Activities When You’re In a Colits Flare – 176 Person Results

THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN to everybody on the Active Newsletter Group who participated in this month’s survey!  This month there were participants from 19 different countries which is incredible.  Which countries you might wonder?  Here’s the list:  United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, Philippines, Oman, Russia, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong, Denmark, Spain, India, Jamaica, Korea, and Ukraine.

Living with ulcerative colitis when it’s in remission or darn near that is one thing, but figuring what you can do when you’re in a flare is different, and that’s what this survey was all about.  Thanks again to this months participants, and, it’s my hope that we all will have a better understanding of what types of activities are still possible during UC flares.

 

(below is the question that was answered by 176 people from this month’s survey)

 

What activities help you fill up the time between having active UC symptoms and getting back to your normal self?

• walking and sleeping, moaning,and looking for a cure on line
• when you in flare up you become upset and feel you don’t want to get out from home except for urgent and important things. also when i was in flare up to i was thinking to start my higher education. because education less tension than work.. and same time you feel you are doing something
• Some times I would garden and plant items- my mind if off of my condition and I feel fine usually until I am done….
• I try to read and clean the house. It helps to pass the time and focus on something other then the pain
• 1) Check supply of toilet paper. If you have 2 rolls or less, its your own damn fault. Get someone to buy you the big 20 roll pack at Wal Mart.
  2) While they are there, get you some Kao Pectate or whatever works to slow things down.
  3) Watch all that crap you recorded on your DVR and delete it.
  4) Take hot baths
  5) Masturbate. Don’t laugh. We all get giddy at anything sexual but, the truth is, it does relax you which is exactly what you need at this time.
  6) One last item for the store, get some more bathroom spray.
• Watching tv or scrapbooking
• rest, relax, excersise, pray a lot !!
• Spend a lot of time on my iPad!
• Lot’s of reading!
• acupuncture, relaxation, prayer
• I enjoy coloring a picture the writing obnoxious stories about them later. Timing yourself to the bathroom and other such Colitis Olympics. Planning a fun night out when you are feeling better. Clean: I know it sounds strange, but you are close to a toilet and the area around you isn’t so cluttered, in turn, for me, I feel less cluttered and scatter-brained. Those are some of my personal favorites.If you are new to UC, take the time to read about the condition, medications, surgery, and alternative ways to treat UC. You should have done this right away, but not everyone does. Have a themed movie marathon. Scary, funny, chick-flicks, whatever floats your boat.Most importantly, talk to friends or family. Call them or invite them over. Being lonely makes the time pass much slower. Having support is so vital to recovery. :)I think I answered the question and started to ramble too, oops.Much love, Snazzy! (This picture is five years old, but priceless.)

• i try to carry on with a normal routine as much as possible. i enjoy reading and catch up on organizing old photos when i have a lot of home time on my hands (Usually work full time and have a house, husband, kids and dogs ) The dogs get to go for lots of walks
• Reading……
• More rest, bland food, at extremes baby food
• When I am in a flare, I am so sick I cannot be “normal” and take place in activities. I just am mostly on the heating pad, lying down, watching TV.
• I like to stay close to home (for obvious reasons!) so potter around the house or garden, nothing too strenuous. If in pain, I tend to sit for a while with heat on my tum but like to be a bit more active if possible. Just love your website Adam and thank you SO much for it.
• I have never had UC in remission : ( I spend a lot of time at home and when feeling really bad I cut meas. I am sure this is not the best way to go, but at the time it is the only way to get comfort. I have a lot of left abdominal pain ( we all do) sometimes I use a heating pad on my lower back, it seems to help most days. Early in my disease I was able to run and walk. Being active was a way to take my mind off of the disease, but I am not able to stray from a restroom long enough to make it enjoyable.
• Gentle yoga! Slow walks, Epsom salt baths, massages, sleep, cooking foods that are nutritional and gentle on my system, a creative hobby such as knitting to feel productive.

