This is my story ...

[ItALiaN sTaLL 21]

so this is my story ..

i was diagnosed with crohns disease in january 2011
i was constantly going to the bathroom and vomiting and couldnt understand why .. i figured maybe a stomach virus ? boy was i wrong .. unfortunately
until i was told i unfortunately had this uncureable disease ... many medications i took through out the years .. none of them helped at all ...
this past year i had to take a colonoscopy and endoscopy and was prescribed asacol which actually made me even more sick ... 3 of these HUGE horsepills 3 xs a day ... eeewwww was it bad ... i was on a strict diet .... i went back to my gastro and than take ranitidine ... which isnt too bad ... but the main problem is that none of these medications are helping me...i also had 2 rhuematrax injections the past year as well ... my crohns has seemed to be getting worse .... this past weekend i had no choice but t go back to the hospital.... i was in so much pain ... but was givin another rheumatrax treatment ...which they actually do help ... but when i dont have that treatment i seem to be worse .. i also had to get a catskan done where now they said my liver was enlarged..they also thought i may hav a fistula and its impossible for me to keep anything in my stomach ... i played with fire ... i was drinking alcohol and partying and only made myself worse ... my girlfriend lee has been the best support ive ever had ... she is truely amazing and sticks with me through these flare ups and anything crohns throws at me ... i hate that she has to go through this with me ... but i am blessed to have her face this wtih me ... i dunno how i would go through this without her honestly ... now i have a doctor appointment tomorrow and they are most likely going to change my medication or give me something different - does anyone know what they may give me since the ranitidine is not helping me ? my worst fear of having this disease is eventually going for surgery and i am doing my best to avoid that ... let me know youre opinions on this ... thnx

 

[nogutsnoglory]

Welcome to the forum and sorry your having a tough time and the meds aren't working. Ranitidine is used for heart burn and that shouldn't make a difference in terms of your inflammatory process with crohn's but can help alleviate acid symptoms.

Asacol is part of a class called 5-ASA and the ones that are shown to work best for crohn's are Pentasa and Apriso because they can target both the small and large intestine. This class of meds are the 'weakest' in terms of managing the disease.

If you can't get by on a 5-ASA than your doctors will likely need to step you up to an immunomodulator or biologic medication.

You can read more about the options and discuss them with your doctor to decide what may be best.

http://www.ccfa.org/what-are-crohns-and-colitis/what-is-crohns-disease/crohns-medication.html

 

[ItALiaN sTaLL 21]

i do throw up alot of acid ...
so wouldnt the ranitidine help decrease that ?
it is truely miserable going thru this .. i hav been sick for weeks

asacol like i said made me even more sick - the pills i fealt were making me go both ways even more than i already was ...
what do you think my doctor will prescribe me tomorrow ?

 

[ItALiaN sTaLL 21]

also ... wat is a immunomodulator ? wat biolgical medications do u think ?
i just want to be prepared in case this is given to me

 

[nogutsnoglory]

Yes if you have a problem with acid, the drug should help but if you have been on it and it's not helping you might want to try another drug. I take Nexium and it helps with my heartburn but not fully.

Immunomodulators suppress your immune system and they are drugs like 6MP, Imuran or Azathioprine.

Biologics are anti-TNF and TNF stands for tumor necrosis factor and is thought to be responsible for a lot of the underlying inflammation we have.

Both classes of medications are serious drugs with a host of possible side effects but for the right person can be a lifesaver. Ask your doctor whether one of them may be more appropriate for you.

 

[***Lisa***]

Have you had your Vitamin D level tested? If so, what was the result?