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Could this be Ulcerative Colitis?

900 replies

Chocol8 · 25/10/2011 22:12

Sorry this is gross, but i am worried and looked online (prob not the best of ideas) and found that most of my symptoms seem to fit UC: different coloured stools which frequently changes but is mostly very loose.
Blood in stools (a lot), if i pass wind, i can pass pure blood but usually mess myself (very unpleasant), stomach churns constantly.
Being sent (eventually) for a colonoscopy to have a look see. Does anyone know what else this could be please? x

OP posts:
Chocol8 · 15/01/2012 18:23

Sorry OldBag, I should've remembered that. No, i haven't spoken to anyone about diet, but was looking at the FODMAP diet more recently. I am aware that cashew nuts (which i adore) are not good - last night i stupidly had some and was up after a few sleep (still, not bad for me) in pain and on the loo reading for half an hour, then back and forward a few times after that. Extremely tired this morning and i've got nothing done i was supposed to do, which is annoying cos there's so much to do and organise with a hospital stay on the cards (allegedly).

I hear ya, it must've been the veg that killed me on Christmas day cos i am veggie - i had a mouthful of stuffing and some yorkies, but have a feeling it was the brussels or roasties (M&S's, not so nice).

You definitely need to make an appt with your consultant OldBag - it could take a while though and you maybe feeling worse by then. Is it cos you can't find the time? I may ask about seeing a dietitian when i eventually get in - it's a great idea. I really don't want to look this crap any longer - and certainly not when i am feeling better!

Katy, my pile certainly hasn't gone yet, it's still hanging about but it is nowhere near as painful as it was. It was difficult for me to tell if it was the pile or the UC bleeding, as i get clots and bleed a lot anyway. I find it difficult to tell between UC and menstrual blood half the time. I have a feeling it was not the pile bleeding as it was absolutely mahoooosive, so am sure i would've been aware of more blood from that if it had bled iykwim.

OP posts:
spiderlight · 15/01/2012 19:31

Chocol8, the hospital stuff was back in September - it was a reply to Oldbag's question. Been in remission ever since, thank goodness!

Chocol8 · 15/01/2012 19:37

I'm so glad to hear that Spider! Glad that one of us at least is in remission! Long may it last!

Out of curiosity, did your face swell up and did you have a voracious appetite on the steroids?

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KatyMac · 15/01/2012 19:48

Well I think I said before my pile bled drippy bright red 'thin' blood & I also had thick dark red lumpy blood & clots at the same time

I'm assuming the two didn't come from the same place but the Doctors may prove me wrong............

I have a lot moe of the second type of blood atm but I have put that down to the bands

Chocol8 · 16/01/2012 19:45

Oh dear, well apparently cos i went to another hospital to get diagnosed and treated, i can't go to my local hospital for IV steroids.

The doc was not impressed but said she would call the consultant at the local hospital and see if i can be referred. She did take my blood pressure and feel my stomach but felt she almost seemed to a bit dismissive to start with. She could see i had tears in my eyes so she said she would call me back today to let me know what was happening.
Her pa did and said she had sent a fax to the hopsital marked 'urgent' but whether they call or write back (prob write) is anyones guess.

All fun and games here, i hope you guys are doing better....?

OP posts:
KatyMac · 16/01/2012 19:47

That is not good, not good at all

This is why the NHS has all these problems; actually no it isn't 'Why' it's just a symptom of the problem

Poor you

Chocol8 · 16/01/2012 20:00

I agree Katie. I just want to get over this flare up and move on. I really want to feel better again - i've forgotten what that feels like. It's been too long and yesterday and tonight have been awful.

OP posts:
KatyMac · 16/01/2012 20:04

I am fed up of:
Slimey liquid poos
Bowel pain that means I can't wear jeans
Too much smell from wind/poo
Going to the loo 8 times plus a day
Having liquid poo followed by rabbit droppings followed by normal-ish in any random order
Being knackered

Off to get DD, back later

OldBagWantsNewBag · 16/01/2012 21:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

KatyMac · 16/01/2012 21:37

What I don't get is how I can do 3 different consistencies at once, it's bizarre

OldBagWantsNewBag · 16/01/2012 21:54

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

KatyMac · 16/01/2012 21:59

No idea

Eggs are supposed to bind you up......but I have never really eaten them (I used to be sick whenever my mum gave them to me)

A lot of mine floats, a lot sinks......often some at the same time

Very loud, very very loud mind you my poos are too

spiderlight · 16/01/2012 22:52

Chohol8, yes my face swelled up a bit, although not massively, but no they didn't give me a voracious appetite at all. In fact I went right off my food for the first few weeks because they gave me a horrible slimy metallic taste in my mouth. I actially lost 3lb while I was on them (put it back on twice over since though Hmm).

You're all having such a horrible time - it's not fair :(

KatyMac · 17/01/2012 07:15

& remember I shouldn't be on this thread with you guys as I don't have UC; I just have piles Hmm

Chocol8 · 17/01/2012 21:09

Oh dear, we're none of us doing very well are we?
The mysteries of UC (and piles, allegedly for Katy) will forever be just that i feel.
Liking the 'brass band' analogy OldBag! Made me lol!