• Taking things easy. No stress, prayers, support from others with similar symptoms, easy on diet, plenty of fluids.
• Read.
• sewing
  Catching up on my tv!
  Painting
  Card making

• Lots of rest & careful diet
  I try to practice my violin. Doesn’t always work.
  I try NOT to drive.]
  Read
• reading,weather permitting light gardening.
• I medical marijuana, take my meds, also make funny videos with my phone and send them to friends, talk on the phone a lot and catch up with friends and family, clean my house spotless, and try to just enjoy it for what it is. NO WORK.
• meditation, restorative yoga, light walking whenever possible, baths, heating pads, loads of sleep, visits from friends, reading, not letting myself feel too isolated, essential oils in my bedroom, keeping flowers and plants in my room so it feels cheery and not like my “sick-room”
• While watching tv, I knit.
• Yoga, cooking healthy food and spending time with my family which takes my mind off the UC.
• Watch what I eat and drink. No alcohol or greasy foods.
• The things I tend to do when going through a flare are watch lots of movies, listen to music and read.
• Not really I just re-organize my schedule depending how I feel.Inside:
  1. I organize the apartment, this makes me feel good, getting rid of all the clutter, catch up on paperwork.
  2. Read different material and opinions about different diets to see if any fit with me.
  3. Fill out surveys .. ha!
  4. Research stuff on the internet
  5. Watch moviesOutside:
  1. I workout for an hour at the gym making sure I go before I go. (if you know what I mean)
  2. take the dog for a walk along well known trails
• No, just rest. I would love to know what I could be doing!
• Sleep
• When I have active colitis, like now I’ve been active since around May, my activities vary so much. I have three young boys, 4,7 and 9. I have just moved to a new country, Oman with my husbands work. I’ve had to pack up house and unpack, settle boys into schools 30 mins drive from my house and find my way around this new place. Im taking 12 500mg pentasa a day. Yoga is the main activity that I do that I actually think helps me. When the cramps are really bad I walk quickly around the streets, praying. I just don’t feel like socializing when I am bad as UC makes me feel so tired and nervous of a no toilet situation. Rest is another activity that helps! I don’t get enough rest and I’ve had a stressful 6 months so I feel positive that I will get better soon….
• 1. Taking medicines on time, especially if I am on Prednisone or any immunomodulator.2. Switching over to bland diet , including pomegranate juice and *buttermilk. Having ayurvedic medicines – Liquorice Powder and Bael Fruit Powder with water. Although I have this ayurvedic medicines on regular basis.3. Ensuring proper sleep.4. Maintaining cool – deep breathing and light music for anxiety.5. Although difficult, holding the faith.
• Cooking and Baking – I feel really tired usually and don’t want to leave the house, so I’ll cook and bake a bunch of SCD/healthy things and freeze them for the future.Yoga – This feels like the only physical activity I can do when flaring (and sometimes a position still makes me run for the toilet). But, I always feel better mentally afterwards.Reading – Sitting on the toilet for a long time = My reading has skyrocketed since being diagnosed!

• I mostly sleep or play on my phone
• I haven’t been able to find anything that helps during a flare, only sleep, usually sleep involves being in the bedroom and not the bathroom!
• I cook foods I know are legal on the SCD diet I enjoy modifying recipes to legal things on the diet.
• Rest mostly after working a full day. I try to do yoga which makes me feel less stressed and gives me a bit of energy.
• Exercise
  Eating a restricted diet of homemade soup, white fish, cooked apple, bananas and a little rice
• Restorative yoga. Very gentle and full of positive breathing coaching. Also a thirty minute GENTLE massage. With emphasis on the gentle. I see a massage therapist who can be really serious about deep tissue, but when I am feeling rough, just a relaxing rub down helps. 30 minutes is all I can arrange with my gut as well. Read a good book and sleep.
• It seems like my house is always the cleanest whenever symptoms are active. But really when my outdoor
  activities become limited, there’s always something to do around the house. Not just cleaning, but I get to catch up with far away friends via facebook, read a good book, watch my Yankees, watch movies with my son. Go visiting family and friends who know I have uc. I do miss going to the beach when symptoms are active, but it will still be there when I’m better.
• i try to stay busy and keep my mind off of my uc
• Rest-Relaxation-Meditation,
  Herbal tea/apples.

