Does this work?

[Daisy G]

I've been having a pretty severe flare up - full on diarrhea happening!! (diagnosed with Crohns in July '07). Today I had an appointment with the specialist and was prescribed some different drugs (currently on Pentasa). He also advised that I use Metamucil for about 1 month he said the fibre should 'bulk up' my poo. Has anyone ever tried Metamucil while having severe diarrhea?

 

[pb4]

My GI told me to take fibre supplements daily and indefinitely not for just a month, it took me 3 months for my system to adjust to the fibre supplements (it's been 5 yrs since I started taking it everyday) I use Prodiem, it's similar to metamucil and it's helped tons...it's bulked up my stools and cut back my frequency so it's been well worth it. Initially it gave me increased gas and bloating but this was my system adjusting (as mentioned, it took 3 months for me, it varies from person to person)...you should also be sure to drink plenty of water with fibre supplements, though as a CDer you should drink enough water daily anyways.

The fibre supplements also cut out my mucus issues in conjunction with the bee propolis that I use, which also cut my BM's back and stopped all my bleeding and lower back pain...I started with the propolis before I started with the fibre supplements...also, thanks to the fibre supplements I'm now able to tolerate eating fibreous foods without getting all gassy and bloated.

 

[katiesue1506]

I thought fiber made your poo less bulky. I'm so confused. Aren't cereals like Fiber One for people who aren't regular? (can't go poo)

 

[pb4]

I thought fiber made your poo less bulky. I'm so confused. Aren't cereals like Fiber One for people who aren't regular? (can't go poo)

In general, fibre aids with D or C...of course a good balance of fibre aids with this being both soluble and insoluble fibres, but definitely some fibre is better than none at all.

Just be cautious if you have issues with strictures/narrowing/blockages, then low fibre is best.

 

[Daisy G]

Thanks for everyone that responded to my question. It's all good and enlightning to read about other folks experiences. Today I started on 'Mercaptopurine' and will have to see how long it will take to have the desired effect of bringing the diarrhea under control. Not looking forward to the side effect of hair loss though I have already had this happen in the past while on Azathioprine but that was a while back and since then my hair has grown back to normal - so to speak. Yesterday the specialist said it's my choice either Prednisone (had 2 courses of this when first diagnosed and suffered major outbreak of acne) or this Mercaptopurine (which I've never been on b4). Anyway, I looked at the doc. when he asked me and said "so basically my options are either hair loss or acne" ;-( Oh dear, I'm not a vain person but I opted for the hair loss just hope it was the right decision. I will start on the Metamucil tonight and hope for the best.
As you can gather I'm new to this forum (which I think is great) so please ignore my waffling on as I have so much on my mind and it's great to mention it to fellow CD sufferers who understand exactly what I'm saying.