Is it Crohn's?

Hello,

I am new here. A bit of history, I am a 45yr old female. I have suffered with what has been deemed IBS for many years. The bloat and pain has been insufferable so many times. The constipation was also extreme for more years than I can remember.

About 3yrs ago, I went 100% gluten free and it did help about 75% of the time with the "IBS"; however when I got the bouts of bloating and pain, I would writhe in pain for days. I very rarely went to the doctor because I was so tired of hearing "you have IBS and you need to live with it".

About 4 months ago, my system went from completely constipated to absolute liquefaction anytime I ate. In some ways it was a relief from the previous years. I did experience blood during a few of my bowel movements and chalked it up to my friend the hemmeroid despite the fact there was no solids. Once again I didn't go to any doctor for the same reason I gave above.

Fast forward to last Tuesday and the pain came on so suddenly I honestly wished I would die. The pain was as if I had a knife inserted in my rectum and it was being twisted over and over again up to my belly button. This unbelievable white pain came in waves for the next few days. I would buckle into the fetal position and pray it would end soon. I could not move any part of my body during this flare-up with the knife feeling shooting thru my lower abdomen. When it finally stopped, I would lay on the sofa with a heat pad hoping it would not return....but it did over and over again.

Finally on Thursday morning, my hubby witnessed the episode and took my to the doctor. Upon examination, the doctor took my brief history between more bouts and said "it sounds like you have Crohn's" and prescribed Buscopan, Cipro, blood work and a stool sample. By Saturday, I was still in incredible pain and went back to the doctor who prescribed Asacol and a clear liquid diet for 7days.

The combo medication appears to have settled the symptoms - but not eliminated them. I have been on a clear fluid diet since before the doctor mentioning it and have lost 7.5lbs since last Monday (water weight I am sure). That said, I am bummed, tired all the time, still getting stomach pains in waves and am confused. I have researched everything from soup to nuts and don't know what to think.

Can it be Crohn's? I am on a two week supply of the medication, if I stop cold turkey, will the pain come back? I go back to work tomorrow with the fear getting sick "er" again. The doctor did not suggest a GI referral should I request one?

Can this be Crohn's? So may questions so few answers.

Civil

It could be but you SERIOUSLY need to talk to a GI if you can bear the expense. There are so many things that could be wrong down there at this point and it honestly sounds like you need someone who specializes in dealing with these issues. Hopefully your blood test results will convince your doctor/insurance that you need to see a GI.

Luckily for me I live in Canada and do not have to pay for a GI. I am going back to the doctor tomorrow and requesting a referral....hopefully, I won't have to wait months to get in, but in the meantime, is the experience to stay on the meds until then?

Civil, I'm not sure what province you are in ( I'm in Ontario). There is a considerable waiting lists for GI's here a friend of mine just has to wait 6 months! Push for the referral now. And if it gets bad while you wait go to the hospital. It will expedite the referral.

Well, I have been on the medication for one week and have a few more questions.

1) Do you find certain times of day worse than others?

2) I have been on a clear fluid diet for nearly a full week and last night decided to try solids...epic fail, shortly there after, the intense cramping began and I did not make it to the washroom in time is the normal?

3) Since starting the meds, the cramping has been reduced but is not gone, and no affect on the D. is this normal?

4) Until I get a formal diagnosis, should I ask the Dr. for a maintenance program of medication?

Hopefully, the knowledge base here can answer my questions. I am going back to the Dr today and hope to find a few more answers while not writhing in pain.

C

1) I found when things were in a mediocre state, often my issues were more associated to when I ate as opposed to specific times of day. When they were really bad it was all the time.
2) It took a couple weeks before I could eat, and even then I had to work up to it. I had an issue with vomiting after eating if I ate something too heavy. There was lots of instant ramen the first couple of months.
3) It can take time for things to work. With my first flare I was hospitalised on heavy, heavy drugs, it took 3 weeks before I began to see any reduction in D.
4) It doesn't hurt to ask for a program. Your doctor seems to have prescribed a fairly standard cocktail. The only really missing is some form of steroid.

And I will second the idea of pushing for a referral. By the time I received a call to set up an appointment I was already in the hospital, but for the record my disease had progressed super fast. But if there is an ER trip you will most likely acquire a GI at the hospital.