• I am a voracious reader and a good book ( anything Terry Pratchett!) and a hot steaming cup of chamomile tea in my big rocker soothes the savage beast for a time. I also love word puzzles and hot baths. Oddly, my husband indulges me with a horror movie marathon and once in awhile when a break happens between the bathroom and the pause on the TV, he wraps me in a big wooly blanket my stepson bought me and we take a short walk around our yard and look for four-leaf clovers. It always fills my bad-omen tendencies with hope, one tends to forget ‘that thing with feathers that perches in the soul’ after about the twelve trip to the loo! ALso, I love to listen to music with my earbuds in with an electric blanket on low over my aching muscles. It really helps and calms me down. Also, this one will probably make you think I am at 56 a little batty , but I LOVE to color. When I was a child I don’t think I ever owned a crayon that wasn’t broken, now I have the BIG box of Crayola Crayons and I print pictures off the computer to color because it is really difficult to find a really good old-fashioned coloring book. I paint and sketch in chalk and charcoal and I have learned by time and pain that even if I am only mediocre I am old enough now NOT to care . If it makes me happy, I am FREE to do it and NO ONE can tell me to stop. Smirks and sneers and whispers hold no power for me anymore, if this horrible and tiring disease gave me anything, unwittingly I am sure, it made me immune to humiliation. There is freedom in that. A cold freedom, but freedom nonetheless. Then as the pain and the joint complications ebb, I amble a little farther and a little farther until I am walking at a good pace again, farther and farther from my bathroom. Oh, I still chart my life by the bathrooms this world has to offer, but I am working it out slowly but surely.
• I keep a list of things I always want to do but never find the time [i.e. read that ridiculously long book, research items of interest on the internet, scan old family photos]. When I have a flare, this keeps me busy and feel active. Also turn a Saturday night at home into catching up with the DVR or watching that movie On Demand you secretly wanted to see!
• Going camping,
• definitely relaxing more and spending time with family
  staying away from stress! don’t over-worry, at the end of the day everything works out eventually.
  drink relaxing tea.
  eat foods that make you happy! (and healthy, preferably)
• I have a potters wheel so I usually make things like bowls or vases exc. It’s very relaxing and takes my mind off the worry. Or just make things by hand.
• Basically I try to get a lot of rest. I watch TV, read light magazines.
• I log on to face book or other chat sites like gi monitor
• Reading, watching tv, staying close to home, decluttering
• No! i do not engage in any activities, in fact when the symptoms arise i cannot to much due to the tremendous pain i feel.
• I don’t limit myself of much activities as me and my family are very active. however i definitely would not go on rides such as roller-coasters or anything i could not immediately get off and run to the restroom
• Painting helps me keep my mind off my symptoms, while allowing me to stay close to the bathroom! Laying out in the sun seems to lift my mood, as does a short walk when I can manage it.
• no special activity.
• book reading/ research medical issues/computer use /home finance/
• Just relaxing ,eating right and going to the gym and doing a light workout
• I try to strike a balance between exercise and rest, because I do get more tired. Most of all I try to combine exercise with going somewhere interesting because the mood-lift is probably the most benefit I get from it. We have off-road pathways that go through countryside, over swing bridges etc and that’s my favourite. Secondly, If I feel its wiser to stay home I still try to stay active with gardening, walking the dog, dance to some music. Keeping contact with people – even online – is also crucial, especially people who have/have had the same illness. My sister was a nurse and she’s a great listener if I feel a bit down; when my mood improves I’m happy to do the listening for her, so win-win!
• I think Pilates or Yoga helps as it’s mainly stretches which sometimes relieves the pain of stomach cramps.

