SCD Diet - Cramping Question ???

[Dizzydub1]

My name is Kyle. I am a teacher and have been diagnosed with Crohn's disease. I started the SCD about 2 1/2 months ago after a very serious flare coupled with a C.Diff infection (2nd time), abyss removal and seton placement. I feel as though I have experienced great success with the diet as everything digestively seems to be back in it's working order. Translation I am very normal in my bathroom routines; I am currently working through the phase list from SCDlifestyle web-site and have just begun phase 3.

My question is I am still experiencing tightness in my gut. I call them the Crohn's crampies It's not like I am in pain but it's definitely enough where I know it's there and it usually wakes me up in the morning and is with me until I go to bed. It does wear on me and by the end of the day I am pretty worn from dealing with it. I am just curious if anyone has any wisdom they can give me in dealing with this constant grip on my gut? Support would be great from anyone who has dealt with this before. I am committed to the SCD and know there is hope with this way of living but I am just needing some comfort in knowing that I am headed in the right direction and people have not only experienced this but have overcome. Look forward to hearing you share your support. Thank you all!

Kyle

 

[Charleigh]

Maybe you need to alter the SCD? We had to alter it for my son. He simply cannot tolerate any amount of dairy (regardless of how long the yogurt is fermented or how hard the cheese is). The other thing we had to remove is legumes - peanuts and beans seem to be a big "no-no" for E. Once we nixed all dairy and replaced the peanut butter with sunflower butter, we saw a big improvement. We then moved over to a paleo auto-immune diet and saw even more improvement (lab numbers began to decrease, etc). Just be willing to tweak!

 

[Dizzydub1]

We have definitely been taking it slow on the SCD. We always wait 2-4 days after introducing a new food to see how my body responds. We have not even made it to the raw fruits and veggies yet. Everything is still well cooked. I am lactose intolerant, so I cut diary out of my life a long time ago. The NP I saw seems to think it's scar tissue that needs to heal from the intense flare I was in this fall. My GI has given me muscles relaxers to try and calm the cramps but I am really trying to stay away from meds and trying to do this by diet and natural remedies. I have been doing castor oil packs at night as well as fish oil in the morning. I am taking a pro-biotic that is 3 millions but moving up to the 10 million next week as they said to go slow on the diet. I am adjusting as needed for the diet for sure, we are all different and have to customize the diet to fit our own bodies. Thanks so much for your wisdom and insight. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. Be Blessed

 

[Charleigh]

I also had to remind myself often that sometimes things seem to get worse before better and even Elaine says to expect symptoms to be off and on for up to a year. Also, you might need to heal before you can tolerate some foods. E couldn't tolerate beef or raw veggies at first but after a few months of healing he could. We have seen some improvement with a specific probiotic too (I will post a link below). Hang in there, it sounds like you are going about it the right way.

http://www.amazon.com/Ideal-Bowel-S...TF8&qid=1390139292&sr=8-1&keywords=Jarrow+IBS

 

[MicheleM]

Hi Kyle,
Sorry to hear about your crohnie cramps. I agree with Charleigh, that it may be that your gut is still trying to heal. There may be scar tissue that is irritated occasionally. Not really a flare, but uncomfortable. You are like me, in that I have been on the Paleo diet just over 2 months. I have been greatly improved. But remember, we didn't get this disease overnight. We probably won't be 'healed' overnight, if ever. I also agree that you may have to go back a few steps and cut out some foods for a while, then try them again. I guess since you are gluten and dairy free, legumes may be the suspect food. I am gluten, dairy and legume free, but am a bit touchy with cauliflower.
I know what you mean when you say that the cramps are very wearing on you. I hope things improve for you.