Could this be Ulcerative Colitis?

[Chocol8]

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

Chocol8, can I have the recipe for your potato and cheese puffs please? They sound lovely!

14k, I felt totally drained afterwards as well. Horrible. Hope you're better now. My doctor told me that they're developing a new technology where you basically swallow a little camera and it films you all the way through your system and sends the data to a mini computer that you wear on a belt for 24 hours. You still have to take laxatives but you can do it all at home. He reckoned they'd be using them within the next few years, so hopefully they'll be out by the time I need my next 'extreme close-up'!!

spider that sounds good - hopefully I won't need another 'extreme close-up' as I can have CT scans & barium meals to see the Crohn's but who knows what will happen in the future!!!!

I hope everyone is feeling a bit better. Am assuming that as Ava hasn't been on that she's been admitted so fingers crossed she is on the mend.

I spoke to the poo nurse last week about my hair & am now waiting for an appointment with the consultant about changing my meds. He also apparantly wants to check my blood count as the hair loss can be caused by anaemia so I may need another unit. Oh joy - Crohn's the gift that just keeps on giving!!!!

Wishing you all well.

How you feeling now l4k?

Spider, yes my friend's husband has had the camera tablet thing. Apparently it takes ages for the specialist to go through all the stills as it takes 600 pictures a minute or something bonkers, but certainly a lot better than a colonscopy...!

MrsPinot, i lol'ed at 'Crohn's the gift that just keeps on giving!!!!' Do you think they'll change your meds to Mercaptopurine (ooh, it has the word 'urine' in it!)? I'm on them at the moment.

I have to admit that i have not taken my Pentasa granules for the past week - i actually feel no worse off them. Is this a good or a bad thing? I just don't want to be taking medication i don't need. Still soooo tired. I was meant to go out for the day with my family yesterday but i literally couldn't move off the sofa all day.

Spider, the potato and cheese puffs are ridiculously simple and not really a recipe, but low residue...1 pack of Jus Roll puff pastry (about £1.00) cut into four, rolled out and place grated red leicester and potato (microwave, leave to cool and skin) on one half and fold over sealing with milk and brushed with milk. Bake for 10-15 mins on 220 or gas mark 7. I stuffed them full so they were very tasty.
I made veggie sausage rolls this evening and they were yummy too. May try them with tomato sauce on the inside of the pastry to add a different flavour.

Chocol8 yes the poo nurse was talking about the Mercaptopurine so I assume that they are thinking of changing me onto that. I don't really care as long as I feel as well as I do now & my hair stops falling out - you could actually make a wig from what I hoovered off the bedroom floor today!!!

The potato & cheese puffs sound gorgeous - I may have a go at them at the weekend. Need some new ideas for food as I'm getting a bit bored with my diet at the moment.

Do you think your tiredness is from the anaemia rather than the UC or a combination of both. Hope you feel better soon.

Just wanted to say hello and can I join you on this thread... reading through some of these pages its all very familiar albeit at different stages :) -

please forgive the cut/paste and edit from my original thread - but here is my story -

Basically 3 weeks ago I went to the GP as for at least 6 weeks prior to that, I have been having bowel trouble - in summary - Loose stools/Diarrhea - whenever I go, an urgency to go, going between 1 and 4 times a day - actually going, but needing to go more than that - pain in my lower tummy, bloating, gross offensive smelly stools, that sometimes float but are most often gross - mucas and blood both in and separate to the stools, as well as feeling sick and generally fed up -

The gp was great :) found no obvious reason for bleeding (after an examination) and ordered full bloods and celiac test -

over the last 3 weeks, while waiting for the bloods, have googled and convinced myself it is Bowel cancer - as the symptoms fit - except the one symptom the websites kept saying was a low iron count which I did n't know I had - then today the GP said the bloodwork showed low iron and autoimmune/Whiteblood markers - but she didn't go into detail and said bloods mostly fine - I was crying a fair bit in the appointment due to pain, feeling down etc so the appointment became a blur - But they are repeating the celiac and the gp has faxed a 2 week referral - I'm joining the dots but presume they are looking into Chrons or UC as a fit - I have an underactive thryoid from an autoimmune thing 10+ years ago so that apparently adds to Chron's

A bit of extra TMI but the turning point for going to the doc was the mucas I was passing, I suddenly realised was from the back not the front and as it was like the mucas plug you lose before birth, so for a short while when the mucas was there I thought 'I must be pregnant' (even though almost impossible between the 9 month old and separate beds) but then it all clicked also have had 2 (bowel) accidents....hugely The bloodloss has ranged from quite a lot a teaspoon to hardly there -

Apart from the low iron being another tick for my self diagnosis, I have also had my gall bladder out last year 2 weeks after giving birth, but thats another story and I have read that is another risk factor...

anyway apart from trying 'not to worry' and 'not googling' which of course is hard to follow, I am here and soooo pleased to have found others experiencing the same - as I said in my last thread although I have great husband/family etc it's not something I want to/am happy discussing irl yet -

Will stop rambling now....

and I've been started on Meveverine - which I start tomorrow morning to see if it makes a difference....

