• Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.

Help.

I have no idea what to do anymore.
My partner is so down, he has terrible haemorrhoids at the minute, intermittent bleeding and constant pain and mucas coming from his back passage. It his making him really negative.
Along with a couple of strictures an abundance of inflammation and a BMI of 15 ...

I just don't know what to do anymore.

He is currently trying LDN, been on it for 2 weeks but seeing no effect.. I realise it's early days.
It's been suggested perhaps fecal transplant? Any advice?
I'm looking for someone to tell me it's all going to be ok, we are getting married in September.. I know nobody can tell me this but I just don't know how to best support him anymore?

*sorry for the moan*
 

Cat-a-Tonic

Super Moderator
That definitely is early days for LDN. I'm on it myself, and I had read that it can take "weeks or months" to fully kick in, but didn't specify anything further than that. It seems to be a little different for everybody. For me, it seemed like 3 months was where I really started feeling significantly better. So do give it some more time. I know waiting is not fun, but so much of this illness seems to be "hurry up and wait." Or at least that's my experience.

I've also dealt with bleeding hemorrhoids and I know that horribleness all too well. Is your partner on any sort of treatment for the hemorrhoids? I was on steroid suppositories for mine, which helped somewhat. I also had iron infusions as the bleeding eventually made me very deficient in iron.

You also mentioned that he's got a lot of inflammation. Is he on any other meds besides LDN? He might want to look into a course of steroids (prednisone or entocort) to get the inflammation under control. That's what I've been doing, I'm on pred for my flare that started last year in July (I'm tapering off of it, I started at 40 mg and I'm now down to 7 mg) and I'm on LDN as my long-term maintenance medication. It's my hope that pred will get me fully out of the flare and LDN will keep me flare-free for awhile. If he's only on LDN, he really should talk with his doctor about adding something else into the mix to get the inflammation under control.

I can't tell you for sure it will all be okay - I can tell you that it will probably be okay, and I can tell you that there will be difficult times and there will also be good times. If you married someone without Crohn's, they would still have their share of life's challenges, just in a different form. These are your partner's specific challenges, that's all. remission is possible, I'm fighting hard to get there myself. For what it's worth, I've been married for 14 years and ill for 7 of those years. I'm sure it's been a challenge for my husband, but he's stuck by me even through some very difficult times, just like I've stuck by him through his own difficult times (unemployment, kidney stones, etc). Just like everything in life, there are hard times and good times, whether or not chronic illness is involved. From your post, it sounds like he's going through a very tough time right now, and I think you're doing the right thing by reaching out for help. Just reaching out says to me that you care about him a lot, and that's a big thing. I think you'll be fine, but for right now, make sure he asks his doctor for treatment options for the hemorrhoids and inflammation. Him feeling better will make things easier on you as well. Good luck!
 
I've heard very positive things about fecal transplants, I think it would be worth trying. I hope he feels better soon and that you are getting done support too x
 
Top