Hi everyone, I'm 21 years old. I'm from Canada and I was diagnosed with Crohn's about 2 or 3 months ago. It all started about a year ago when i started getting terrible stomach aches, I developed a perianal abcess, my appetite started to diminish, and I began losing weight rapidly. I played on the track and field team at my university where I competed in weight throw and shot put (I was 220 lbs).
I went to see the doctor initially where he said my stomach aches were probably stress related and gave me medication for hemorroids. Once I began losing weight and sleeping 12-14 hours a day because I was so weak I returned and then was given anti-depressants as I was diagnosed with depression (I was probably fairly depressed because I didn't know what was going on with my body).
Anyways, by the end of the year I decided to find a new doctor to help me and within a month or so I was getting a colonoscopy and given a diagnosis. By this time i was 165 lbs and was quite nutrient deficient and had a terrible track and field year.
After being diagnosed I was prescribed prednisone, and it worked really really well. I felt ten times better and was finally myself again. Now I have just started dental school this past week and I am almost off prednisone and this was the first day that I felt terrible again (stomach ache, little appetite). I don't know if I should take prednisone again, I don't want to become dependant on it, but I also don't want to go through all that pain again.
Anyways thanks for listening, and I hope I can gain some more knowledge about this disease and make some good decisions concerning future medication and treatment. Thanks!
I went to see the doctor initially where he said my stomach aches were probably stress related and gave me medication for hemorroids. Once I began losing weight and sleeping 12-14 hours a day because I was so weak I returned and then was given anti-depressants as I was diagnosed with depression (I was probably fairly depressed because I didn't know what was going on with my body).
Anyways, by the end of the year I decided to find a new doctor to help me and within a month or so I was getting a colonoscopy and given a diagnosis. By this time i was 165 lbs and was quite nutrient deficient and had a terrible track and field year.
After being diagnosed I was prescribed prednisone, and it worked really really well. I felt ten times better and was finally myself again. Now I have just started dental school this past week and I am almost off prednisone and this was the first day that I felt terrible again (stomach ache, little appetite). I don't know if I should take prednisone again, I don't want to become dependant on it, but I also don't want to go through all that pain again.
Anyways thanks for listening, and I hope I can gain some more knowledge about this disease and make some good decisions concerning future medication and treatment. Thanks!