Hi all, I feel much better thanks.It just finished me off for the day on friday,I felt weak and useless. The next morning I was aching all over-very strange!
I'm not sure how much the 'clear out' was responsible for feeling rubbish.
I've heard about the Pill-Cam before.It would be perfect if there was no prep!

I know what it feels like to see your hair deteriorate, mine was so brittle and dry like an old dolls and didn't grow while my thyroid meds weren't right.It's taken about 10 months to get (nearly) back to normal.

Hope you all get on the right combo of meds soon.

Hello motheretc, X post but nice to meet you.
Looks like you've got a good GP and will be getting some answers soon.Who were you refered to,any idea?gastro or colorectal?

Stay with us and let us keep you company while you wait.

hello - no idea who I am being sent to, she just said, you need to be seen at the hospital, which hospital would you like to go to (we are in the middle of a few, but quite rural 30 mins from each) I said and she said right I'm faxing this now and walked out with me.... so glad she was nice though, interesting to read you take thyroid meds too -

motheretc welcome - come & hang around with us while you wait for your appointment & I hope it doesn't take too long.

Btw don't worry about talking to people in rl about your problems just yet - after a few appointments with the gastro and/or the poo nurse you will get used to talking about your poo!!!!! I now describe my hospital appointments as going for 'a chat about my bowel movements' as this is the 1st question anyone asks

l4k glad you're feeling a bit better after Friday.

Hello motherwifeteacheretc coe on in and we'll hold your hands and talk about poo with you while you wait for your appointment! It does all sound very UC-ish to me. Hope the referral comes through quickly, because the sooner this can be treated, the better.

Those potato puffs sound dead easy, Chocol8 - will definitely try them! They might be handy for His Nibs to have in his lunchbox as well.

Hi had a bad morning, sitting here with tears that won't stop, trying to pick myself up as it were to do something with the baby... :( just another bad morning of pain, loo runs, trying to be normal happy during school run etc and sooo tired as i couldn't sleep which I think has pushed me to the edge of tears and meant to be going out tonight with lots of people for a meal = pretty dress etc when i actually just feel awful......sorry just a rant, anyway baby is now crying so btter do something....

quick update: had a bath, husbands coming home for lunch and going to go to my event and try and relax...just regretting white floral skirt anyway will be away till tomorrow afternoon as having a rare night away from the children and no Iphone yet to check MN will fee quite lost

thanks again - :)

motheretc hope you have a lovely time tonight. Its the not knowing that's the hard part I think - once I had my diagnosis I did feel less stressed (although I think the morphine helped as well!) and could concentrate on getting better.

Take care.

Hope you can enjoy it. Good luck.

Mother, welcome aboard, good to meet you. I really hope you have a wonderful time tonight with your friends. Was going to suggest you take a spare skirt or something to change into incase of an accident - sometimes just knowing you have spares helps you relax a bit.

Agree with the girls, it does sound UC/Crohn's-like, certainly very like i was experiencing. Also agree that the waiting is awful, but so glad you have an appt soon - i had to wait months as my doctor didn't think i was 'urgent enough' to fast track me (and like you i was convinced it was cancer).

I am wondering whether i ought to go back on the Pentasa as i am experiencing pain and a LOT of mucus (yellow with a tinge of green) which can't be good. My stomach is mahooosive and i look pregnant. Really not keen on talking to my poo nurse as she's so unhelpful and i do have an appt with the specialist next Tuesday (along with a dietitian appt on the same day) so will wait.

MrsPinot, yes i do think that my tiredness is from a combo of anaemia and UC. I will get a blood test done on Friday and find out if my iron levels have hiked from 8.6 and then i will hopefully know if it is that or the UC.

Spider, how are you feeling now?

I wonder if Ava was admitted the other day? I presume so and really hope the hospital are helping her.

Chocol8 - poor you, you're still really struggling. Hope the specialist appointment goes well next week. Take care. I've also assumed Ava has been admitted & am hoping she's ok.

