In hosp - diverticulitis - hand hold

[Fearinghosp]

Hello☺️

I’ve had a nightmare 24hr - first at GP, sent to A&E with suspected appendicitis, after CT scan and bloods, turns out I have acute diverticulitis - it’s taken 24hr for them to find me a bed and decide on a course of antibiotics.

I feel bloody awful, - tummy extremely bloated and cramping all over, can’t poo properly (like small pellets - sorry tmi!) and generally shattered after a whole night in A&E in an upright chair.

Anyone else had this? Reading online it seems this is a flare up and I now have diverticula disease or something. Does this mean I could be unwell like this a lot more in the future? It seemed to come out of nowhere, I felt fine a few days ago

Bump

Hand hold from me. DH was diagnosed with Diverticulitis 5 years ago. It made him very poorly but I should say he’s only had a couple of proper flare ups since then as he can now spot the early signs and head it off. Stress seems to be the thing that sets him off rather than any particular food. There’s a Facebook group Called Diverticulitis U.K. Support Group which you might like to join. As with all sorts of groups there’s good advice on there as well as a lot of not so good advice. It’s worth a look though. Good luck. Sorry you’re feeling rotten but it does get better.

I have a lovely friend with it. He manages it.

Good luck and all the best.

I had it, was given antibiotics and no problems since. Feel better soon, it's very uncomfortable isn't it? Hope you get seen qui

Quickly

Thank you so much everyone🥰

@StottyCakeandJam - that’s a great idea I will check Facebook. Glad to hear your husband is a lot better - I too think I’m being affected by long term stress😫

I have diverticular disease and was like you which also lead to my diagnosis via colonoscopy (which I now have regularly, Aldo always have loads of polyps removed)

it took a while, but my symptoms have very much calmed down. I have reduced stress greatly (therapist, taken up yoga, regular exercise) and made many changes to how/what I eat/drink (no fizzy drinks, no coffee after 11am, stopped smoking, cut down red meat to once a week and reduced intake of animal fat). I should also note, making sure I am in no way constipated. Yes, can go the other way but avoiding constipation is crucial.

it is very manageable. It you need to take note of your triggers and avoid them. Of note, do not ever take pain meds with codeine. It constipates you and can be very dangerous with diverticular disease. I had to do battle with my local hospital after breaking bone/pins put in when the default pain medication is co codomal.

you will need to be your own advocate and remind medical staff of your condition. When getting treatment for anything

when you know your triggers, make sure people know that although it is not a food allergy, that done foods can be very dangerous for you. You want to avoid flare ups. My great grandmother died from sepsis after severe attack of diverticulitis. I always remember that so I’m extra careful. Not had s real flare up in years (occasional “runs” but nothing more).

Thank you so much @ILoveYoga that is great advice. Sorry you’ve also got this too.

What’s strange is, I have never really eaten red meat, I’ve always eaten a lot of vegetables and mainly fish, chicken or vegetarian. I don’t smoke and rarely drink alcohol. After reading up about it, it seems so unfair that it’s happened given the above. That said, I’ve had a lot of life and work stressors the past few years, so perhaps it’s related to that.

Ironically, I had been meditating, stretching and following mindfulness for the past 2 months and then this just came completely out of the blue. Have been trying to wrack you brains for what triggered it, am wondering if it was alcohol as I had my first alcoholic drink in months on Wed afternoon, then this started a couple of hours later 🤔

My dad has this, I remember when he first got diagnosed; like you he was in hospital and we were all very worried. But he only occasionally has flare ups and is basically fine

Hope you're getting answers Fearing

I'm going to hijak your thread for a whinge now (just to prepare you)

I have long term diverticular disease ( 7-8 yeas ) I get flare ups , it never settles completely , I have pretty constant cramps and loose bowels but I manage it , I think , pretty well.
I know my food irritants

So , roll on The Mother Of All Flare Ups , end of May .
Then I started passing blood . Proper blood when I wipe and loose pooh , looks like cheap raspberry jam (TMI)
Cramp, spasms, intense nausea,(no vomiting) but I'm hungry and no will to eat but I feel like crying out of self pity because I'm so bloody hungry . I'm managing on small bland bits of food , lots of fluid . Then I know in an hour or so , it'll be out the other end .
15+ stools a day , day and night . I am married to the flipping toilet

I've had stool tests , blood tests and a colonoscopy (Ive had these before)
Colonoscopy showed no cancer which is obviously a relief . But widespread erythaema , diverticulitus and colitis .
I am still bleeding , I know if I am concerned to go to A&E . I don't want to wait hours , hog their toilets and take up resources in this hideously busy week

I have gone from 75.5 kg to 69.1kg since early June

I am waiting for biopsy results and a referall back .
My life is literally on hold
I am so fucking sick of the shitting , the cramp , the nausea.
I want my old bowels back , not this unreasonable one I'm dealing with .

I'm loathe to Google , it comes up with surgery and stoma bags . Maybe that's what's in store ?

That feels cathartic <sigh>

@70isaLimitNotaTarget Good god, that sounds awful! I’m so sorry :(

Now I’m worried about cancer - hasn’t even considered that!😧

Thanks Fearing - my intestines and I usually just rumble through life with the odd flare then bleed (usually a matter of 2-3 days then its done)

I hadn't thought about bowel cancer myself but I was sent one of those NHS tests , if there's any blood then they investigate , especially now as there is such a high profile in the news and the symptoms are often ignored or are invisible .
When the Bowel Cancer Screening contacted me I did think "What if I'm one of those people who is blaming IBS but it isn't , and WTF do I do if it is ? "
But it was ruled out quickly thankfully .

I had an area of diverticulitus and a seperate ulcer . Now it seems my colon from the transverse arch to the rectum has flared .
Joy .

How are you doing now @Fearinghosp?

I was just diagnosed yesterday, I also have Crohn’s disease so was had a colonoscopy as I have been in pain and bleeding on and off for a while. Assumed it was Crohn’s related, colonoscopy showed no active Crohn’s but lots of diverticulitis.

I switch from constipated to runs, have extreme pain on my left hand side and occasional bleeding.

Honestly so sick of my bowel now, I wish they would just take it all away. Crohn’s, bowel prolapse and now this!

Both my Mum and her best friend have this and both manage it really well, now they know what causes a flare up. For my mum it's anything with pips and things like popcorn. She avoids them and is fine.

@Fearinghosp realise this is a very old thread but wondered if you were still out there and whether you made a full recovery?

I’m going through similar now and really scared (I’m early 40s and relatively healthy normally) though my body increasingly isn’t coping with stressors.

On a flare up at the moment..had it 15 years.. on antibiotics.
Painful swollen left side abdomen. Fever and chills.
I get a flare bad enough to be treated about 6 times a year.. other smaller flares l manage.
Doesn't help l have adhesions and my bowels/ colon/ intestines/ bladder all stuck together.
Keep off anything with seeds/ nuts/ popcorn etc that can get stuck in pockets... stick to paracetamol.. no anti inflamatories or codiene.
Hope you start feeling better soon.