• Read or watch t.v. close to the bathroom.
• I have Crohn’s disease and uc; a bowel resection in 2006, and I have been in clinical remission since. However, I do have occasional flares—usually when I eat something that doesn’t agree with me. When I am experiencing active symptoms (i.e., diarrhea, tiredness, vomiting), I try to slow way down and walk every day. Sometimes walking is the last thing I want to do, but it gets me outside in the fresh air, my senses are alive with sights and smells (usually good since I live in Vermont :), and I feel better all over. I have arthritis from having IBD, so walking is a gentle form of exercise. In addition to daily walks, I do some really gentle yoga stretching (I have a DvD by Rodney Yee called AM Yoga that I love), drink peppermint tea, and really pamper myself (I might go get my hair washed and cut if I can afford it, or go have acupuncture, or a massage . . . but I usually don’t have enough money for that). You can take care of yourself at home, like I do, but make sure you ask for someone to help you. Asking for help if often the first step toward getting back to normal b/c you admit you are having symptoms (most of us are in a state of denial when flaring, so it is a good idea to keep a daily food and stress level journal. Works for me! I wrote an entire book this way :)
• Get extra sleep. Go on a 24 hour SCD chicken soup cleanse. Stay on SCD diet. Avoid work stress.
• try very hard to not stress..even if you have to stay away from someone,,or something you like… that is causing you stress………be more honest about what your going thru!!!!.talk to someone that really loves you.and you love also..does not have to be family..sometimes friends are better to talk to then family… thank god i have the best wife.she is like my doctor.and i get to sleep with her..that for sure helps the stress…………………………………i have no special activities when active..its me,the toilet,and bed.it sucks.just leave me alone…………………….i don,t want to bother anyone……………..and no i can,t put a pic up..i have a water melon face i put 25 lbs on since they put me on prednisone steroids..just took my last steroids pill 2 weeks ago today.10/25/12..how do i get this weight off..i,m so uncomfortable..don’t want anyone to see me..help..lost in Florida
• Depending on severity of flare, I continue to live and do all the normal things as I would if I was in remission.Probably do more gentle exercises like walking rather than cardio and ab work outs.Have more visits to the Acupuncturist.Make my own ginger mint tea. As well as making vegetable juice.Watch more movies/read do puzzles. Try to relax and rest more. Positive thinking, reassuring myself things will improve, really helps.Avoiding travel & stress & anything else that makes a flare worst.
• The most I have energy for is working, otherwise, I pretty much am drained and just lay around, watch TV, and go online. During a flare I’m usually on prednisone and suffer from insomnia as one of the side effects so I do a lot of house cleaning and reading. Wish I could say I do more.
• Yoga and relaxation. Tips – find a great yoga teacher who can help you with specific moves which help digestion and pain. I have found yoga to be a god send with pain relief. My advice is always get there early and get a position near the door, explain your condition to your instructor before you start and ask for feedback to make sure you are doing the positions properly as you may have missed an instruction when you made the quick dash to the loo whilst the class is going on. At first I was embarrassed to come and go from the class due to my ulcerative colitis but then compared it to ladies who were pregnant and had to duck to the loo as well. I cannot recommend yoga enough (even though the idea of it horrified me at first!). Namaste!
• Guitar & cooking
• No I never feel well enough to do anything other than resting when I can
• Hard to participate in much, but what ever I do, I need to know I am around close facilities in case the need arises.
• Just trying to keep working full time at my job is hard enough.
• I just try to rest, eat a really bland diet, avoid alcohol and keep calm. So if I can, I carry on with some light exercise such as swimming and pilates. I make sure I go to bed early and nothing much else! I’ve only had one really bad flare, right after my diagnostic colonoscopy and I spent a week off work just relaxing and not straying from a toilet.
• Anything that occupies my attention so I can’t dwell on my symptoms. Usually reading.
• I am fortunate to be a stay at home mom. When my U C flares up I hibernate. I try to eat easily digestible foods in small quantities. I nap. I meditate and listen to relaxing music. Warm Epsom salt baths and a heating pad. If all else fails I go for the hydrocodone.
• Try to get lots of rest, fresh air, sunshine, light exercise, pure water, health promoting food.
• yoga/calming exercises, going for short walks when feeling a little better

• Many times depression and tiredness comes alone with my flare up because I can’t do the things I usually like to do and I lose interest in being creative. I need to stay very close to a bathroom, so I tend to like to do some weeding or gardening. I purposely located my herb and small vegetable garden near my front door so I can run in when I need to go. Also, being outside helps me feel better.
• Sorry in advance for the use of the word “sucks”.When there is a flare up, everything pretty much sucks. Sitting sucks. Laying down sucks. Eating sucks. Drinking (water) sucks. Playing video games sucks – although it does slightly distract the brain.
• Unfortunately, when I am in an active flare- which I am in now, I am more or less confined to the house- running to the bathroom!!! That is when I catch up on my reading!!! (Haven’t left the house in five days)
• When I’m a bad flare and are unable to go to work, I usually do anything that I can do at home without ever being far from a toilet. Catch up on housework, write, scrapbook and other crafty stuff. I end up getting a pretty bad case of restlessness and want to leave the house but am too afraid that I’ll get stuck without the necessity of a pot.
• Cuddling on couch with my softest blanket, napping, doing nails, reading.
  Stretching, pampering myself
• Fasting
  Smoking marijuana
  Medical research
• Netflix, Pinterest, audio books, and playing Scrabble online. Sometimes I sort through and organize things if I’m well enough. When my bm’s are more controllable I like the gym for pain relief.
• I always walk, if I am in a flare I don’t walk as far as I normally do and I go at a slower pace.
• not doing much activity, easy digestive foods and probe tics + salmon fish pills. one more thing helped me to recover 90% that is ULCER IN COMPOUND Ayurvedic herbal dietary supplement i took it for 1.5 years.
• Online Scrabble; solitaire if I’m really down.
  If I feel good, I work on my web site where I sell antique and vintage costume jewelry.

