How do you know you have crohn's?NEW by: Annette Young
Hello,
The simple answer is that you will feel unwell. Either through experiencing abdominal cramps, nausea, diarrhea or constipation, rashes and joint pain. You may feel absolutely exhausted too.
If you have any of these symptoms you should make your way to see a doctor to have tests. It may take a while because often diagnosis is not conclusive initially. It is worth persisting if you do not get an exact diagnosis and the symptoms continue. There are other conditions that have similar symptoms so you may find that they diagnose you with IBS or Ulcerative Colitis, depending on what the tests reveal.
If you do have Crohn's, you need to realise that it is a condition that you will have for the rest of your life. While research is ongoing, at this time there is no cure.
If there are others in your family unit - mother, father etc and one or both have Crohn's, then you have a much higher chance of getting the disease yourself as there is a definite genetic link.
I would start keeping a food diary but include details of aggravated attacks and symptoms experienced as this will help your doctor to be able to understand the condition and to make a correct diagnosis. If you are diagnosed with Crohn's, don't be surprised if the doctors give you a higher dosage of medication in the first instance as this is now the current trend of thought-attack the disease before the intestines can become damaged.
I attach a link that will give you some basic information as a starting point.
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