What can I do to feel better with Crohn's? Advice on how to manage aside from medication

[rmorris]

I'm sorry if I posed in the wrong place, I couldn't see a good place to do so :/

I was diagnosed with Crohn's two years ago, I have been on Humira for a year, and it hasn't been going very well lately. I have been trying to get in to see my GI doctor to discuss medication, but it is taking longer than I would like (doesn't help that their computer randomly decided to unschedule me for my appointment today -sigh-). I am tired of feeling sick, is there anything I can do or try that might help me to feel better/manage my symptoms better? Something like diet, exercise, etc.

My doctor said that diet doesn't make a difference, but I am willing to try most anything at this point (within reason). I would at least like to be doing anything within my power while I am waiting to get my medications figured out with my doctor.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Jennifer]

Hi rmorris and welcome to the forum!

May I ask what your symptoms are? Generally during a flare I switch back to the Low Residue Diet. It helps to reduce symptoms for me. If your symptoms are fairly severe such as blood loss, abdominal pain after eating, diarrhea + frequency, nausea (possibly vomiting but this may be getting closer to bowel obstruction symptoms and may warrant a trip to the hospital) etc then you may benefit from a liquid diet temporarily (always let your doctor know if you're going on all liquids). You can have soups (you can make it yourself and remove any bits or make them very small or blend it, just be sure to drink the broth at least), juices, supplement drinks etc. This will help the bowel rest.

Personally I don't think that foods bring on inflammation and cause flares but they can definitely irritate an already irritated/inflamed bowel so changing your diet during a flare will definitely reduce symptoms. That and removing any items from your diet that you notice increase your symptoms, these are your trigger foods (common ones are fiber, nuts and seeds, raw fruits and vegetables, milk products, fried/greasy food etc). Using a food diary will help you figure out what your trigger foods are.

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[rmorris]

Thanks, and thanks for moving my my thread to the right place.

My symptoms are lots of diarrhea, feeling slightly anemic, slightly feverish and lethargic, no energy/concentration, and some bad cramping regardless of eating or not.

Those sound like some good suggestions. Thank you for weighing in.

 

[Jennifer]

Have you had your vitamin levels tested recently and tested for anemia through blood work (B12, Iron, Calcium, Potassium, Magnesium, vit D, folic acid etc)?

 

[plantluvr]

hi. my opinion is diet has alot to do with our bodies! in 2003 i met a person who taught me about organic food and taught me to read ingredients. ive been on the research path ever since. what we put in our bodies DOES affect us! like meds have have side effects so does food. for instance maybe look up msg. its like saying if i eat greasy high fat foods its not going to cause heart problems. its negectful to say diet has nothing to do with crohns. body,mind, spirit all work together. i hope you find your path. exercise is very important as well. as well as relieving stress. its all trial and error. research ingredients you will be amazed at what you find. good luck!

 

[dreyes7373]

I agree with all the above..... First I would get a CBC, you may need to get on B12 and iron, which I am on both. I take humira and 6mp and still get what I call an attack every week from what I eat. Food and stress have everything to do with this disease. I also had surgery 9 months ago and still can't eat most foods

 

[SN8888]

I think diet can be very important and sometimes it's not obvious to see the connection. Many people have been helped by low-carb diets - the most popular might be SCD (specific carbohydrate diet). Eating a lot of sugar and starch may not immediately cause you pain and problems, but for some, it seems to feed the bacteria (or whatever) that your body is reacting to. The effect may be delayed.
Do a search on SCD and some of the other diets. Also, for me saccharomyces boulardii is very helpful (see link to wikipedia below).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccharomyces_boulardii

Some people with IBS find relief by avoiding wheat, dairy as well as FODMAPs (you can google it if you want). This may not apply to you, but some of the things on the FODMAPs list are surprising and not anything you would figure out easily on your own. The link between food and GI problems is complex, I think...

 

[hawkeye]

I have been using my heating pad lately for cramping.