Hi All,
I'm a 71 year old Brit/American living in the Philippines and a Crohns/IBS/colitis sufferer for the last 50 of those years.
In the late 1950's I somehow managed to contract one of the above. Thats one contract I don't remember signing.:thumbdown: (I can't be specific because the doctors at the time couldn't tell me). After several bouts in hospital the docs decided to separate me from 4 feet of colon & 7 feet of lower intestine, all of which was "inflamed". This was in Manchester, England. Since then I have tried to live an active life despite the problems of always having to be within sprinting distance of a toilet. (In Zambia, South Africa, Panama and Philippines - countries I have lived in - thats not always easy. As for the standard of such facilities, I would rather not paint you a mental picture).
For the last 20 odd years, I have managed to keep my problem somewhat in check with Immodium/Loperamide - 2 a day - and minimally watching my diet. I still have an average of about 3-4 daily visits plus one real disaster a year. Again, I would rather not paint you a mental picture.
Now, my greatest need is to find a usable stool hardener to save some "nocturnal" accidents and get a good nights sleep. Unfortunately, many drugs that might help are not available in the Philippines e.g. Questran, and are phenomonally expensive to bring in. (Still, I'd like to see the face of the Philippine customs agent who tested it out). But anyone with any ideas that work would become my personal hero/heroine.
Glad to meet you all and reading some of your stories makes me realize that I've been relatively lucky with my sh---y experiences.
Gary Davis
I'm a 71 year old Brit/American living in the Philippines and a Crohns/IBS/colitis sufferer for the last 50 of those years.
In the late 1950's I somehow managed to contract one of the above. Thats one contract I don't remember signing.:thumbdown: (I can't be specific because the doctors at the time couldn't tell me). After several bouts in hospital the docs decided to separate me from 4 feet of colon & 7 feet of lower intestine, all of which was "inflamed". This was in Manchester, England. Since then I have tried to live an active life despite the problems of always having to be within sprinting distance of a toilet. (In Zambia, South Africa, Panama and Philippines - countries I have lived in - thats not always easy. As for the standard of such facilities, I would rather not paint you a mental picture).
For the last 20 odd years, I have managed to keep my problem somewhat in check with Immodium/Loperamide - 2 a day - and minimally watching my diet. I still have an average of about 3-4 daily visits plus one real disaster a year. Again, I would rather not paint you a mental picture.
Now, my greatest need is to find a usable stool hardener to save some "nocturnal" accidents and get a good nights sleep. Unfortunately, many drugs that might help are not available in the Philippines e.g. Questran, and are phenomonally expensive to bring in. (Still, I'd like to see the face of the Philippine customs agent who tested it out). But anyone with any ideas that work would become my personal hero/heroine.
Glad to meet you all and reading some of your stories makes me realize that I've been relatively lucky with my sh---y experiences.
Gary Davis