• When I am in a flare I have noticed that my colon usually calms down some in the late afternoon. When it calms I usually head for the gym for about an hour.

• I try to workout with weights that helps me to feel normal in a regular basis.
• Jogging
  Sleeping.
• Sleep and lots of rest
• Meditation, yoga and watching box sets.
• Difficult to say but I continue to have flare ups whether at work or home. Go to the loo about 5 times aday . There are no special activities that I do to fall back at present, I just try not to get stressed which I believe is partially to blame. I just need to try and relax more but can be difficult with a 15 month old baby. Sorry that’s all I can provide probably of no help.
• Not really (other than take a nap to catch up on lost sleep!) – though will be interested to hear what others do.
• The pain is too severe to exercise.
• Work out at the gym
• No specific activity. just try and rest and get on with the normal activities of daily life as much as I can
• Yeah, sure do: I don’t leave the house if I can help it!In a way, I am very lucky to be totally retired; I come and go as I please, and I cannot imagine being, say, in an office while in the throes of a colitis flare. I’m sure there are just so many abrupt races to the loo any self-respecting boss will tolerate, even from a valued employee.So reading, watching the boob-tube, cruising the ‘net . . . . I know I’m no help, but I will be very interested to see the results of this survey.
• Reading books and resting
• I walk all the time and try to eat the right food
• I try to stay home more as I don’t have a car and must use public transportation. When I’m home, I stay close to the bathroom and usually spend a lot of time on my computer or listen to my radio. I try to eliminate stress and listen to music or write down my experiences in a journal noting which foods are causing me problems. I find milk products bother me so I eliminate them from my diet and stick to fruits and vegetables.
• At home activities near the bathroom, reading, video games,watching tv
• Yoga, walks, having fun with friends.
• 1. Playing video games gets mind off having a UC flare or working out doing insanity
• YOGA–YOGA—YOGA—REALLY helps restore oxygen to the colon and other body parts–helps open everything up –most affective MENTALLY to connect with your disease and keep a very positive outlook on your health and body–Makes you want to eat right–and flush out your system via LOTS OF WATER–But GO to a very good Yoga instructor–get out with other people and experience that–Yoga via TV is not Yoga–trust me
• I try to not let the UC change my activities but hiking is a good one, your in the woods! Or sticking to the gym where there are bathrooms.
• I read a lot of books and magazines and do word searches. I also like taking baths and listening to my IPOD.

• There really isn’t any added activity that I do differently. I definitely do change my eating habits ( to a more “healthier” version and consume more ginger tea. Other than that I try to keep my daily routine and I always have in my head it helps be cope with it better and provides me with a sense of power.

• Sleep, relaxation as much as I can, spending quiet time with friends who are aware of what I’m dealing with at that time, and trying to eat as best I can…
• I shut down and really become a hermit. Watch old TV sit coms in bed, read

• I often stay close to the washroom, watch what I eat and drink lots of water.
• Extra sleep! Extra water! I limit my physical exertion.
• Try something completely new! In my last flare I made a quilt, the one before that I knitted a Celtic knot. I also highly recommend yoga or swimming if you can. Pick up a good book, learn something you otherwise wouldn’t have taken the time for. Flares are no fun, but they can be a great excuse for “me time” and doing new things really helps me stay positive. Stay healthy, my friends!
• Read a lot more (which is a lot) especially in the bathroom, tons of rest, rent lots of movies, even better nutrition than usual, spend more quality time w family/friends/pets, bubble baths, etc. Anything to promote relaxation and decrease stress
• I teach myself how to play various instruments, listen to music, attempt to sleep, and watch the Big Bang Theory :)
• Anything that will take my mind off the flare.
• Just been diagnosed June 2012 and still trying to get it under control. My toilet issues are usually as soon as I get up and continue for couple hours. Whenever I need to go out I have to get up two to three hours early and then if gone all day take an Imodium. Don’t do much traveling since diagnosed. Saw dr yesterday and have been on Balsalazide disodium capsules . Take three capsules by mouth three times a day. Yesterday dr. said he wants to switch me to a new medication but had to do blood work first and I need to call back in a week. I have to stay home a lot more than I used to and only go out if I know where the bathrooms are.
• Knitting, reading, shopping online, getting caught up on shows I’ve Tivo’d, emailing friends, researching UC online
• Well, my flare started acting up about six weeks ago and I pretty much knew it was happening but the diagnosis was confirmed on Monday :-( I’m on the Rowasa retention enemas at bed time for at least a month. Sheesh, sometimes this disease goes away for so long that I’m sure it’s gone forever, then boom, years later a flare happens and it’s no fun. I know what I’ve been stressing about and that it what has kicked the flare up into play.OK. It’s a good idea for me to drink less coffee. I think alcohol, too, could aggravate things. And I should not go munching down on tons of salads right now. I should not be Miss Rabbit. High fiber during a flare does me no favors so I’ll just try to go a little blander for now.I think it VERY important to distract myself from the issue that is troubling me so much. It’s a big one, but I cannot solve it today. I have a lot of thinking to do. I have decided that I should actually give myself up to a year to figure this particular big thing out. In the meantime, I really need to RELAX. It’s good to remind myself to breathe deeply. I just want to make a point of aiming toward a little more TLC and kindness from me to me. The patient deserves it. Getting plenty of rest is a really good goal.Stop pressuring myself. Determine some simple priorities. I’m just not up to tackling all of it right now.Glad I found this site recently. I got diagnosed with UC back in 1980. I was 26. I’m 59 now. I’ll have to share my whole story with you guys some time soon.God Bless Adam for creating this site. Thanks to everyone else, too! I see information here, outside the box thinking, experiences shared, suggestions, support…all that good stuff! So….I’m not alone, and neither are you :-)Karla