I had a call from the poo nurse just before & I'm seeing the consultant on Friday about my hair loss so I'll let you know how I get on. I'm spending the next 2 days at the hospital as I have my small bowel barium tomorrow. Feeling very down about my hair at the moment so had a chat with the pharmacist where my DSis works & she advised me to get some Wella SP scalp balance serum. Its for hair loss & thinning so I looked online & have ordered some. Its £14.95 a bottle but if it helps its worth every penny.

Well I am back and the night was fine, but this morning heading to the train station was bad, but found some random loos and all fine in the end -

a question: Does anyone know why my stomach/bowel seems to be worse, I mean a lot worse in the morning and as the day progresses it gets less worse if that makes sense - although never better?

Glad to hear you had a good time last night Mother...and that you found a random loo this morning too!

I don't know the answer to your question, but i find the same thing - though i'm glad i'm not the only one. Perhaps because we are lying down, with food digesting in our bodies, when we get up in the morning, gravity comes into play....? Personally, sometimes late at night i get it as bad as the morning. Does anyone else have that?

Thanks MrsPinot - and for the flowers .

Ooh, please let us know how the Wella serum is - i will invest in some if you recommend it. My ds said the other day something along the lines of that when the world finishes, there will still be my hair, lol! It gets everywhere! He has even found it in his pants - in food - all over my clothes - and even on his toothbrush!

Good luck for your hospital stay and barium meal - try and relax and get some reading in.

Motheretc- morning is so much worse for me too and slowly improves throughout the day. I rarely have the dreaded D after 6 pm but if I'm in pain in that area, lower left usually, it can be terrible in the evening.
Don't know if that helps you much because I still don't know what my problem is.
Waves to chocol8.

Waves back to l4k.

Does anyone else think their diet affects their condition?
I cannot continue on low residue food indefinitely - i will turn into a piece of white pap!

Hope Ava's OK.

Chocol8, the only things that noticeably affect me are very greasy foods like chip-shop chips and takeaway pizza, or if I eat the skin of a jacket potato or an apple I sometimes pay for it the next day. I'm back on normal breakfast cereal and semi-wholewheat pasta now though - hated the white stuff, but I'm not overdoing it just in case!

Mother, sorry you had such a low day but I'm glad you managed to get out and have a bit of fun.

MrsPinotGrigio I want to hear about the serum as well! I think my hair has stopped falling out now and it's growing back, but it still looks shite. Wish I were brave enough to cut it short.

Hi everyone - quick update. Had the barium meal yesterday - the stuff I had to drink was horrible but over quite quickly! The doctor annoyed me though - she asked me 3 times if I'd had surgery & after the 3rd 'no' from me then asked 'are you sure?' I didn't dignify that with a response. The consultant came in then (not mine) & had a good look & started talking about strictures & fistulas & hollows between my small & large bowel. I had no idea what he was talking about so I just nodded & will wait to see my own consultant in 2 weeks when the results are available. Have managed not to google the above as I know I will scare myself silly!!!!

Saw my consultant today about my hair & he has changed me on to Mercaptopurine for a month to see if it stops breaking. If not I can have injections every 2 weeks but I'll have to do them myself (not sure about that). My HB level is still a bit low & isn't going up so I've had more bloods done & will have more next Friday but he said that if it stays the same I'll need a iron infusion. I feel ok although my bowel was a bit 'odd' last night but I think that has been the barium drink so I'll just keep a close watch on it.

Hair serum hasn't come yet but I'll let you all know if it works.

Hope you all enjoy the lovely weather at the weekend - I am intending to get me & DS out to the park tomorrow & Sunday & DP can join us Sunday as he's off work.

Glad to hear you're getting back onto real food again Spider. I do crave salad and fruit in this hot weather. I was in a shop caressing a mango earlier - i'll get a name for it if anyone spots me! Lol! It seems that everything i eat is affecting me negatively.
Love the technical term regarding your hair...'shite'.

MrsPinot ed and that you were asked repeatedly by the nurse something you know for sure! Bloody cheek of her. Agree that it's best not to Google those words....but i'm sure i would take a peek if it were me. Born nosey, me.

Tonight the doc said that he was concerned that the UC is 'spreading into my joints'...? I have arthiritis-like pains in my left knee and it is swollen. It usually only causes pain when i am hunkered down looking in the fridge or freezer, but it is extremely painful. Also joint pain in my left forearm and the base of my thumb. Doc said i must discuss this with the consultant and also ask about management of the condition - it's been 9 months now and no remission. He's signed me off for 6 weeks.

Hoping to make the most of the sunshine, but have to be careful as having light treatment 3x a week at the hospital for my skin condition, so don't want to burn.

Hope everyone enjoys the sun safely with their families. Take care and best wishes to Ava.