MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'flare-up'. Wed, 21 Jul 2010 11:18:01 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3718571&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fvacationing-with-crohns%2F Next week is vacation week!  Actually, we are leaving tomorrow and today is my get-ready-for-vacation day.  That entails packing up all of my medicines, getting together lists of possible safe places to eat, and getting the house ready.  We are going on a hopefully wonderful vacation to Hawaii.  Of course it will be wonderful, I just put the hopefully in there because I am not sure that my Crohn’s will be wonderful.  It has been acting up again – just in time for Hawaii.  Oh well, what can you do? My husband travels a lot for his company and racks up the frequent flyer miles so we were able to get the flights to Hawaii for free using his miles.  As you may have read, I have been having a tough time with my Crohn’s this year and have been trying to get back into remission after... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3718571 Thu, 01 Jul 2010 21:22:04 +0100 3718571 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3599614&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Ftracking-down-a-troublesome-food%2F May 23, 2010 Today was actually a pretty good day. I didn’t feel horrible the entire day and was actually able to go in the pool and swim around a bit. This week has not been too bad either, but I am hesitant to become hopeful. The last few times that I thought I was turning around and finally climbing up the steep slope from which I have fallen (steep slope of Crohn’s flare), only to find myself still sliding even further downhill. I am not going to get too hopeful until I have been doing better for a longer period of time. My tactic right now is to just not think about it too much. I have had this disease for almost 20 years now and I am still just as confused as ever. I will think I have it a little bit figured out and then my Crohn’s will go and change on me. Right now I seem... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3599614 Wed, 26 May 2010 03:13:27 +0100 3599614 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3499195&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fhow-is-your-crohns%2F Hello everyone!  In case you are new to the blog, I will explain the topic of today’s blog.  Every month I like to check in with everyone to see how you have been doing.  Everyone writes in and tells how they have been feeling and what has been going on with their Crohn’s or with anything else.  It is a great way for us to share and to vent.  It has been a little while since we last did this, so I am expecting lots of comments from everyone so that we can catch up! I have not been doing too well lately.  I guess that I should have seen it coming but, as always, I seem to miss the little subtle signs of an oncoming flare.  Since 2010 has started, it seems it has been one thing after another, but hopefully I will get it turned around soon.  After the strange pain that was in my l... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3499195 Thu, 22 Apr 2010 22:00:42 +0100 3499195 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3429325&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fslacking-to-cope-with-crohns-disease%2F It seems that my Crohn’s disease has a mind of its own lately.  I like to think of it as a wild bull, strong and powerful and definitely pigheaded.  My Crohn’s can’t be tamed and, each time I try, I end up conceding, so I might as well learn how to ride.  You would think that after almost 19 years of having this disease that I would know how to ride.  But, I don’t.  Each time the ride is different.  Each time I think that I am ready and know what to do, but then the bull turns left instead of right, or goes right instead of left.  Or, it simple starts bucking me to death until I pay attention.  Well, it has my attention now! I think that I am doing better now with it than I did in the past.  In the past, I thought that I was invincible and that Crohn’s couldn’t stop m... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3429325 Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:27:15 +0100 3429325 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3359129&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fcrohns-disease-and-bone-density%2F Last Friday, I went to see my rheumatologist to see if my bone density disintegration due to long-term prednisone usage has improved any in the last 6 months since I have taken the medication ‘Reclast’.  Reclast is a once a year infusion (it bypasses your gastrointestinal system) that helps your bones become stronger.  The verdict from the visit was not good and my yearly bone density scan showed that my density has stayed the same for two of the places that they check and one place actually got 0.2 worse.  I was really hoping for some improvement, but maybe it is still too soon. I used to drink a Dr. Pepper every day (just one), but since January of this year I have cut that out.  I read that sodas cause your blood to be more acidic, causing it to pull more minerals from your body... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3359129 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:56:05 +0100 3359129 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2611111&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fcrohns-disease-and-your-period%2F It is that time of the month again, and this time I don’t mean time for the monthly update on your Crohn’s (How is your Crohn’s today). It is that time of the month in my menstruation cycle and I am feeling lousy.  For all you men out there, you may not find any interest in today’s topic, so feel free to stop reading at any point in this blog. Whenever I get my period, my Crohn’s will also flare-up.  It will flare at a different variety of levels - sometimes a little bit, sometimes a lot, and sometimes not at all (although this is very infrequent).  I am not sure that it is really my Crohn’s flaring or if it is just a normal side effect of getting your period, but I usually get really bad cramps and diarrhea and pretty much feel lousy for a few days.  This happens most of t... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2611111 Thu, 16 Jul 2009 21:45:57 +0100 2611111 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2512255&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fimportance-of-diet-in-crohns-disease%2F In the last blog, we touched on the subject of diet, but I want to go a little further with it this week.  What to eat and what not to eat is a really frustrating aspect of Crohn’s disease.  What we could really use is a manual that would tell us what foods to avoid instead of having to do the trial and error method that we all have to currently do.  There is no manual that is handed out once you obtain your diagnosis of Crohn’s disease that states: ‘if you eat this you will feel bad so avoid it at all costs’.  