Hi,
Apparently I joined a while back when dealing with C Diff. but never did a proper introduction. I was diagnosed almost ten years ago and since then I have had a partial colecotomy, a handful of colonoscopies, numerous x-rays/cat scans, and enough variations on "we don't know what to tell you since Crohn's affects everyone differently" that the wonders of modern medicine has become lackluster. I've been on Remicade, Humira, azathioprine, and even prednisone when things get bad enough. For the most part I have been lucky with my symptoms and with having support from friends, family, and decent doctors.
The complication in my case, which I haven't found mentioned on these forums but hopefully others have experience with, is that I have alexithymia. In short it means an inability to identify and process emotions in myself. This isn't repression or buried emotions, rather the parts of the brain (including spontaneous imagination) dealing with emotion are completely cut off from the conscious mind. The body still reacts to emotions and stress, but since the brain can't process anything, it just sits around piling up until in manifests through Crohn's or something else.
Some studies have been done (I can post the links if there is any interest) showing that the effectiveness of any Crohn's treatment is dependent on how well the alexithymia is being addressed. Unfortunately, even the few psychologists/therapists/etc. that have heard of it are usually at a loss for how to address it since the vast majority of psychological treatments are based on working with emotions (useless in this case).
My hope is that there are others like me on this forum, and can pool what information is out there to find ways to better cope.
Apparently I joined a while back when dealing with C Diff. but never did a proper introduction. I was diagnosed almost ten years ago and since then I have had a partial colecotomy, a handful of colonoscopies, numerous x-rays/cat scans, and enough variations on "we don't know what to tell you since Crohn's affects everyone differently" that the wonders of modern medicine has become lackluster. I've been on Remicade, Humira, azathioprine, and even prednisone when things get bad enough. For the most part I have been lucky with my symptoms and with having support from friends, family, and decent doctors.
The complication in my case, which I haven't found mentioned on these forums but hopefully others have experience with, is that I have alexithymia. In short it means an inability to identify and process emotions in myself. This isn't repression or buried emotions, rather the parts of the brain (including spontaneous imagination) dealing with emotion are completely cut off from the conscious mind. The body still reacts to emotions and stress, but since the brain can't process anything, it just sits around piling up until in manifests through Crohn's or something else.
Some studies have been done (I can post the links if there is any interest) showing that the effectiveness of any Crohn's treatment is dependent on how well the alexithymia is being addressed. Unfortunately, even the few psychologists/therapists/etc. that have heard of it are usually at a loss for how to address it since the vast majority of psychological treatments are based on working with emotions (useless in this case).
My hope is that there are others like me on this forum, and can pool what information is out there to find ways to better cope.