Ladies, i dunno if this will be of any use to you, but i went on the RADAR site www.radar-shop.org.uk/Range.aspx?id=0 and ordered a radar key for the disabled loos. They include UC as a diagnosis for having one. It cost me £2.25 plus p&p and means i can go urgently if i need to rather than waiting in a queue (cos this is impossible, as you know). It also means that the other stalls don't hear you playing with your trumpet, so to speak. I haven't used it yet but carry it with me, though be warned, it is big and heavy.

No phone call today from the hospital so decided today that i am not waiting around holding my breath any longer. I am going to have to attempt to make myself better with diet. I eat eggs a lot too OldBag. Also mash potato and some pasta. I try to keep it quite bland and try not to eat too much in one sitting or all hell is unleashed (wherever i happen to be). My appetite has certainly increased from it as i am always craving crisps and chocolate (not that this is new by any means, just i want more.)

Thanks Spider, that gives me a bit of hope. I am going to cut down my oral steroids slowly as they are making me very angry and sometimes quite aggressive. I feel i have gained nothing from being on them and was only keeping them going so that it wasn't such a shock to my system when i went on the IV.

Also, i read somewhere at the weekend that if you are on steroids for more than 3 weeks, you should be given a 'steroid card' to carry. I'd never been offered one so i asked at Boots and Superdrug but they had run out and had them on reorder. I got one eventually at Tesco pharmacy. You fill in the details and should show it to dentists, opticians etc up to A YEAR after taking them as it can still affect you. Also you should avoid chickenpox at all costs as it can cause (more) health problems apparently.

OP posts:
spiderlight · 18/01/2012 12:21

I've got a Radar key as well. I've not yet had to use it, thank goodness! I didn't realise I had to use my steroid card for a year, either - I took it out of my purse as soon as I came off the steroids but I'd better dig it out.

I think I'm having a slight blip. Nothing severe enough to call a flare-up and I know what caused it (peas with my dinner on Sunday - OH cooked a lovely meal and forgot and I had a just-this-once moment) but it's reminded me not to be blase about remission. I've gone back on the full dose of Pentasa for a few days to be on the safe side. They've given me granules rather than tablets to take from tomorrow - hopefully they'll be less yacky to swallow.

KatyMac · 18/01/2012 21:16

I rarely go out & choose where & when I go

Chocol8 · 19/01/2012 19:40

Spider, i've just looked up some of the meds you and i have used. It seems that Asacol - which did NOT agree with me at all - is also called Mesalazine. I looked up Pentasa, which is called Mesalamine which are one and the same. I was hoping to ask the doc about Pentasa, darn.

I called the Crohns and Colitis UK site helpline number for some advice about having to be re-referred to my local hospital. She suggested being a 'creaky gate' to the doctor, and is sending me a load of information (including a "Can't Wait" card) in the post.

However, she mentioned VSL-3 probiotic powder which has good results in tests. I asked at the pharmacy and she very kindly called me back to say that 10 sachets of granules costs just over £20......!

I would really like to try it (apparently it will take a month to see results) as at least it can have no ill effects - especially as i am currently reducing Prednisolone.

I used my RADAR key for the first time today - it worked!!!

OP posts:
spiderlight · 19/01/2012 21:38

Yep, most of the 'asa' meds seem to be the same thing or very similar. Shame really - Pentasa's working a treat for me and it woudl be great if it was a new thing you could try. There's other stuff out there though - they've told me that if I need more than two courses of steroids a year they'll try me on azathioprine, which is an immunosuppressant (not keen to try it, though, so I've decided not to have any flare-ups ever again, so there!)

Ouch at the price of the VSL-3!! I just take Yakult, but it's probably not in the same league.

Keep bothering your doctor. It's madness that they're making you wait like this and jump through all their administrative hoops. Awful though it sounds, I'm so grateful that I ended up going in as an emergency :/

l4k · 20/01/2012 15:06

Hello ladies, I've read what I can of this thread and it's nice to see how well you're supporting each other.

I wondered if you would have any ideas about my bowel related problems as I am in a lot of pain today and am thinking of going back to my gp and asking for a referal to gastro?

I have had mucous and blood in stools on and off for a while but I never used to get diarrhea,now I get a couple of days of it a week and never constipated,which I had been for years.

I have a thread called "digestive problems,but which?"if you've got time to look.
Sorry to bother you all while you're not feeling good,hope improvements are just round the corner.

KatyMac · 20/01/2012 20:55

Any change, any change at all I'd go & see the GP tbh

Sorry you're feeling bad

OldBagWantsNewBag · 20/01/2012 21:33

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

KatyMac · 20/01/2012 21:38

I have a bit of an issue
You know I had my piles banded on Wednesday last week

Well they were supposed to fall off within 5-7 days......it's day 9 & they haven't should I worry?

OldBagWantsNewBag · 20/01/2012 22:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

spiderlight · 20/01/2012 22:24

I agree - definitely see your gp & ask for a referral. It does sound a bit uc like.

Katy, maybe to g nhs direct tomorrow?