Could I have crohns?

by Cassandra
(Toronto )

Ever since I was a child, from birth I have had chronic diarrhea. As i grew up I complained to my mother all the time about the stomach pain I'd get. I went for all kinds of tests, allergy tests, crohns, you name it. Once I hit about 15 it magically dissappeared. I mean the diarrhea stayed but the pain didn't really happen anymore.... Until this week. I have had sever abdominal cramping and I pretty much have gone to the bathroom no
Less than 8 times a day. The more I read about crohns the more I think I fit the bill. Could I have crohns even if the tests I did as a child came back negative? I really want to figure this out, it's embarrassing and hard to live with.

Comments for Could I have crohns?

Click here to add your own comments

Possible Crohn's
by: Annette

Hello there,

Thank you for your post. It is possible that you have crohn’s disease but you are only going to know for sure if you get medical assistance. To have chronic diarrhea for years is terrible and it must really affect your life. Abdominal cramping and diarrhea are consistent with this disease but in fairness, it could be other conditions too and that is what makes diagnosis so difficult. I have seen that you have been tested for it previously among others and I assume that everything came back negative?

If this is still continuing, please ensure that you take plenty of fluids as you do not wish to be dehydrated. You will also be losing a lot of nutrients so do take some extra supplements as this will help you to stay healthy whilst they are determining what the cause is.

Here are some tips to help you with the diarrhea if that is still relevant:
http://www.webmd.com/ibd-crohns-disease/cd-biologics-10/cd-flare-tips
Here are some tips to help during diagnosis:
http://www.webmd.com/ibd-crohns-disease/cd-biologics-10/cd-diagnosis-tips

Do everything that you can to help the doctor make the correct diagnosis. Keep a journal which tracks a few weeks of your condition. How you felt every day, how you felt following eating, the number of times that you had diarrhea, and any other symptoms too. The more information that you can give them, the better the accuracy of the diagnosis. There may be undiscovered triggers that could be making your condition worse and a journal can reveal these triggers.

One tip is to eat little and often –healthy foods obviously and not fatty, spicy or lots of dairy products but this may be more manageable for your digestive process.

I hope by the time that you read this that things will have improved, please do keep us informed.
Could I have crohns?
by: Lydia D.

The only way that you are going to get a diagnosis is to see a gastroenterologist. So, please get a referral and make an appointment as soon as possible.

In the meantime, I suggest that you keep a patient food/mood/symptom/medication/supplement diary. This will help you better monitor your health and help you to communicate with your doctors. Doctors like visual aids and drawing graphs, etc. will help you obtain a diagnosis faster.

I refer you to the following links:

http://beyondibd.com/blog/treatment/how-keeping-a-diary-can-improve-your-health/

CDAI
http://www.ibdjohn.com/cdai/

Bristol Stool Scale
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Stool_Scale

The comparative pain scale (no pain 0, 10 excrutiating pain)
http://www.tipna.org/info/documents/ComparativePainScale.htm

How to prepare for the doctor's appointment
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/inflammatory-bowel-disease/DS01195/DSECTION=preparing-for-your-appointment


Research the "Anti-inflammatory diet"
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART02012/anti-inflammatory-diet

Very good short description of Crohn's.
http://www.crohns.org/congress/submission00/appendix4.htm

Comic - Everything you never wanted to know about Crohn's disease
http://ventedspleen.com/blog/2007/10/22/24-hour-comic-everything-you-never-wanted-to-know-about-crohns-disease/

What is Crohn's Disease?
http://www.crohns.org/congress/submission01/appiv.htm

Crohn's Disease
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/crohns-disease/DS00104

Crohn's Complications
http://www.umm.edu/patiented/articles/how_serious_crohns_disease_000103_4.htm
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/crohns-disease-000043.htm

Crohn's can occur anywhere along the gastrointestinal tract and starts off in the submucosa and can work its way in all directions. I heard of one lady who was scoped and the gastroenterologist found no active disease. Then she had a minor gynaecological procedure done by laproscopy and the gynae surgeon found Crohn's on the outside wall of the colon.
U could have crohns
by: Terri

I had diahrrea off and on all my life, sometimes abdominal pains for days. When I hit 50 I went for a colonoscopy and it showed nothing but polyps they removed. Twoo years later I was getting stomach aches almost everyday and nausea. After 6 months I went to my PC and they ordered another one. This time the crohns was present. Ulcers and inflamation in the small intestine.Crohns can go into remission for years my Dr. told me and then suddenly return. Go to a good gasto and get a thorough exam. Hope this helps!!!
Possible Crohn's?
by: Peter Bray

Get yourself an assessment from a good gastroenterologist...

PetrBray@AOL.com

Benicia, CA

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Ask A Question About Crohn's Disease.

Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.