PERSONAL UPDATE

I was just released from Saint Mary's Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota after having a fistulotomy.

I had an active fistula that needed to be opened up after 1,5 weeks of abdominal pain and bathroom trips up to 10 times per day.

The Remicade Infusions were supposed to induce remission and hold the fistulas in Check.

Blood Work has been sent in to evaluate the effectiveness of the Remicade on my system The results will take about 10 days.

The Gastroenterologist at Mayo Clinic is increasing the frequency of the infusions from every 8 weeks to every 6 weeks. In addition I will be going back on Prednisone for several weeks. 20 mg/ day for 1 week, 15 mg/ day 1 week, 10 mg/ day 1 week and 5 mg/ day 1 week.

I will follow up with my GI on the 18th after going in for either a CT Scan or Colonoscopy.

Just another experience with good ole Crohn's disease.

Bob

Happy to Provide Information About Crohn's and IBD's

When I was first diagnosed with Crohn's, I wanted to learn as much about my disease as possible. I read hundreds of websites and started thinking that I was spending hours upon hours searching for more information.

That is the reason that I wanted to start this Blog.

I hope I can provide a source of information that touches on as many topics as possible. In my research I could not find a single source to gain basic knowledge about my condition. There are many good sources but sorting through all the Medical Terminology took time because I did not know the terms being used on many of the sites.

My goal here is to provide a good starting point for people that are interested in learning about Crohn's and Irritable Bowel Diseases.

Please comment and if you have questions, please ask.

Bob

Updated Pages

Be sure to check back often as I update the pages here with many informative subjects on Crohn's and IBD's

Getting Support

In the last several months, I have searched for support and groups that relate to Crohns.
One of my favorites is a free phone app called GI Monitor.

Support is an important part of living with IBD's. People that have the disease or are in remission understand the daily aches, pains and habits that we deal with on a daily and sometimes minute by minute basis.

GI Monitor allows you to track your IBD symptoms such as Stool form, frequency, blood content and add custom symptoms. The app also allows you to track meals, stress levels, pain levels and medications. The app also has a social feature that allows you to communicate with other sufferers of IBD.

The group, known as "Butt Book" is very knowledgeable and friendly group of people from all over the USA and the world. You can learn about symptoms, medications, treatments, tests and procedures that you or someone you love may encounter when dealing with any of the IBD's.
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You can search facebook for other social outlets and reference www.ccfa.org. Crohns Colitis Foundation of America is an excellent place to start learning about the disease and find local support groups and events.