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Okay...

Hi,
I'm a 41 year old Norwegian who'se had Chrons for a number of years now, for the most part without having a clue I had it.
Anyway, I recon it started around 10 years ago while I was living and working in Oslo. One day I wen't home from work with severe abdominal pains. That would not let up until I puked. I figured it was some bad food, as I also had the runs for a few days.

This continued to hit me maybe twice a year. And well, my diet was quite hoorendous at the time. So I explained it aways with bad food.
Then I got really hit. By then it was 2003, and I was working for the UN in Iraq on the heels of the invasion. I was locked up in our Basrah hotel for 3 days with severe pains. Since the food there was not good, Again I thought food poisoning. Until my collegues brought me to a Czech field hospital, where I recieved some injections and the pain subsided.

It would later hit me again in the Sudan, and in Sri Lanka. By now I had constant diorrhea...and still did not see a doctor. Since I was in the tropics I always reasoned it would be bad water, something wrong with the food. But by now I staued away from most fruit...as when I had an orrange that meant I would have a flare up. I did not know it was my small intestine getting narrower due to the infections.

Then I met my wife and got married in Thailand, and moved to a small village far out in the boonies there. One day there was a festival, and we were all looking at or participating in the parade, when I started to feel sick. So I went home. By the time my wife got home I was shaking with the fever, and my temp was 39,5 Celcius. Then the pains hit.

I was brought to the local clinic, who gave me a shot for the pain. And then it was on to hospital. They treated me for pain and filled me with antibiotics...and after 3 days I was sent home. But the next day the pain hit again...straight back to hospital where I was admitted with severe pain in my abdomen. This time they thought it was my appendix. And while the doctor told me this I was hit by a pain that I have never before or never since felt. Minutes later I was prepped for surgery to have my appendix removed.

When I woke up it was with an operation wound not only where my appendix was located. But also one streching from just above my navel and down to my pubic hair. I panicked. I was in a hospital in a foreign country where nobody but the surgeon who had operated on me, and my wife spoke passable Englsih, yet alone my native Norwegian. I suspected they had taken som organs without asking etc. And my wife, while she spoke English okay, was unable to translate the medical jargon the nurses and the doctors where using. And the surgeon who spoke English I did not see until hours later.

Thats when I found out my appendix was found to be fine, so they let that be, and wen't exploring. Thats when they found my perforated ileum. They had cut of about 15 cm, and reconnected it. Anyway, I recovered quickly and after a week or so I was sent home wich a bunch of pain killers and antibiotics.

I only stayed home for a few hours. The next morning I was on my way to the hospital again with severe abdominal pain. It would turn out the sutures in my ileum had ruptured...

New operation. And waking up with drainage hoses sticking out on both sides of my bowels....I stayed in hospital for 6 weeks this time, fighting peritonitis.
Well, the upside is that I gave up smoking, and lost about 30 of my 95 kilos...well the kilos have returned with a vengeance...lol

Anyway...a month after being released I returned to Norway in august 2008, and my wife followed once her paperwork cleared, and I had a good year and a half with no flare ups. I could even eat fruit again! By that time I had not tasted an orange since 2003. It was now January 2011. Over the last few months I had felt a few bowel pains but not as severe as before. But by the end of january it hit me big time. And this time puking was not enough to make it stop.

I was completely blocked it turned out when I arrived at the hospital. New operation removing 30-40 cm of my small intestine. The problem this time was that the scar tissue from the previous two operations was blocking the passage in the ileum.

Out again. Spent a couple of months on the couch and recovered in time for fishing season. But now the specialists at my hospital finally got hold of me, and got me under treatment. That was after another flare up in may. They started me on Prednisolon to knock my infection down. Did not work. In june they put me trough colonoscopy and MMR, becosue the doc wanted to have a look and make sure....I finally had my diognosis...Chrons.

Since then I have been on Imurel...but my liver and gall balder numbers sky rocketed, so I had to stop that. Been on oral Methotrexate wich is useless. I am on the porcelain throne around 10 times a day, and I feel tired, lazy and I am scared to lift up my 1 year old son becosue he may kick my right bowel.

But I saw my doctor yesterday,and once I have done some vaccines fro season flue and some other stuff, he'll start me on Humira injections...

Thats where I am at now...
 
Location
Ireland
Wow. That's quite a ride you've been on, my friend. I hope you get some answers as regards which meds work for you. Welcome to the forum. Feel free to ask questions for advice, support, etc.
 

