bone robber.
Good luck and any questions, fire away
lotsa luv
Joan xxx
 
thank you so much joan and to every one that has replied, looks like its a patience game, so i will be patient and see how it goes, once again thankyou xx andy xx
 
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