No, instead, they pretty much don’t tell you anything.  I think that the doctors purposely avoid the topic of diet because it is so different from patient to patient that there really isn’t a specific diet for Crohn’s disease that they can point you to.  But ther... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2512255 Wed, 10 Jun 2009 04:29:40 +0100 2512255 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2442198&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Ffood-investigation-what-can-you-eat-for-ibd%2F Welcome back from the three day holiday.  I hope that you had a good Memorial Day.  We didn’t do anything special, just visited our family and hung around the house.  Our daughter spent the holiday at her friend’s pool which allowed my husband and I to have a “Lost-athon.”  We caught up on all of the TV episodes of Lost that we haven’t watched.  That was fun because we never watch three in a row.  This weekend was also great because my husband did most of the cooking (yay)!!  I am in a rut again with food.  I just don’t want to try too many different things because I like to feel good so I prefer to eat the foods that I know are safe. I have been trying this new protein antioxidant drink called Mix1 to see if it will be a good additional source o... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2442198 Thu, 28 May 2009 22:26:38 +0100 2442198 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2382671&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fapril-check-in-how-is-your-crohns-today%2F Hey everyone!  How are you today?  I hope well.  Today’s blog is devoted to you telling us how you are doing today.  This is something that I try to do at the end of each month in order for us all to know how everyone else in our Crohn’s community is doing with their illness and life in general. I’ll go first… I am tired but good.  I am lowering my prednisone dosage which is always tricky, but I am thinking positive (or trying to not think about it).  I don’t lower it very much (from 9 mg to 8.5 mg) and then in two weeks I will go to 8 mg.  Right now I am alternating 8mg then 9mg every other day.  This confuses my body so that it doesn’t know what is coming next which makes tapering easier.  I am really happy to be down to 8.5 mg and hope that I don’t jinx myself.  ... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2382671 Fri, 01 May 2009 16:45:42 +0100 2382671 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2349171&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fmarried-with-crohns-disease%2F Living with Crohn’s disease has been a roller coaster of a life so far, and unfortunately, I keep dragging my family up and down the hills with me.  My husband doesn’t handle it so well.  His chosen method of dealing with the disease is to ignore it and pretend that it doesn’t exist.  This is what he has done in the past and hopefully will not do in the future thanks to more open and honest conversations.  I guess we’ll see. My Crohn’s disease has been the biggest issue in my marriage because it essentially affects every decision that I make and everything that I do.  It is usually the basis for my complaints to my husband and the reason that sometimes I whine (in his opinion) to him.  I don’t think that I am whining; I think that I am begging for some help!  The problem... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2349171 Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:37:35 +0100 2349171 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2321734&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fis-your-crohns-disease-making-you-antisocial%2F I think I’m becoming antisocial.  I like to be around people; it is just that sometimes it is so tiring.  For instance, a week ago, my husband decided that he wanted to invite some friends over for a party.  He has wanted to have a party for a while but I was taking night classes in Jan. and Feb. and needed the weekends to study and do my homework (and rest!).   But, I finished my class in early March and I didn’t want to keep saying, “not right now,” so I agreed even though I had just finished taking the antibiotics for a sinus infection and was not really healthy.  My husband promised that he would do all of the work and I would only have to do minor tasks – and he even kept his promise this time!  I didn’t do too much, but mostly that is because I was sick.  I can no... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2321734 Wed, 01 Apr 2009 17:33:46 +0100 2321734 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2295066&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fmanaging-crohns-disease-and-your-fear%2F There are so many things in this world to fear: the economy, terrorism, loss of job, house, or possessions, asteroids hitting the Earth!  It seems that every day there is something new reported in the news for us to panic about.  If you live with Crohn’s disease, the fear is compounded since the fear of the disease can be added to the already seemingly overwhelming list of fears.  Living with a chronic disease like Crohn’s disease means that fear is an unwanted companion that we are always trying to get rid of. For me, dealing with fear is a constant battle.  I made a decision long ago that I don’t want to live in fear and I am constantly reminding myself of this.  We all have fear and I think that’s normal.  I think what really matters is how you handle your fear.  It can e... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2295066 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 21:03:30 +0100 2295066 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2234067&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fa-day-in-the-life-of-a-crohns-flare%2F Yesterday started out really bad.  When anyone would ask me how my day was, I would say “fine” but there was a lot hidden behind that word that I didn’t say.  Here is what “fine” meant for me yesterday: The night before last night I had the worst migraine headache so I went to bed early but woke up a lot during the night because of the pain.  The headache was still there when I woke yesterday morning and I felt very tired.  I am the one who takes our daughter to school in the mornings and she likes to get there early and she doesn’t like to be late.  Also, they get written up if they are late.  I had about ten minutes to finish getting ready (do my hair and get dressed) and to make my lunch, when I felt that all too familiar awful Crohn’s disease cra... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2234067 Wed, 04 Mar 2009 17:31:40 +0100 2234067 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2201193&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fkelly-building-a-crohns-disease-community%2Fmy-experience-taking-biologics-for-crohns-disease%2F There has been a lot of progress in the area of anti-TNF drugs which are usually referred to as “biologics.” In this blog post I will give you all the information that I have on each of the drugs, as well as, my experiences with the ones that I have taken.  