UC and energy

[ehatt]

Hi everyone!
I hope everybody is having a wonderful night! I was diagnosed with moderate UC about a year and a half ago and have been able to control it with asacol, Humira and prednisone (thank goodness I am finally off of it!) and a gluten free diet. however, I still feel as if I haven't gotten my energy back. I was just wondering what you all do for energy. I usually get from 7-9 hours of sleep at night however, I wake up exhausted and never have any energy during the day. I also have trouble with focusing and concentrating on things. All of this is very frustrating, especially because I work, and am going to school so I am needing to be able to do these things, but my body wont let me :S any advice helps!

Thanks for reading!
Ehatt

 

[jwfoise]

Hi ehatt

I have not particularly had a problem with a lack of energy, but I have a couple of thoughts.

First, how long have you been off of prednisone? I know that it does all sorts of bad/weird things, both when you are on it, and getting off of it.

Second, I wonder if part of it is diet. Are you real thin? Especially if you are on a gluten free diet, you might not have a lot of energy reserves left. Maybe there are some gluten-free carbs that you could take taht would help. Could you also be getting dehydrated - my wife has Crohn's, is slim, has to really work on keeping hydrated, and a first sign of dehydration for her is being tired.

 

[2thFairy]

I was completely wiped out the last year before surgery. Vitamin B12 helped immensely before that time, however. Vitamin deficient, iron deficient, dehydration and other things could be to blame.

 

[sickinlk]

yes i agree with fairy. a low blood count could be the culprit and lack of vitamins. you should have labs done to check your levels.
I also agree with JWfoise, after coming of pred I always felt exhausted, probably because the pred gave me extra energy iykwim.
ju

 

[ehatt]

Thank you all for responding!!
I have been off of prednisone for about 4 months, so I was thinking I should be back to "normal" by now. I do eat some gluten free carbs, mainly noodles.. maybe I am just not eating enough though? It could be my blood / vitamin levels. I go to my Dr. next week and he will probably order for blood work since I haven't done that in a few of months. I was also thinking about asking him about b12 injections? I have heard of a lot of people having success with that..

 

[jwfoise]

Thank you all for responding!!
I have been off of prednisone for about 4 months, so I was thinking I should be back to "normal" by now. I do eat some gluten free carbs, mainly noodles.. maybe I am just not eating enough though? It could be my blood / vitamin levels. I go to my Dr. next week and he will probably order for blood work since I haven't done that in a few of months. I was also thinking about asking him about b12 injections? I have heard of a lot of people having success with that..

4 months might still be within the window for prednisone side effects, especially if you were on it for a long period of time. My wife was on it for years and it took her a year to get off of it.

I think the blood work is a brilliant idea, it could really point up the problem. My wife does the B12 once in a while, so you should ask about that too.

 

[FrancisK7]

I myself have had major concentration issues for the past year and a half, but my GI assured me it wasn't related to my UC. It is indeed very aggravating.

 

[kimar]

You might also want to have your thyroid checked - hypothyroidism is common in women and can really cause some fatigue.