• Yoga, meditation, television, music, cooking… actually any activity I can do near a bathroom or a bush!
• I’ll try to jog on the treadmill. I start to use moist wipes rather than toilet paper because the frequent wiping can become irritating.
• Walking (as opposed to more active exercise). But not far, obviously. Gotta stay close to home. haha.Resting as often as I can, given the daily grind that never goes away, even when flaring.
• Taking it very easy with a heating pad on my abdomen to help with the pain. Slowing down to give my body a chance to calm down and feel better.

• Video games and smoking weed
• There is a lot work all the time, of course, I try to work as usually. It comes to be very difficult cause of all CONDITIONS of flares: bad memory; becoming very slowpoke(does anyone note?), stools make me angry when i see them, you are like a bomb – very dangerous to commune with you).
  So, activities: laugh, smile, joke, hark))
• Reading
  Meditation
  Yoga
  Walking (if symptoms are not requiring a bathroom every 5 minutes)
  Plenty of Rest and Naps
• Walking is always good
  Yes i do when i cannot walk for a long distance as well as running

• I lay on my couch with a heating pad! :)
• Am classic movie buff so that helps, reading, sleeping, taking to supportive friends and family , I live alone now since have been widowed , my dog, he helps keep my days full, when flare is full on ,, pretty much camp out in the bathroom, and wait for steroids to kick in, this last one that am just getting past was one if my worst ones, did only what i literally had to do, and slept alot,.. When started to get better, I guess from exhaustion also I journal, and continue my workouts , even if at much easier level in a bad flare
• Writing really helps me vent the frustrations and anxieties that a flare often produces. Plus, I can stay close to the bathroom. If I’m not too weak, I spend time cooking so that I can prepare lots of SCD-legal foods well in advance in case I get too sick to cook later. I have an infant son, so I spend lots of time playing with him. His laughter and indifference to my illness makes me feel better and gives me hope, reminding me that this too will pass.
• I use a heating (flax pack) on my lower abdomen and it seems to decrease the pain. I also try to do as much low impact stretching as possible.It can be really hard to have an appetite during this time, so I eat the things I know will not upset my stomach as much, but have now become my “comfort foods”: chicken broth, popsicles, rice and toast.
• I think walking can help de stress

• I’m pretty active until I have UC symptoms. I usually want to relax and watch tv. I find myself wanting to rest more during those times, so I do. I’m a mechanic for a construction company and I find it hard at times during flares.
• Ideally, yoga! It’s great for strengthening abdominal muscles, which aides in digestion. Also beneficial for the achiness that so many of us suffer from. I should listen to my own advice more often, though. This flare has left me depressed, staring out the window and crying quite a bit.