Keep in mind that I am a mechanical engineer and not a doctor.  I also want to emphasize that these are my personal experiences with these medications.  Every person reacts to medication differently and you should always be in constant contact with your doctor before, during and after taking biologics for Crohn’s disease. A brief background: The anti-TNF drugs target a substance in the blood called the Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF)-alpha which is a cytokine (specialized protein that promotes inflammation in the intest... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2201193 Fri, 20 Feb 2009 20:27:31 +0100 2201193 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2195240&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fchrista-life-with-psoriasis%2Fthe-self-fulfilling-psoriasis-flares%2F Writers are always being told “write what you know,” and obviously that is the basic and rather brilliant idea behind HealthTalk blogging. We live with these conditions and therefore are best qualified to write about life with whatever health condition, in my case psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. The thing is that with chronic conditions we may have periods where nothing much is happening for us and our condition is either reasonably well managed or simply behaving itself, so what do we write about during those times? Usually I look to see what the support groups are talking about, what’s in the news, what is happening or of concern to other people I know who have psoriasis…including members of my own family. This means that sometimes I may write about things that I a... Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2195240 Wed, 28 Jan 2009 00:21:55 +0100 2195240 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2129418&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fif-life-with-crohns-disease-could-be-plotted-on-a-graph%2F If life with Crohn’s disease could be plotted on a graph, it would look like a sine wave.  In case you don’t know what a sine wave looks like, or have forgotten, here is a diagram: You see, the top of the wave would be when I am in remission and the top of the bottom wave would be when I am in the apex of a flare. Instead of degrees on the x-axis, lets put weeks.  So, where you see 90 it is 90 weeks instead of 90 degrees, and 180 weeks and so on.  You see, nothing happens fast.  It is very slow.  Healing takes a long time and it often seems like I am sick forever (especially to my husband!).  When I am feeling good, I want it to last a lot longer than it does and I forget all the good times more easily than the bad (again giving the impression of being sick forever).  I... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2129418 Fri, 23 Jan 2009 17:57:49 +0100 2129418 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2047803&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fthe-colors-of-your-poop-and-what-it-means%2F There are many things that you can learn about the status of your health just by observing the color and texture of your poop and the frequency with which you go. All of you veteran Crohnies out there know exactly what I am talking about. For all of you newly diagnosed Crohn’s patients, I hope this will help you a little. And, everyone, please provide your insight as well! Brown Brown is the normal color of poop. There is a pigment called bilirubin that is formed when the red blood cells in the liver and bone marrow break down. This ends up (by a complicated process) in the intestines where bacteria begins to form and eat which turns the poop brown. When iron in the red blood cells combine with bilirubin, it turns brown and when the iron influenced bilirubin combines with the poop,... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2047803 Wed, 17 Dec 2008 18:47:51 +0100 2047803 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1991743&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fholiday-parties-and-crohns-diseaseavoid-if-possible%2F It’s that time of year again for parties, celebrating, shopping and being thankful. What are you thankful for this year? I am thankful for so many things, and I am going to put these things into the forefront whenever I am feeling bad about not being able to eat anything but plain boring food. No matter, at least I will not gain weight. I have been in a funky mood lately. I think that it has more to do with going down on the prednisone than anything else. I am now on 12mg of prednisone and hope to keep going down. I am trying not to get too excited or look forward to getting lower too much so that way I don’t get too disappointed. But, I am happy to be at 12mg and maybe will get to 11mg by Christmas. And then, maybe 10!!! I haven’t been to 10mg in a long time. This year I... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1991743 Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:27:11 +0100 1991743 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1975922&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fa-web-site-that-finds-toilets-anywhere-in-the-world%2F I was driving to work in the morning the other day, and on the radio they were talking about situations when you had to go to the bathroom at a time that was really inconvenient. They had the listeners call in with their stories. I didn’t call because I have way too many stories to tell as most of you probably do too (unfortunately)! But the radio announcer started talking about this Web site that maps all of the toilets all around the world. And, even better, you can add in a toilet so that everyone else will know where it is. Isn’t that great? We can surely add a lot of information into this tool The Web site is called SitorSquat.com, let me know what you think.  But don’t click on any of the links that say that you have won anything - a lot of times people are just p... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1975922 Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:55:04 +0100 1975922 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1939860&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fcrohns-disease-and-cruises-a-recipe-for-love%2F We are back from our 10-year anniversary cruise, and we are so in love! Really, it was nice spending some quality time together and having no other responsibilities. We get along really well - especially when there are no chores to fight about. The cruise was okay. I was nauseous from the boat rocking - even with the patch on. The seas were not calm at all, and there was some bad weather every now and then. We had too many days at sea, and we are not really casino players or lay-in-the sun kind of people. We liked the shows at night, and I really liked the dinners. Before the cruise, I had contacted Carnival Cruise Lines asking if they could support my diet. They sent me some forms to fill out explaining my medical condition and my requirements. I wrote that I could not tolerate pepper or ... