Wow, thanks harry! Harry's the resident expert on fibre to be sure! It's our age and experience I think
Hi panda, welcome aboard
Where in the bowel is your UC located? What are the symptoms you're having at this time? Have you had a colonoscopy yet?
I'm impressed with your doctor's prescription of 5ASA rather than putting you on pred as first-line med.....try and avoid it forever if you can -- that should be a goal (well, it's mine to be sure) unless all else fails.
I have UC....diagnosed over 15 years ago (rectum/sigmoid) and the only meds I've been on is 5ASA Asacol and Salofalk (Canadian version of Rowasa). They are awesome meds, for treatment as well as maintenance. I've now got it down to a science thanks to the support and philosophy of my doctor. Patience you need for sure as well getting to know symptoms intimately! But it's one med (if you are able to take it -- some can't) you can take for a looooong time and the dosage can be adjusted up or down to meet your symptoms needs.
About Ibuprophen , that's the medication itself for you can buy it in generic form..it's sold under the brand names of Advil, motrin and others. It's known to cause gastro bleeding, so if one is compromised may as well not add too much fuel to the fire. It's also hard on the kidneys and liver if taken in large continual dosages. Aspirin is also a no-no according to many....but I do take it for headaches because tylenol is crap for that. There's no effect on flare or non-flare durations, meaning my flares aren't worse or it doesn't cause a flare if I'm not in one. Tylenol is the choice of med for pain relief by doctors (it really helps me for body aches, mouth pain)but that in high continual dosages can also harm the kidneys and liver. We can't win in this battle it seems...so moderation would be the key here.
Do you take ibuprophen a lot? If so, what for? I used to use it for my periods, and it was the ONLY thing that relieved the cramps (and I suffered from day one)....I've had a hysterectomy (1993) so I don't use it anymore. What a relief to be sure!!
Naproxin (naprosen) is another pain relieving med out there...I don't take it because I know it bothers my asthma. I don't know it's effect on the bowel and whether it causes bleeding, but it's easy to find out.
I don't get the point about your family freaking.....there's no cure, so don't allow their stress to become yours. Educate them, and encourage them to do so for themselves as well. Stress also does a number on UC...as impossible as this is to say, it does help to find methods to deal with it.
Long term....that's such a common sensed question!! You'll have flares and remissions. It can be frustrating at times to be sure. The 5ASA meds take a while to kick in, but you'll notice changes within a short period of time. Before it's dosage is adjusted, your symptoms should be pretty well gone, then tapering can start. MUST be tapered slowly according to your symptoms, and do NOT stop it abruptly. Don't be in a hurry to get off these meds. I'll probably be a lifer for the 5ASA....i'm not freaked out by it at all. Probably because I understand my flare symptoms and know how to taper accordingly, as well as when to increase. But, it did take a few years to get it all figured out through trial and error (my doc and I).
5ASA (mesalasine, mesalazine..etc) is actually a derivative of aspirin. It's application is topical and it's action is anti-inflammatory. The goal of treating your flares and between flares is to make sure the inflammation stays at a minimal level.
UC starts at the anus and spreads in a continual fashion upward. The 5ASA can be in pill form, granual form (both taken orally) as well as in retention enema (foam and suspension) and suppository (both to be taken rectally). The coating of the pills is dissolved in the ph of the colon and the medication spread on the wall of the colon to treat the inflammation as well as to prevent the spread of inflammation. The rectal meds -- suppositories are used to treat rectal inflammation and the retention enemas are used to treat the rectum and up to the sigmoid. They come in 2gr and 4gr bottles, and the 2gr can be used as tapering or as maintenance.
Well, I think I've said enough at this time....if you have any other questions, I'd be happy to answer, and if I can't I can help you to do so.
I strongly suggest you get real smart about UC, recognise there are a lot of "old ideas" out there as well many new ones that don't necessarily mean they're the be all and end all of UC or its treatment. Get to know the 5ASA meds, and if they work for you, they may be all you'll ever need.
Food has a definite impact on your flares....but food does not cause flares. Many of us adjust our food intake during flares, but don't do so in remissions. Some follow a strict diet intake in the belief it will heal their UC. Food has natural actions and can help treat symptoms of diarrhea or constipation (Yes, we with UC get constipation believe it or not). One has to learn to distinguish the flare/food symptoms, for there's a very thin line in doing so. Just don't confuse the two.
Take a day at a time, and it might be a good idea to write in a diary your food intake, med intake and symptoms. Sometimes we have symptoms and don't recognise it could be as simple as eliminating a specific food.
some people thrive on strict food intake, others don't. I for one have never been afraid to eat. There's comfort and relief when we don't put too many restrictions, for when it all doesn't make sense we get too desperate.
How are you doing....really??
Best to you,
quincy
Re: medication questions About UC 
Linear Mode
