All Advice is Welcome! Newcomer To This Illness

My name is Dal, I am a 37 year old married father of two, living and working in the south east of England. I am a college lecturer. I enjoy squash (although I haven’t played for quite some time now) and football.

I am in the midst of my first ever flair up (it started 6 days ago) since my first ever experiences last year. I’m off work AGAIN. I am writing this from my bed as I have terrible bowel cramps and lethargy, no appetite. I was up 7 times last night on the loo, started to lose more weight – down from 12 stone when fit and healthy to 10 st 10lbs – one good point is that the beer gut has gone!. I have very loose stools at the moment going about 10 times a day. I just feel like I have no energy at all. I spent yesterday in hospital have an assessment, blood test, stool test, rectal examination – as still waiting for the proper diagnosis from colonoscopy biopsies. Result of hospital visit is that I have just started a course of steroids 40mgs a day. Praying that they will work.

Family history is Grandad died of bowel cancer aged 75 and Nan has has pollups removed aged 80, Mum has IBS. I am 99% certain I have Ulcerative Colitis but I have am waiting for a colonoscopy to confirm this (booked for Friday 25/05/12. I have had symptoms of UC since April 2011 but didn’t know about UC and left it until October 2011 before visiting my GP. In April 2011 I saw blood on the toilet paper but dismissed it only happened once and not again after that. Then over the following 3-4 months things deteriorated, my stools were hard followed by softer bits, again, I dismissed this as diet and stress. Then I started experiencing the urgency, which was a nightmare. Then one day the toilet pan was full of blood and I went the Dr’s. That was in Oct 11. I lost a stone between then and the Xmas hols and didn’t work at all in Jan. I have had 2 sigmuidoscopys, a barium enema scan, still waiting for the colonoscopy 7months on! UC is ruining my life at the moment because I have two kids aged 1 and 3 who need my to be fit, my wife needs my support. My wife is finding it difficult to help me because she has her hands full with the kids. Work is a nightmare because I am college lecturer and I need the toilet all the time during lessons. Sometimes I only just make it to the loo! They have been supportive by putting my on 80% of normal teaching hours. I have been on Mesalazine tablets 500mgs 3 times a day and 2 500gm supps at night for the past 10 weeks. This was increased to 4 x 800mg twice a day with the supps at night and 40mgs of steroids which I started yesterday. My main concern is the long term cancer risks, especially as It has taken so long to get treatments on the NHS. I’m going into my 8th month since my first appointment with this and still no proper diagnosis – if it was cancer I would be dead by now. My other reason for writing is that I realise that I need to change my diet completely a nd I want as many ideas as possible from people. I love all foods but their seems to be quite a lot of confusion as to what is good and bad to eat. A list of good stuff and stuff to avoid at all costs would be useful as well as recipes. I was surprised to see Adam cooking bacon as I thought that wouldn’t be good.

Eating a new much healthier than I have done in the past and controlling the symptoms. competing in either a triathlon or the London to Paris cycle event.

submitted in the Colitis Venting Area