- Joined
- Jun 18, 2013
- Messages
- 5
Hi, all!
I've never posted on here before, so I thought my first post should be some background about my experience with Crohn's. Until recently I've coped with my disease by virtually ignoring it, but I've decided to aggressively pursue my health and well-being. I'm twenty-two years old, I live in Maine, and was diagnosed with Crohn's when I was eighteen. Like so many others, I became suddenly ill about a year before I was diagnosed. During the summer I began to be plagued by stomach pain. I had been experiencing stomach pain sporadically for a few months before my flare-up really began, but I have a high tolerance for pain and ended up ignoring it. One day I was in so much pain I could hardly move, and eventually I was overcome with the most acute pain I'd ever felt up to that point, and collapsed and began vomiting. I spent that night in the hospital, and began the first of many rounds of tests to come (CT scans, MRI's, etc...). I started seeing a gastroenterolgist, and soon after I was diagnosed with Crohn's. By then I had been sick for a year and began trying medication after medication. I can't even remember all of the pills I tried--there were at least five. I was in a constant state of frustration because nothing was really working, and my GI doctor had no or few explanations for the particular pains I was feeling. They just kept giving me different pills, and I was disappointed every time. Eventually, I gave up taking pills and tried to just bear my symptoms.
I've been lucky, and by controlling my diet and being mindful of my disease I've managed to keep it under control for a few years without medical intervention. But lately my symptoms have been too much for me to bear, and I'm planning to start really seeking out some new methods for treating my Crohn's. The acute stomach pain I experience multiple times a day, paired with the dull aches that plague me most of the time, are hard enough to bear. And then there’s the painful, bloody bowel movements, the joint pain, the lethargy from my anemia, and my intolerance for nearly all foods—this has all left me feeling desperate.
I’ve spent this summer researching different ways I might treat my disease on my own. I found out that a few supplements and practices have garnered some notoriety for their success. I wanted to start taking the supplements and doing the things others have recommended, but I wanted to seek some guidance first. So I found a naturopathic doctor in my area, and went to see her in the hopes she could offer me some advice. Knowing how limited my income is, she told me she wouldn’t charge me more than I could afford for my appointments until I started feeling well. She told me that my money should be going towards the supplements I needed rather than the fee of the appointment. This alone was such a refreshing thing to hear.
She told me that I should begin an elimination diet, in which I basically adopt a dairy-free, gluten-free diet, excluding certain vegetables, fruits, peanuts, meats, and refined, gluten-free grains, for at least three weeks. Then, after the three weeks, I can begin slowly reintroducing eliminated foots into my diet, carefully watching what my body’s reactions are. This way I can figure out if any food sensitivities have been worsening my disease. As a vegetarian I’ve already cut out all meats, but I decided that I will eat certain fish and poultry during this diet so that I can get enough calories (most of my calories currently come from grains and dairy-containing products), as well as enough protein to properly heal. My doctor recommended this, and I think I ought to suspend my moral concerns for the sake of gaining my health back. In addition, she recommended I take l-glutamine powder, liquid vitamin d3, boswellia (frankincense), and turmeric, as well as vitamin c with my iron supplement to reduce the stomach irritation it causes.
Before I begin this elimination diet I am doing a three-day vegetable-based juice fast. My doctor said this should be fine for my health, so long as I try to get as much protein as possible (my juices will contain a significant amount of spinach and kale). I’m on day two of the juice fast, and it’s been wonderful not feeling any of the pain that accompanies digestion that I would usually be experiencing. I decided to do this fast to give my intestines a break and to make the transition to an entirely new diet a bit easier. I haven’t been able to purchase the supplements yet, but will hopefully be beginning those next week. After I do the elimination diet, I plan to begin taking a good probiotic to repopulate my intestines with good bacteria. My doctor told me that too much bacteria in your intestines can actually make acute inflammation worse, so I’m going to wait until my inflammation goes down before pumping myself full of bacteria, good or bad.
I plan to share what sort of results I get from the elimination diet, the fast, and the supplements, but for now I thought I would share my experience with Crohn’s and what I’m trying to do to get my disease into remission.
Has anyone else tried similar things to treat themselves? If so, what were your experiences like? Has anyone managed to stay in remission following the naturopathic route?