• Watch TV
• worry…at first… then meditation, finding balance, watch what I eat…eat non-processed foods as natural as possible….eat more vegetables, eat yogurt and take probiotics, drink plenty of water….get exercise and REST
• at the moment i am in the middle of a bad flare and i can honestly say there are no activities i can enjoy at this time. i start work at 8am and have to get up in the morning at 6am in the hope i can leave the house by 7.45. its not always possible and i am often late. i try positive thinking and watch what i eat in the hope i wont pay for it the next day. when i am at home i try to stay warm as i find a bad flare makes me very cold. with all the aches and pains its hard to move around so i try to rest as much as possible
• It’s more what I don’t do when I have a flare. I try to limit activities and get more rest. I don’t do anything I don’t absolutely have to do. The easier I am on my body, the quicker it heals. I do try to keep up the exercise, perhaps at a slower pace in my attempt to be as otherwise healthy as I can be.
• When I’m in an active flare, I know it’s important to try to stay active and involved in as many daily activities as possible. The last flare I had was the worst I’ve ever had. I’d been in remission fro over 5 years and this came out of the blue. I was so sick that I wound up in the emergency room. I continued to work during the flare, but honestly had no business doing so. I had excruciating pain, profuse bleeding, urgency and hadn’t had more than 2 hours of straight sleep in weeks. I decided to to to the ER when I was driving home from work and was so exhausted and disoriented that I didn’t know where I was.During the “good” days of the flare, I really tried to enjoy things that my husband and I do together. We like to go to flea markets and antique shows. I could do this as long as I was familiar with the location and knew there were easily accessible and multiple restroom options. For me, that was always the concern when we went out: Are there bathrooms and will I be able to get to one if urgency was an issue? I am an active person who runs and bikes regularly. During the flare I couldn’t do those things so it was important for me emotionally to try to be as normal as possible in other ways.So, if you’re in a flare, try, try, try to maintain as much as your normal life as possible. It helps you psychologically and physically. It will give you a new feeling of normalcy and that, as you know, is priceless when you feel like the only person on Earth who has this disease.Take care of yourself, be positive, appreciate those around you who support you and above all, don’t be afraid to share with others that you have UC. Providing education to them will make you feel more supported and help them to understand what you’re experiencing.
• During a major flare, I find tending to most menial house chores fills the time. It’s not like I can get terribly far from the bathroom. But thank god for hand held games… Finally get to watch all those shows we dvr-ed too.
• I am 72 years old and retired so do not work and lead a very unstructured life. I very much do things when I want to so having UC is not that disruptive for me. I still suffer just like everyone else though.I am active in the garden growing much of my own vegetables. I use the computer a lot and I read a fair bit. I live in Australia so the weather is generally very good. I am married and the only driver so take my wife shopping, and if necessary to avoid any nasty little incidents I just sit in the car and read whilst she shops.Apart from shopping and medical appointments we have no reason to go out. Family come and visit us on a regular basis so I often go fishing with my grandson.and we have good neighbors.I have had UC for about 2 years and am currently in remission.
• Sitting home, moping, watching tv. Reading is difficult for me, since I have to focus on the book, but my mind is on the fact that I have to use the bathroom. I do something mindless to get me through it.
• With 2 small kids its a struggle! But I find lots of safe things I can leave them with when I nip to the loo- felt games, coloring etc when the kids are in bed I LOVE my iPad I can watch movies that my hubby has saved to our media server, do the shopping and search the web for hints on how to cope with uc!!! My gi endorses Imodium to allow my meds to work, even at my worst it gives me 1 hour without running for the loo so that hour I do as much as I can out the house and I get some sanity back lol
• who has time for activities when you spend all your time in the bathroom!
• Lots of reading. Nothing like perusing a good biography and living vicariously through cool people…that randy Rod Stewart has a new one…Mick Jagger’s was pretty okay…so was Ron Woods’ and ‘Keef’ Richards’ bios…something to really get lost inLooking at fab real estate online in places like England…oh the English countryside…that can help those UC symptoms…or even more exotic locations…seeing how the other half of the world lives!Physical stuff like non impact cardio…been doing it for 35 years and the UC has not stopped me…light weight lifting too…gotta do that exercise no matter what…NO matter what, we must keep ourselves in the game!! UC or not!! Don’t let UC beat you down…we only go around this one time!
• Reading, music, treadmill and rest
• 1) Drink a lot of bone broth
  2) Get some rest
  3) Take 40 minute detox baths in epson salt, ginger, baking soda, and vinegar. :-)
• Just trying to live my life, I don’t have time for anything special, just spending time with my family and working full-time. As a single mother of two there’s not much time for things that might be helpful, like going on walks, to the gym or swimming. Just waiting and hoping I guess! And sleep as soon as my children does… =)

• I tend to exercise more to keep my mind off the flare
  walking
  meditation
• Reading, writing, television, crossword puzzles, listening to soothing music, sleep! I don’t know if it really helps the issue but I massage my tummy a lot. Maybe it just makes me feel like I’m doing something.
• Napping, yoga, sewing
• Finding and listing clean, well-maintained public restrooms. Special note for those that are two or better commodes(TO AVOID THE DREADED OCCUPIED SYNDROME ! )Thankful there are products like ‘Depends’ to allow some social mobility.

