Help please

I got diagnosed with Crohn's disease & the colonoscopy result shows that my large colon got a lot of inflammations & the connection b/n the large & the small intestine is swollen to the point my dr. couldn't access my small intestine. Right now i feel normal but my doctor told me i need to start taking Azathioprine which could lower my immune system & i may end up with some kind of infection. I am so scared and i've been praying. Should i start the treatment or just hope it will all go away by tomorrow.

Hi, I am 25 and I was diagnosed with Crohns back in 2007. I took Azathiprine when the other drugs didnt work, unfortunately it didnt agree with me but not everyone is the same! I understand where you are coming from, it's a scary thing to have (crohns) and with the treatment available there will always be a side effect, but if you leave your crohns untreated it won't go away it will only get worse. If you find the Azathioprine doesnt work for you there are more alternatives. I am starting a new drug next week called Humira which is a TNF Blocker, where I will be injecting myself at home, unfortunatley I have tried 5/6 different treatments for Crohns and so far none have agreed with me so I am hoping this new treatment will work. I am also anxious about starting this as there is a risk of severe infections due to being an immune suppressant but that is a risk i am going to take because I can't handle the pain anymore. I hope the Azathioprine works for you and that you will be ok. Just remembe, everyone is different, and if you do find that this drug doesn't work for you, your gp/consultant is there to help and will find you other alternatives. Unfortunatley there is no cure for crohns but with medication and the right diet and some lifestyle changes it can be controlled.
I hope this has helped.

Best Wishes

The meds can be scary, but you need to take care of your Crohn's. Don't let your crohn's get so bad that the meds don't work. If you are concerned about the med, ask for an alternative. Everyone handles medication differently, and you might not have any side effects at all. Good luck

Hi and welcome! Please don't ignore your disease. It won't just go away. Your doctor would only suggest Azathioprine if he thought it was needed and that your health is at great risk by not being on the drug.

The possible side effects can be scary, but many are very, very rare. I suggest checking out the Imuran/Azathioprine subforum to talk with members currently taking the drug.

I wish you luck, and I hope you get well soon!

Thanks

I am so thankful to hear your perspectives. After all, I am not the only one. I am planning on calling my doctor in a few weeks & start on the medicine.

My son was diagnosed with Crohns when he was 17. He is now 27. He tried most of the medications Kris mentioned above. Our experience has been that we try them all until we find one that works. So far Humira has worked the best and longest for him. He has been in remission for almost 4 years and has recently had a fare up lasting for the past two weeks. He is scheduled for scopes in the next four weeks. The best advice I can offer is to follow your doctors' advice and get the labs as they suggest. My son is an EMT and we were scared too that he might get some illness with his immune system compromised. That hasn't happened but there is always a chance. He has since been married and has a 3 month old little girl and an adopted three year old son. Doctors have told us that Crohns' can't be passed on to children he chooses to have. I hope that is true. I joined this forum so I could get a better understanding of what others are going through with this disease. It is hard on me seeing what my son faces when it is at its worse. I wish everyone on here the best and hang in there.

Hi, I have not long been on Azathioprine and I was the same as you when the doc mentioned it. Try not to read too much into the side effects of the med, as it effects people differently. So far I have experienced sickness and nausea, extreme fatigue, joint aches and pains and headaches BUT my cramps have 80% disappeared and my tolerance to food is getting much better. So if my blood tests come back positive I will happily continue to take it as it means I can get back to leading my life like I did before this flare up.
Hang in there!! Good luck!

HI Enew, i know the drugs are scary, but it's better to take the drug to see if it will work and calm down the inflammation that is in your colon especially. if he can't make it to your small intestine the inflammation must be bad. So, it's better to be on the medication and let it do it's job so you can help your symptoms and calm down the pain. best of wishes and i hope the medication works for you. best wishes.

You've had great advice above, so I don't need to repeat any of that. I just wanted to extend you a very warm welcome and say we hope to see you around the community. I wish you nothing but the best

I was on Azathioprine for 8 years and very rarely caught a bug/cold!

Hi welcome

I hope that when you start to take the meds that the inflammation goes down.

Enew said:

I got diagnosed with Crohn's disease & the colonoscopy result shows that my large colon got a lot of inflammations & the connection b/n the large & the small intestine is swollen to the point my dr. couldn't access my small intestine. Right now i feel normal but my doctor told me i need to start taking Azathioprine which could lower my immune system & i may end up with some kind of infection. I am so scared and i've been praying. Should i start the treatment or just hope it will all go away by tomorrow.

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Welcome to this forum first.
Now read your post again. Your doc couldn't access your sm intestine due to an inflammation/ blockage and you are not sure about the treatment? All meds have side effects and it is up to you to decide if you want to be a" fighter" or a passive sufferer. It's very important to trust your doctor, check his credentials, ask questions . I hope your praying helps, but I'd start the suggested treatment ASAP.

Hi there :welcome: I agress with others here with their advice, doctor's mom is correct, let your doctor help you. I have had scopes where they couldn't access my Ileum either and that could mean a possible blockage, and that is extremely painful. The swelling needs to come down so he can do a proper colonoscopy and get through. This disease does not go away on it's own, it can go into remission but it is rare on it's own and you could do more harm than good. Discuss with your doctor the dosages you are on and see if you could gradually up the dose if necessary? I react to it so I have different avenues to use. Most Gi's are good at controlling the disease. Left unattended you could end up in ER. Keep your hands clean and keep away from sick people, flu season is coming and use antibacterial gel but only necessary when going out to the public, overuse is just as bad as not enough. Glad you found us, hope we have helped you. Keep us posted on how you are doing ok? Take care.