Intro:
My husband is 34 and flies internationally. He was diagnosed with UC 2 years ago. Since then he has had two colonoscopies, switched doctors, and had a refined diagnosis of proctitis. I am trying to help him with the SC diet, but improvement is very slow. I wonder if his travel schedule of 2-4 plane trips a week make his UC worse?
Some more background:
We live in London, England, and despite having access to some of the best doctors in the world, we feel frustrated, hopeless and without support.
Symptoms He’s Having:
My husband has been bleeding for 6 months. Sometimes is accompanies a bowel movement, sometime it is just blood that comes out. He uses Pentasa suppositories twice daily. The blood is bright pink and despite increasing his Pentasa dose, it is consistent. He is fortunate and has no cramping or much urgency.
My Husband Has UC, Here’s The Story:
- I am strictly adhering to the SC diet when cooking for my husband at home, which isn’t as hard as I thought. Many recipes that I formally cooked with incorporate all legal foods. Actually, check out the Joy of Cooking – tonnes of SC legal recipes in there and great ideas for substituting ingredient. Also, Whole Foods stocks organic freshly ground almond “flour”. I buy almost exclusively organic now. hoping that this will help him too. Certainly much of this diet is good for ourselves and our three young children, though my kids and I eat our fill of pasta when my husband is away ;)
My questions that I worry constantly about are:
How long does this diet take before you see results? - Any tips on how best to adhere to this diet if your work demands that you constantly travel and eat outside your home?
- Any ideas if changes in air pressure from flying impacts the volume/severity of bleeding?
- Is there a natural progression with UC? Will it eventually get worse?
- The SC diet says dry wine for low sugar content. How can I learn which wines are best?
- I know stress is suppose to be bad for most everything, but is it particularly bad for UC?
- My husband is very fit and works out frequently as a means to keep healthy and reduce stress. Could this impact UC?
- Could he have internal hemorrhoids if the blood is so brightly coloured? Or is that normal?
I worry because I can see that he is worried. We are a young family and it frightens me that he is struggling to cope with all the demands in his life, plus this on top. Any answers, suggestions, tips or shared experiences are gratefully received. I have found this website to lift my spirits and really appreciate the community on here.
Medications:
He has mostly been on Pentasa. I am sorry but I do not recall the first suppository he tried.
written by Bronwyn W
submitted in the colitis venting area
My husband is 34 and flies internationally. He was diagnosed with UC 2 years ago. Since then he has had two colonoscopies, switched doctors, and had a refined diagnosis of proctitis.