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1939860 Wed, 05 Nov 2008 23:20:14 +0100 1939860 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1877200&cid=t_362870_165_f&fid=37959&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhealthskills.wordpress.com%2F2008%2F10%2F15%2Fcue-cards-for-coping%2F One problem people have when learning coping skills is remembering what to do and when to do it.   In the heat of the moment it can be really difficult to recall exactly what the new strategy is!  We also know that pain interferes with recall because of the disruptive effect on attention, and this effect is heightened when people are anxious about their pain.  One good measure for whether attention and thinking processes are disrupted is the Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale (McCracken & Dhingra, 2002). There are a few techniques for helping people to remember what to do - including some of my favourites like a sticker on a doorframe, post-it notes on the computer or dashboard of the car, or reminders on a cellphone or computer.  But one way that has been helpful for several reasons is ... HealthSkills Weblog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1877200 Tue, 14 Oct 2008 18:16:08 +0100 1877200 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1802966&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fpreparing-for-hurricane-ike-during-a-storm-of-fears%2F Editor’s Note: Kelly wrote this post last week before Hurricane Ike hit her hometown of Houston. I was laying here trying to sleep, and I couldn’t help thinking about stress management. I am laying here thinking about stress management because I have been under a lot of stress this last week, and I am in need of some sort of stress management. Last Sunday, my husband left for Indonesia and since he is so far away (12 hours ahead) I have been a little anxious. He is also in a remote area, so it is not easy to get in touch with him. Before he left, hurricane Ike was still far away and forecasted to hit in Mexico. Now, on the Thursday night before Ike is to hit, he is projected to come right over us. They have evacuated my county and so my daughter and I are at my in-law’s h... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1802966 Thu, 18 Sep 2008 00:04:05 +0100 1802966 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1739552&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Ffrustrations-and-feelings-about-my-crohns-disease%2F I guess that I still have not completely accepted my Crohn’s disease because I spent last weekend feeling completely frustrated about everything. It started out with a huge fight between me and my husband Friday night. We always fight when I start feeling bad. I say he doesn’t care and is not sympathetic enough and he says that I am whiny and in a bad mood. I was in bad shape on Friday (I think now that maybe it was bad tuna fish or the mayo) and had a horrible day at work. I was really tired when I came home and was not looking forward to the evening of packing for our trip to Washington DC. I was really just not looking forward to the trip at all and then we have a fight, which makes everything worse. It seems that we fight when we are stressed. I wanted to just get my stuff ... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1739552 Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:30:50 +0100 1739552 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1649368&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Ffacing-your-crohns-fears%2F I went to all of my doctor’s appointments last week and they agree that I am doing good, but I am still too high on the steroids. I have to go down really slowly because whenever I taper too quickly, I flare up again and end up starting all over. I refuse to start all over so I am going at a very slow pace. So far I have made it down to 12 mg of prednisone and hope to continue to get lower. Each time that I go to the doctor, I come away filled with anxiety over all the bad things that can go wrong. I get this sense of urgency to get off the prednisone (from my rheumatologist mainly) but I know that if I push too hard too fast that my body does not react kindly. I have been there several times already. My gastro doc understands this and tries to find other alternatives for me, but the... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1649368 Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:47:31 +0100 1649368 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1631708&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fwhat-its-like-to-be-pregnant-with-crohns-disease%2F Since I was talking about my daughter last week, I thought that I would continue that theme this week and tell you about my pregnancy. We had only been married for three months and never planned to have a baby so quickly. In fact, we were going to wait two years to get accustomed to being married while we investigated the risks associated with having Crohn’s disease and being pregnant. The year of our wedding, I was really adamant about getting off the steroids and not being fat-faced for my wedding day. I had been recovering from a flare when he proposed and when he told me he wanted to get married in six months, the only thing I could think of was “how will I ever get low enough on the prednisone to look normal for my wedding?” But I did it! I managed to get down to 5 mg and wa... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1631708 Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:55:20 +0100 1631708 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1606285&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fcrohns-can-bring-out-the-best-and-worst-in-us%2F I have been on 15 mg of prednisone for over a month now, so now I have to decrease my level of dosage. I hate doing this because I was just starting to feel good and felt like my brain was no longer in a fog. Right after we got back from San Francisco, I started the decrease of prednisone and have been feeling the effects ever since. Friday I was just plain emotional, needy and cranky. It also doesn’t help when I am stressed and tired, which is what I have been. I haven’t been able to sleep (even with a sleeping pill) and I know that lack of sleep plays a big part in my mood. Everything was great in San Francisco, but when we came home my Crohn’s started reacting on top of not being able to sleep. I wanted my husband to just do all the chores because can’t he see that I need to res... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1606285 Thu, 10 Jul 2008 20:19:27 +0100 1606285 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1509263&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fhow-is-your-crohns-today-the-june-edition%2F Today has been miserable for my Crohn’s, but I can’t complain too much because I had four really good days in a row (and on travel)! It was a miracle. I have never felt so good on travel before. This time I took extra precautions and was really strict with my diet. I didn’t even care if the waiter thought that I was crazy for wanting nothing except some salt on any of my food. I told them that I was allergic to pepper and seasonings. The first night, we went out to a restaurant that made grilled items. I told them specifically to not put anything on it and when they served it to me, it had garlic mashed potatoes instead of the white rice I ordered as well as pepper. We sent it back and they gave me a new one. When the new plate came back the dish still had pepper on it. I thi... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1509263 Wed, 11 Jun 2008 22:47:22 +0100 1509263 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1494645&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fdoes-this-argument-sound-familiar%2F My husband is traveling to San Francisco and he wants me and my daughter to join him for the weekend. The plan is to leave tomorrow and come back on Sunday night. When he first proposed this idea, we had an argument about it because he thinks I am “being difficult,” while I think he is making things too complex. He wanted a decision right away and I was stalling. The thing is, I want to go. I have always wanted to go to San Francisco and ride on that trolley that goes down that great big hill. But truth be told – I am afraid to go. I want to get off my prednisone really badly, and because I am on the path to recovery I don’t want anything to get in the way of that. Travel usually means not sleeping well and eating foods that don’t agree with me, and I usually don’t feel all tha... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1494645 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 21:47:22 +0100 1494645 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1410001&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fhow-is-your-crohns-today-3%2F I am going to start the “How is your Crohn’s today?” monthly installments again in order for all of us to keep up with how everyone else is doing. In case you are new to this blog, I stole this idea from the MS blogger Trevis Gleason because I thought that it was a great idea. The idea is that we each tell how we are feeling today. I will start by saying that I am generally good. I have decreased my prednisone to 15mg per day and the last couple of days I have been a little depressed and very tired. I know that it is my medicines that make me feel this way, but still, it doesn’t make the sadness go away or the irrational thoughts, joint pain and certainly doesn’t make my mind work faster. I just have to wait it out until I get balanced again. I was feeling really good bu... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1410001 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:24:52 +0100 1410001 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1297990&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fsigns-and-symptoms-that-a-crohns-flare-is-coming%2F Today I went for my yearly eye exam. Luckily, there is no sign of glaucoma or cataracts, which is really good since I have been on steroids for so long. Plus there is no sign of inflammation. Crohn’s disease can cause inflammation in many different parts of the body other than your small and large intestines. These include your skin, joints, mouth, throat and eyes. I get the inflammation in all of these except my eyes, which I pray will remain unaffected. Inflammation of the skin can cause inflamed skin nodules on the arms and legs (erythema nodosum), and blue-red skin sores containing puss (pyoderma gangrenosum). I get the erythema nodosum. They are red hot patches on the skin that are very tender to the touch. I have gotten these before and after a major intestinal flare and once all... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1297990 Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:10:44 +0100 1297990 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1236381&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-psoriasis%2Fchrista%2Fthe-self-fulfilling-psoriasis-flares%2F Writers are always being told “write what you know,” and obviously that is the basic and rather brilliant idea behind HealthTalk blogging. We live with these conditions and therefore are best qualified to write about life with whatever health condition, in my case psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. The thing is that with chronic conditions we may have periods where nothing much is happening for us and our condition is either reasonably well managed or simply behaving itself, so what do we write about during those times? Usually I look to see what the support groups are talking about, what’s in the news, what is happening or of concern to other people I know who have psoriasis…including members of my own family. This means that sometimes I may write about things that I a... Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1236381 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 23:58:17 +0100 1236381 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1213373&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fis-it-a-kidney-stone-or-is-my-pain-crohns-related%2F Now I am really confused and frustrated. I still have this terrible pain in my right side, and it feels exactly like a kidney stone, but the urologist said today that my kidneys looked good and that the pain was not coming from there. Two weekends ago, I went to the urgent care facility because of this pain and they did a CT scan. The doctor there was a bit wishy-washy and told me that there was a stone in the kidney but there shouldn’t be any pain. He diagnosed me with a kidney stone, gave me a prescription for the pain and sent me on my way. And as usual, I left and then thought of all the questions that I should have asked, for example, how big was the stone? They said that there was blood in my urine and thought that one might have already passed. But the pain kept up, so on Friday I... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1213373 Wed, 06 Feb 2008 23:47:18 +0100 1213373 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2512233&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fchrista-life-with-psoriasis%2Fupdate-on-otc-creams%2F Some time ago, I wrote about some OTC cream I bought while we were on holiday in the U.S.A. last year…and I thought it was about time for an update and a verdict. Initially, I didn’t see much by way of improvement to my psoriasis. However, my mother was delighted with the results when she tried it on a very stubborn patch of eczema on her leg that had not been responding to prescribed corticosteroid cream. In light of her success, I decided to persevere and I have to say that the skin is less scaly and less prone to flaking. The positives of this cream, in addition to the above, are the following: (Source: Life with Psoriasis) Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2512233 Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:36:41 +0100 2512233 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1208237&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-psoriasis%2Fchrista%2Fupdate-on-otc-creams%2F Some time ago I wrote about some OTC cream I bought while we were on holiday in the USA last year…and I thought it was about time for an update and a verdict. Initially I didn’t see much by way of improvement to my psoriasis. However my Mother was delighted with the results when she tried it on a very stubborn patch of eczema on her leg that had not been responding to prescribed corticosteroid cream. In light of her success, I decided to persevere and I have to say that the skin is less scaly and less prone to flaking. The positives of this cream, in addition to the above, are the following: It smells okay - this makes a nice change from the ‘perfume’ of the tar based products I am so used to using. It doesn’t contain any harsh chemicals or powerful, skin-thinning drugs It is no... Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1208237 Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:36:41 +0100 1208237 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2512234&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Fchrista-life-with-psoriasis%2Fim-not-hibernating-im-just-flaring%2F I can hardly believe it has been so long since my last blog entry and I feel I should begin by wishing all HealthTalk bloggers and blog readers a belated but very Happy and Healthy New Year! I haven’t been hibernating, although with the weather we’ve had that is quite an appealing option, but fell foul of a very nasty and protracted flare. It seems this was linked to a persistent throat infection and the whole sorry mess pretty much ground my life and productivity to a halt. Throat infections seem to have a real impact on my psoriasis – both on the skin outbreaks and the flares of arthritis too. My skin was sore, cracked and bleeding and my joints were sore swollen and very painful. Of course when my hands become so badly inflamed it makes taking care of my skin that much harder and ... Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2512234 Tue, 29 Jan 2008 22:40:56 +0100 2512234 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1187257&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36041&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-psoriasis%2Fchrista%2Fim-not-hibernating-im-just-flaring%2F I can hardly believe it has been so long since my last blog entry and I feel I should begin by wishing all HealthTalk bloggers and blog readers a belated but very Happy and Healthy New Year! I haven’t been hibernating, although with the weather we’ve had that is quite an appealing option, but fell foul of a very nasty and protracted flare. It seems this was linked to a persistent throat infection and the whole sorry mess pretty much ground my life and productivity to a halt. Throat infections seem to have a real impact on my psoriasis – both on the skin outbreaks and the flares of arthritis too. My skin was sore, cracked and bleeding and my joints were sore swollen and very painful. Of course when my hands become so badly inflamed it makes taking care of my skin that much harder and ... Life with Psoriasis blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1187257 Tue, 29 Jan 2008 22:40:56 +0100 1187257 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1140226&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fworrying-about-complications-from-my-crohns%2F I hope that everyone has made it through the holiday season and didn’t eat too many things that were bad for you. I managed to maintain control of myself and seem to have made it through relatively okay, even if I did eat too much of my mother’s wonderful sweet potato casserole. It is just too heavy for me to eat a lot of and usually doesn’t sit well, but I ate it anyway because I only get it once per year (if that even). Usually when we go to parties, people have all this snack food that I can’t eat. So, I manage to eat less, which is good. But I can see how people could gain a lot of weight this time of year – there are so many yummy looking foods. I went back to my GI and rheumatologist on Wed. of last week. I don’t know why but I usually start feeling better just before I g... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1140226 Wed, 09 Jan 2008 23:09:16 +0100 1140226 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1126516&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fmy-personal-ten-commandments-for-living-with-chrons-disease%2F Here we are, in a brand new year with a chance at a fresh start. I have decided to start again, but this time with some rules. Today in the tradition of New Year’s Resolutions I’m listing off some things that have been rattling around in my mind. I think I want to designate these as my personal, “Ten Commandments for Living with Crohn’s Disease.” Please send me your comments and we will update them as necessary. This is just my first draft. Thou shall not complain – even when you are justified in doing so. We shall hold our heads high and be strong and take the pain until it passes. We will do this, not only for ourselves but also, for our family and friends. Telling how we feel is not the same as complaining, it is okay to tell but not okay to whine and complain. Thou shall t... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1126516 Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:47:22 +0100 1126516 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1119389&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fhappy-holidays-dont-work-too-hard%2F This last week was one of the busiest weeks for me. At the beginning of the week the big boss recruited me for some help on a project, so I have been working late every night to try and catch up and be productive. They decided to have a work-a-thon on Thursday and didn’t really ask me if I wanted or could work late – they just said that we were and they would buy dinner. Like buying dinner is something that would make me say, “Yippie- let’s work all night!” Once they started talking about the work-a-thon, I started to worry. These were higher ranked bosses than the one that I told about my Crohn’s disease. These people don’t really work with me everyday and even if they did I probably wouldn’t tell them. I started to worry about how I was going to get out of this dinner thi... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1119389 Thu, 27 Dec 2007 22:32:15 +0100 1119389 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1106394&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fthe-spoon-theory-may-help-others-relate-to-your-crohns%2F I have never been able to explain to anyone what it is like to have Crohn’s. Not that too many people have ever asked me what it is like exactly. Most people don’t ask and I for sure don’t tell or go into details. For the last year, I have been really trying to open up more and share more (hence the blogging) and really trying to make my husband understand me. Not the ‘me’ that he thinks that I am but the me that I actually am. The me that includes Crohn’s. I have not been able to explain it to my husband well enough for him to really get where I’m coming from with that part of my life. On my last blog, a comment was made to check out the website and story on ButYouDontLookSick.com : The Spoon Theory, a personal story and analogy of what it is like to be sick. I read this sto... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1106394 Wed, 19 Dec 2007 19:49:46 +0100 1106394 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1090709&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fhaving-chrons-makes-you-a-master-of-time-managemnt%2F On one of my performance evaluations at work I got called out for time management. I was really upset because I feel like I am the queen of time management. Don’t you feel like you are a king or queen of time management? When you have a chronic illness, you have to be really good at managing your time because there is just not enough time for everything. There is more work that you have to do and there are fewer resources (mostly energy). Good time management skills are critical to disease survival. When you have a disease, you have to be very stringent with your time because you need more rest than a healthy person. We need to make sure to get enough sleep at night (at least 5.5 hours in a row, which is really hard to do when on prednisone) and we need to make sure that we don’t stres... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1090709 Wed, 12 Dec 2007 20:10:43 +0100 1090709 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1072511&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fout-of-the-closet-disclosing-your-crohns-disease%2F I have come out of the closet – so to speak. I told my boss that I have Crohn’s disease. He is not the boss that is in charge of my work, but the boss that is in charge of my pay raises. I have two bosses since I am a contractor – my company boss and my client boss. I disclosed my Crohn’s to my company boss. We went to lunch last week and I was tired of getting the same ham and cheese sandwich. I usually bring my lunch to avoid the whole situation of being too picky and causing a lot of unnecessary questions. But, lately I have not had enough time to make my lunch every evening because I am taking some Internet courses for work as well as managing my usual work load. The result is that I am always running late in the mornings. So last week I went with my boss to the cafeteria a... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1072511 Wed, 05 Dec 2007 23:20:14 +0100 1072511 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1057558&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fcatering-to-your-crohns%2F I read the HealthTalk interview with Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready last night and was very inspired. I never think that anyone famous has Crohn’s disease. It is a hard disease and very difficult to hide sometimes. I have always liked Pearl Jam, and now I like them even better. I really like the way that his band seems to support him and accepts his disease. It’s so great! We all face the same obstacles, whether we are in a rock band, teaching a group of students or leading a meeting. When your bowels call, you have to answer. There are things that we can do to make sure that there are no catastrophes during an important event. When I know I have to lead a meeting, I eat a very bland diet during the days leading up to it. Usually, that diet consists of fish (or chicken) with rice and ... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1057558 Thu, 29 Nov 2007 02:25:21 +0100 1057558 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1030325&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fnovember-check-on-how-is-your-crohns-today%2F We haven’t had an installment of “How is your Crohn’s today?” in a while. I haven’t written one in a while because it doesn’t seem to generate a lot of comments for us Crohnies - it’s a huge success in the MS blog (which is why I decided to try it here). I’m not sure if we should keep it or discuss other things; what do you think? I have read in the comments that some of you are feeling depressed right now. It is really easy to let the depression in; but you have to fight it. Get up, go for a walk, make something, read something, build something, do a crossword, anything – do anything to take your mind off your troubles. Do anything except focus on your troubles. I try to keep myself as busy as I can because sometimes it can all be too much. The prednisone... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1030325 Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:05:49 +0100 1030325 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1012549&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Ftoo-many-doctor-appointments%2F Last week, I was busy with Crohn’s treatments. I saw a colon-rectal surgeon, a rheumatologist, and then my gastro doc. The visit with the colon-rectal surgeon was humiliating, of course, but it was good that I had that exam. I am still pretty inflamed and the rectum is not good, but he said it was not bad enough to take the entire colon out yet. He did say that the removal of colon and rectum is the only thing that will fix my problems but that they seem pretty stable right now. He advised me to just manage the way I have been. He also gave me good news that I don’t have to have the seton put back in since this fistula is well-developed and should not close (the seton is placed to keep the fistula open so that abscesses don’t form). I was really happy about this news because I wasn�... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1012549 Wed, 07 Nov 2007 20:19:51 +0100 1012549 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=995185&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fliving-with-crohns-disease-is-courageous%2F One night I was surfing the Internet and found an article titled “Living with Chronic Illness Builds Courage” by Pauline Salvucci from the Self Care Connection. It was an article that was telling me that I was courageous just by living my life and dealing with my disease. I had never thought of my Crohn’s disease that way before. I have just been living and dealing with things day by day. I never really thought about all the impacts my Crohn’s has on every decision that I make and every relationship that I have. I printed out the article and I carry it around in my purse. I will sometimes read it and think “yes, I am courageous.” I feel good knowing that someone has recognized how difficult it is and has written down what I deal with from day to day. It is a goo... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=995185 Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:59:41 +0100 995185 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=976578&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fdont-waste-your-healthy-time%2F Time. Let’s talk about time. Time is one of the most precious commodities. It is something that we cannot create more of, we all have equal amounts of and keeps on ticking no matter what we do. Something that you can always count on is the passing of time. It will pass, without fail. And this I depend on. This is how I make it through the pain. I depend on time. I know that if I just wait, the pain will pass – eventually it will pass. Nothing is forever. Just because I feel pain one minute does not mean that I will still feel pain the next. I have to wait and see what will come next. I have to be patient. I know that time will pass, and with time, things change. I don’t just use this philosophy for the pain, I use the same thought process when I am crazy from the prednisone and whack... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=976578 Wed, 24 Oct 2007 21:06:32 +0100 976578 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=959068&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fhiring-a-new-crohns-disease-doctor%2F So I have met my new gastro doctor and am now wondering if I have made a mistake in switching doctors. As I said in my last blog, I decided to switch because I was not sure the first doctor knew what to do with me. This new doctor knew a lot and seemed to be willing to try new options. But I don’t think that I’m ready to try more new options. Every time that I’ve tried a new therapy, I end up worse off or back to where I started. This was the first visit, so I guess that I’ll have to wait and see how it goes. My old doctor’s office was more convenient. I could go see her before going into work and would not miss a lot of time on the job. This other one is in downtown Houston, and it takes me 45 minutes to drive there from work. My thought was that it is better to have... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=959068 Wed, 17 Oct 2007 23:10:45 +0100 959068 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=942029&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Ffiring-my-crohns-disease-doctor%2F I have decided to switch gastroenterologists and will see my new doctor on Wednesday. I decided to switch because I just didn’t get the feeling that my last gastro doctor knew what to do with me. I am a complicated patient. I don’t respond well to any of the medications and am pretty much stuck on prednisone and Imuran (azathioprine). I hate to switch doctors. Once I have answered all of the embarrassing questions and filled out all of the appropriate forms, I am reluctant to do it again. It is my reluctance to start a new relationship that keeps me bound to not so efficient doctors. But this time, I have vowed not to do this. I liked my previous doctor as a person, but I just didn’t think that she had enough knowledge to deal with me. The first time I saw her, she seemed okay, but I... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=942029 Thu, 11 Oct 2007 01:04:10 +0100 942029 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=925543&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fi-have-a-fistula%2F About ten years ago a doctor told me that I had a fistula. I know now that I had no idea back then of what a fistula actually was. I was young and didn’t ask a lot of questions and didn’t really concern myself with it. I didn’t really notice the fistula was all that different from the rest of my terrible bowels. When I moved to Texas, I told my doctor that I had a fistula (I still didn’t really understand what that meant) and she never denied it the entire time that I lived there. So, I am not really certain if she ever really saw a fistula or just took my word for it. Now that I have returned to Texas, I have decided to see a different specialist because I am not sure if my previous doctor ever really knew if I had a fistula or just took my word about it. I remember there were tim... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=925543 Wed, 03 Oct 2007 21:58:36 +0100 925543 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=906331&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fwhy-is-passing-gas-so-embarrassing%2F I am so embarrassed. Today it happened. What I have been dreading and trying really hard to avoid has now come to pass. I passed gas in front of my colleagues and I am sure that they heard it. We had our little team meeting this morning and my insides were not feeling too good from the start. Then during the meeting I could feel them rumbling and knew that I was getting gassy. Usually when I know that I’m gassy I try not to move. Sometimes that can be a problem, especially when someone asks you to come over to their desk. What am I supposed to do? Should I say, “Um can you wait a minute until I am certain that I will not pass gas and embarrass myself?” This problem really stresses me out everyday. There are some days when I have no bloating gassy problems for a few hours but I can p... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=906331 Wed, 26 Sep 2007 20:44:25 +0100 906331 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=888905&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fa-good-support-system-can-make-all-the-difference%2F I was never a healthy person. I think that I just came with some bad parts – mostly a bad immune system (and colon). I sometimes will joke and say that I got the used parts when they put me together. I was a colicky baby. I have had asthma since I was three and am allergic to what seems like everything. I was in and out of the hospital when I was little due to my asthma and then later due to my Crohn’s. My parents carted me back and forth to many doctor visits (including allergy shots three times per week) and never once complained or even made notice that it was an inconvenience to them. Once, they even drove all the way from Atlanta to Florida to pick me up because I became very sick during one of my spring break vacations. They never made me feel bad. They never once in my life told... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=888905 Thu, 20 Sep 2007 19:59:54 +0100 888905 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=864422&cid=t_362870_129_f&fid=36036&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.healthtalk.com%2Flife-with-crohns%2Fkelly%2Fnot-talking-about-crohns%2F I don’t know about you guys, but I spend a lot of time NOT talking about my Crohn’s disease. This is one of the reasons why I decided to write for this blog – I never really talk about my disease. I am always very vague and non-specific. I always put on a happy face so that no one will ask what is wrong. If no one can see that you don’t feel good, then they will not ask too many questions. There are other reasons that I put on a happy face, but I think I will write about those in another blog. Today, I will focus on the “not wanting to talk about the not socially acceptable Crohn’s symptoms.” It is just that the symptoms are not really a good topic of discussion. I mean, who wants to talk about bloody diarrhea, lots of pain, gas, bloating, etc…and no one really want... Life with Crohn's blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=864422 Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:38:40 +0100 864422