Jessi

Moderator
Hey Norseman and welcome to the family! I'm glad you were finally given an answer. You sure have been through a crazy time. :hug:

My husband knew a few people that passed away while they were in Iraq 10 years ago with abdominal pains. They weren't getting any care or treatment, because everyone passed it off as dysentary. You are very lucky that you got care while there. :)

You must've felt like Ironman waking up after surgery, not knowing what they had done :voodoo: or what they were saying.

I'm happy for you that you're finally getting treatment. Heaven knows you deserve it!!! Humira works really well for a lot of people. I hope it does the trick for you. We have a Humira sub-forum where you can find a lot of support. http://www.crohnsforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=59

Again, welcome. I hope you find comfort here. I know I certainly do!! :D
 

xJillx

Your Story Forum Monitor
Hi and welcome! Boy, you've been through so much (and in so many places)! I am sorry after a few procedures, your Crohn's is still acting up.

I hope Humira will be the drug that works wonders for you. Crossing my fingers!
 

David

Co-Founder
Location
Naples, Florida
Greetings and welcome :)

The first thing that comes to mind when I read your story is, "Vitamin B12". With that much intestine resected AND with active Crohn's, the chance you are deficient if you're not supplementing could be quite high. I would strongly suggest getting your levels checked as it may be what's causing your fatigue.

Again, welcome. Please keep us updated and I wish you well :)
 
Welcome Norseman-glad you found us! I have to agree with David-I have had my B vitamin levels become so low they didn't even register in the blood test, and I was so exhausted it was struggle to even get up out of bed. Having diarrhea 10 times a day is definitely not helping, either.

I like Nature's Bounty sublingual liquid B-12-I aim for 2,000 mcg a day at least. Also try including vitamin D-2000 mg 3 times a day has done wonders for my Crohn's symptoms. I hope you find this helpful, and I wish you improved health and better days ahead :)
 
Hi and thanks for all the support.

David and Mountaingem I'll definately look into getting more vitamins into me. I have a 1 year old boy, so I allready take A D and E vitamins as he is not eating his cod liver oil that is the traditional stuff we force on our kids here in Norway, unless he see me take some too, lol. Besides it's also natural anti inflamatory I believe.

That leaves the B12, so I'll pick up some of that during the weekend shopping round...
 
Ah yes klippfisk! I find some of my father's native dishes hard to appreciate,too! Just want to remind you to take the highest dose you can find in the supplements as most of us are very difficient.
 
He, he... the cod liver oil is meant to be taken by the spoon. When I was a boy it tasted horrible, and my mom forced it on me. These days they come with all sorts of flavours to mask the terrible taste. And also in pill form. But I belive the traditional liquid one is better, so thats what we give little Mr. Smelly Pants...hence thats what I have to force down too...well, we use the Lime tasting version.

Else, oh yes we definately have our share of weird food up here....lol
 
I completely understand what you went through. It was a long ride for me to get my diagnosis as well several years infact. Just like you it took a surgery to finally get a proper diagnosis. I have been on a lot of drugs. Right now I take 40mg of Humira a week. This has helped. But it is the max dose you can take. This is one injection a week. most people take one injection a month. The only problem I have had is somehow I ended up with CDIF. They think it is because of how much the humira lowers my immune system. the one benefit is that if you suffer from arthritis from your crohns the humira will help with that also.
 

PsychoJane

Moderator
Hello Norseman,
Did you try the MTX in injection or only in tablets. I am not sayin it is a miraculous drug for us but it is known to not really be effective in tablets and more appropriate for us by injection cause the adsorption can be really bad due to crohn activity. Plus, when you take the tablets, your liver fights for up to 20% more to clean the substance. Therefore, you get lots of side effects compared to the injection. I am just sayin that as it is not necessarily a bad idea to keep the MTX at the same time you have the humira. Everyone behave differently to these meds, but the MTX prevent the loss of humira effectiveness due to the build up of antibodies to the Humira (up to 38% will built some). So it is something to consider, but I would totally understand only taking one of them... I take both cause humira was not working anymore on it's own.
 
Stopped by pharmacy and got some Berocca as a B12 booster. It's the strongest they could sell me without a receipt from a doctor, and has 10 micrograms of the stuff in it.

But it also has the 400 microgr. of folic acid. And I am on 1 mg tablets of those alrady so a little concerned there...

Also it said not to use a s a vitamin booster if you have lowered vitamin absorbtion due to chronic problems with your intestines...

But its only a 12 day pack, of the type you disolve in water, so I'll try them. And do the test next time I get an audience with a doctor...
 
Good call Jane, Methotrexate was ineffective for me in pill form, but when given as a intramuscular injection it works great!
 
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