• Sitting on the toilet!
• No just continue working
• When my UC is at its worst I just tend to stay home and sleep, watch tv and movies. Once it starts to get a bit better I like to try and get out and about. I think trying to get back to some sort of routine helps me recover a bit quicker.
• I take short walks, not too far from the house. I do go to the store, but only if I am feeling as if no accidents might happen in the next few hours. But, you never know. I read more, move around less.
• Generally, I think that writing a blog about your interests, it’s a great way to share experiences and meet new people from the comfort of your home. Sometimes your energy can be really low, but i try to take advantage of those times when I’m feeling a bit stronger by going to the gym or taking a walk. I know exercise can be challenging, but i believe that going outside and staying active is the best way to feel better and cheer you up.

• Also, it’s common to feel stressed with a flare up, so i try to practice yoga or activities that relax my mind.
  Nutrition is also one of my interests and with an active flare up i try to eat as healthy as i can, especially with the help of home made natural juices. When i take care of myself, i feel more positive.All in all, my advice is to try to find a balance between staying home and going out. It’s important not to get caught by your home, you need to take advantage of these “energy moments” to get out and stay socially active.
• I was just released from the Hospital 12 days ago…ten day stay…for severe ulcerative colitis flair up…so tired, trying to get well…med’s eating right …will know about my special activities..soon..when better

• Work, cuz everytime it happens I end up in the er.
• I find trying to do relaxing activities make me feel better and seem to help my flare ups go away faster. I do a lot of reading. I try to get as much rest as possible, even it that means lying in bed to read. I find that when I take my mind off of things and just pamper myself, it helps. I also find that placing a heating pad on my abdomen may help the pain and the bloated feeling. I put on my most comfy pjs’ and relax and lounge. I try to eat simple foods, like soups and fruits. I stay away from soda and stick to water, diluted fruit juice, and tea. I also enjoy (weather permitting) sitting outside and relaxing in a lawn chair. Again, the key is to relax your body and allow your body to heal.
• Reading, photography, movies. Low impact activities that allow you to stay close to the bathroom.
• I have leftover Prednisone from when I first was diagnosed. Whenever I’m having a flare-up, I take half of a 10mg pill in the morning and that seems to get rid of the flare-up pretty quickly.
• The most important activities for me are sleep so that the body can rest and meditation to focus on remaining positive. It’s very easy to fall in the spiral of negative thinking, which only exacerbates the symptoms – therefore I focus on activities that I enjoy and I stay away from asking Mr. Google questions about my current flare ;-)
• i mostly just put the radio on and enjoy the music, sometimes i dance depending on how i feel at the time.
  it just helps to pass the time away and stops me thinking.
• I usually read books or magazines. Or listen to music while I try to take a nap.
• Study and do homework in bed.
  Watch movies online, again in bed.
  Stretch…not quite yoga,but i try.
• I am a movie watcher when I am in flare, mostly because any movement sends me straight to the restroom. A good book is always nice. Boardgames with the family, also taking up a craft project is a wonderful relaxing time consumer and a great way to get your head out of your butt, so to speak! LOL!!!
• Going to the gym, breathing exercises
• I constantly remind myself that I’m OK as a person, and that my body deserves to be loved.
  When I get a flare I get angry with my body at first – for being weak and sick and limiting for my life.
  But it’s very important for me to heal those feelings and find comforting love for my body.
• I try to be active and it’s not always easy and I am super cautious about what I put in my diet. So I cook and good, healthy food. It keeps me around the house!!!
• i live normally…I’m not one for lying around on the couch. Ok may take some extra breaks and lie down etc, but in most part it’s f..k y.u UC i’m living my life!
• I’ve not yet had a flare up (only diagnosed in May 2012)
• Reading, praying, watching TV, playing board games

 

BIG THANKS AGAIN to EVERYONE

who participated from the newsletter group

in this month’s survey!

ALSO, a big thanks to one of the readers of my ebooks who requested this survey.  If you’ve ordered my ebooks in the past or in the future AND if you’d like to propose a topic for a future survey, please feel free to email me your idea.

-Adam Scheuer