I've never posted on here before, so I thought my first post should be some background about my experience with Crohn's. Until recently I've coped with my disease by virtually ignoring it, but I've decided to aggressively pursue my health and well-being. I'm twenty-two years old, I live in Maine, and was diagnosed with Crohn's when I was eighteen. Like so many others, I became suddenly ill about a year before I was diagnosed. During the summer I began to be plagued by stomach pain. I had been experiencing stomach pain sporadically for a few months before my flare-up really began, but I have a high tolerance for pain and ended up ignoring it. One day I was in so much pain I could hardly move, and eventually I was overcome with the most acute pain I'd ever felt up to that point, and collapsed and began vomiting. I spent that night in the hospital, and began the first of many rounds of tests to come (CT scans, MRI's, etc...). I started seeing a gastroenterolgist, and soon after I was diagnosed with Crohn's. By then I had been sick for a year and began trying medication after medication. I can't even remember all of the pills I tried--there were at least five. I was in a constant state of frustration because nothing was really working, and my GI doctor had no or few explanations for the particular pains I was feeling. They just kept giving me different pills, and I was disappointed every time. Eventually, I gave up taking pills and tried to just bear my symptoms.
I've been lucky, and by controlling my diet and being mindful of my disease I've managed to keep it under control for a few years without medical intervention. But lately my symptoms have been too much for me to bear, and I'm planning to start really seeking out some new methods for treating my Crohn's. The acute stomach pain I experience multiple times a day, paired with the dull aches that plague me most of the time, are hard enough to bear. And then there’s the painful, bloody bowel movements, the joint pain, the lethargy from my anemia, and my intolerance for nearly all foods—this has all left me feeling desperate.
I’ve spent this summer researching different ways I might treat my disease on my own. I found out that a few supplements and practices have garnered some notoriety for their success. I wanted to start taking the supplements and doing the things others have recommended, but I wanted to seek some guidance first. So I found a naturopathic doctor in my area, and went to see her in the hopes she could offer me some advice. Knowing how limited my income is, she told me she wouldn’t charge me more than I could afford for my appointments until I started feeling well. She told me that my money should be going towards the supplements I needed rather than the fee of the appointment. This alone was such a refreshing thing to hear.
She told me that I should begin an elimination diet, in which I basically adopt a dairy-free, gluten-free diet, excluding certain vegetables, fruits, peanuts, meats, and refined, gluten-free grains, for at least three weeks. Then, after the three weeks, I can begin slowly reintroducing eliminated foots into my diet, carefully watching what my body’s reactions are. This way I can figure out if any food sensitivities have been worsening my disease. As a vegetarian I’ve already cut out all meats, but I decided that I will eat certain fish and poultry during this diet so that I can get enough calories (most of my calories currently come from grains and dairy-containing products), as well as enough protein to properly heal. My doctor recommended this, and I think I ought to suspend my moral concerns for the sake of gaining my health back. In addition, she recommended I take l-glutamine powder, liquid vitamin d3, boswellia (frankincense), and turmeric, as well as vitamin c with my iron supplement to reduce the stomach irritation it causes.
Before I begin this elimination diet I am doing a three-day vegetable-based juice fast. My doctor said this should be fine for my health, so long as I try to get as much protein as possible (my juices will contain a significant amount of spinach and kale). I’m on day two of the juice fast, and it’s been wonderful not feeling any of the pain that accompanies digestion that I would usually be experiencing. I decided to do this fast to give my intestines a break and to make the transition to an entirely new diet a bit easier. I haven’t been able to purchase the supplements yet, but will hopefully be beginning those next week. After I do the elimination diet, I plan to begin taking a good probiotic to repopulate my intestines with good bacteria. My doctor told me that too much bacteria in your intestines can actually make acute inflammation worse, so I’m going to wait until my inflammation goes down before pumping myself full of bacteria, good or bad.
I plan to share what sort of results I get from the elimination diet, the fast, and the supplements, but for now I thought I would share my experience with Crohn’s and what I’m trying to do to get my disease into remission.
Has anyone else tried similar things to treat themselves? If so, what were your experiences like? Has anyone managed to stay in remission following the naturopathic route?
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