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General health

Colitis, does anyone suffer from it?

20 replies

AvaLou · 13/09/2006 15:14

My friend has this quite severely and she is coming to stay so I want to make sure we don't cook anything that could aggrevate it. She is far too polite (and a little embarrased)to tell me her dietary needs so I have no clue. She keeps insisting she will buy her own food, but I know she'd rather not.

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jessicaandrebeccasmummy · 13/09/2006 15:16

my mum had chrons and although not the same, similar.

We avoided greasy food, nuts, dried fruit and strong spices. These are the things that set mum off and in turn set me off too.

All i can suggest is asking outright - say you want to make her stay as pleasant and enjoyable as possible, and therefore could she please let you know what to avoid.

From my experience different sufferers react to different things, so you may not get the "right" answers here.

HTH x

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AvaLou · 13/09/2006 18:39

Thanks for your advice,

I have asked her what we should /shouldn't cook but she says she will bring her own food, I suppose we should just agree to that, but I would love to have at least something she can eat without bringing it herself.
M

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MoreTeaAnyone · 13/09/2006 18:40

My dh has it. He avoids all fruit and veg, dairy produce, sauces. It can be difficult to find something for him to eat.

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lou33 · 13/09/2006 18:43

i have it, but i dont find it is really food related

havent had a bout of it for a while now, thank goodness

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AvaLou · 13/09/2006 18:48

More tea I know it's an awful awful thing, before my friend was diagnosed she came to ours and was truly grey in complexion and dashing to the loo constantly. She was busy trying to finish her PhD at the time and ignored it, then had a real shock when she finally went to the hospital

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MoreTeaAnyone · 13/09/2006 18:49

It's such a horrible illness. Dh says the pain is more awful that being 'chained' to the toilet. It's good that she's coming round though. Dh still makes excuses not to go out places.

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AvaLou · 13/09/2006 18:57

Moretea, my friend says it comes and goes so she feels she can't do anything because she may suddenly get hit like a lightening bolt with it.
I guess it's best to just leave her to pick and choose from the food, or bring what she wants. And I've stocked the bathrooms with toilet paper.

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fatfox · 13/09/2006 19:01

Avalou

My sister has this and now has to take steroids. She nearly died last year, as she ignored it and heamorraged. Anyway, her medication means she can't drink alcohol, so its worth checking with your friend exactly what she can and can't have.

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lou33 · 13/09/2006 19:41

the pain is pretty bad, yeh

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MoreTeaAnyone · 13/09/2006 19:48

Dh has had it for 7 years now. He's never had it under control. It'd be great if he could have a life without it. My aunt has it too, but she now is free of pain and other symtoms. My dream for dh is a life where he can leave the house without spending ages on the toilet.

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CountessDracula · 13/09/2006 19:54

I have crohns and when I am having an attack I have to avoid high fibre food (soft fibre is ok like bananas), also nuts, onions, anything with skins eg sweetcorn, peas etc.

Otherwise i eat mostly what i watn

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alexa1 · 13/09/2006 20:00

Hi. I have been told I have Colitis but I am on the waiting list to see a gastroentologist and until then I won't know for sure. I will let u know once I have had my appt.

I think stress does it for me rather than food.

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Jimjams2 · 13/09/2006 20:02

It might actually be easier for her to bring her own food. If I'm going somewhere with ds1 I always take my own food because his diet is too complicated to explain and someone can go to a lot of effort and get it wrong.

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lou33 · 13/09/2006 22:06

stress does it for me

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texasrose · 16/09/2006 22:30

Hi, I have Crohns too, and the thing with me is that what's okay one day is not the next so I'm always weighing up if I can "get away" with eating certain foods.
Also you get different strands of thought of how to treat it - I've done dairy-free, wheat-free, veggie, low-fibre and unprocessed diets in my time - the most extreme was when I had to go off solid foods altogether for 3 months and drink these foul concoctions on prescription - so I can understand it could be easier for your friend to provide food.
CountessDracula, are you manging okay with your Crohns? I've been steroid-free for nearly 2 yrs (yippee!!!!!) CAT me if you want (I'm not exactly sure how that works, tho, so please bear with me if it doesn't work!)

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alexa1 · 16/09/2006 22:40

What does CAT mean?

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texasrose · 16/09/2006 22:44

It means 'contact another talker' but as to how you go about contacting that other talker, well, it's all the marvels of modern technology to me...

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alexa1 · 16/09/2006 23:15

I am waiting to see a Gastro. I have been told I have Colitis. My brother had Chrons and died, he was 2 months old. anyway, I know there is bowel probs in my family, I just wish I knew what was wrong with me. I have arthritis type pain in my hands, and irritable bowel syndrome.

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texasrose · 19/09/2006 21:48

Alexa, Hi! So sorry to hear about your brother. I've had Crohns for 10 years now and I also get arthritis in my hands and feet. My consultant tells me that this is not like the type of artritis that older people gets (which doesn't tend to get better) but it's a kind of mirror of what's happening in your bowel - so if my bowel's a bit inflamed my joints will be too. Sorry if TMI!!! Hope you get on an effective treatment plan soon. Try not to worry - the drugs tat are available are very good at keeping things under control and there are some very good dietary treatments too (which I now use rather than steroids).
Good luck honey!

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suedenley · 19/09/2006 22:58

I too have a problem with my bowel caused by having my gall bladder removed when i was 20 ,now it doesnt matter what i eat it goes straight though me in 10 mins sometimes before ive finished eating my meal.so i just eat what i really like, never eat anything im not so keen on as i dont see the point of being poorly and in pain for hours afterwards if i didnt enjoy the food if you get me. Perhaps your friend feels this way and would rather bring her own food than offend you by leaving something or making herself eat something she isnt enjoying. This may not be how she is but if she is like me then i have to have things cooked exactly to my liking so never eat anyone elses cooking , when we eat out my husband says i moan too much and am too fussy but its my stomach and my bowel and i will eat what i want

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