Just wondering if any other fellow UC’ers experience night sweats with their flares?
I never sweat, really, I don’t…I used to be VERY active “pre-UC” and don’t ever remember sweating much. Even when running, doing other cardio, playing sports, etc. Over the past few years I’ve noticed some major night sweats come and go, particularly during flares. I am in a pretty bad flare right now and I’ve been waking up once or twice each night drenched! (sorry if you think it’s gross…my husband thinks so!) I literally have to wake up, change clothes and put towels under me when sleeping! Very strange. I’ll mention it to my doctor but I was just wondering if anyone else experiences this. I’ve had my thyroid checked and that’s fine. I’m only 32, so I doubt it’s menopause. I haven’t changed meds recently and it’s been happening only this past week or so. FYI- I’m on sulfasalizine, methotrexate, mesalamine, and a bunch of otc supplements-vitamins. Just wanna see if colitis may be the cause.
Hi there! My name is Angie. I am 34, happily married and have 3 young children. I suffer from severe UC and have many “extraintestinal manifestations” related to my IBD.
Hey Angie,
I know exactly what you are talking about. On my initial several year flare much of which was before I was diagnosed, I had night sweats several nights (maybe 10 times in all). It was like just jumping out of a swimming pool but being in bed and all sticky/sweaty/wet. Pillow totally drenched, sheets totally drenched etc…
My GI doctor said it was somewhat common when in a bad flare.
To deal with it, I started wearing a shirt to sleep(which I never did before) and when i woke up drenched, I just changed it and flipped the pillow over, and this seemed to work for the remaining night sweat days.
-On a side note, I am so sorry to hear you are in a nasty flare at to start 2011. I’d be real interested to hear what you doctor suggests to you to help fix your current situation. I really didn’t do anything different, I was taking massive steroids at the time as I recall.
best of luck with getting through this flare quickly Angie!
Definitely had these too, at home and in the hospital. I was using hydrocortisone enemas at the time, and assumed that was causing it (increased sweating is listed in the side effects), but the flare itself could have contributed too.
Hope you feel better soon!
I had those with UC nd I still have them with pouchitis flare ups. My Dr told me its just part of my body fighting the infection.
I used to have these as well. I remember a couple of times having to change my pajamas two to three times during the night because each pair became soaked. My doctor didn’t do much to explain why they were happening. He only speculated that they were perhaps due to my UC “flare” (which lasted months). I’ve only had mild episodes since I’ve had my j-pouch surgery.
Yep I have suffered from night sweats too at 27 my mother thought I was having early on set menapause but it turns out it was a symptom of latent tuberculosis. I also have UC. Don’t want to worry anyone but thats what it was for me. Best of luck!
Hi Angie,
Sorry you are flaring, I am too. I have been having the nasty night sweats as well. I always thought they were a side effect of the meds, but I see from reading all these posts, perhaps not. I am on the hydrocortisone enemas,(my flare is only in my rectum this time, but equally as miserable)) and just weaned off prednesone. I always thought it was the prednesone that did it. But your body fighting infection can probably do it. I have felt better the last 3 days after about almost 5 months of flaring, so hang in there & keep a stack of night clothes or t-shirts next to the bed.
Day 4 in the hospital! Another one or two more :(
60 mg steroids, had 1st ever remicade infusion last night.
I am feeling better, and hopefully this flare is on the mend. NOT the outcome I wanted, but oh well!
Uggh! I’m in a flare too! I’ve been dealing with gut problems my whole life it seems. The last 6 or 7 years I’ve been actively trying to figure it out. I’ve been to numerous docs and had my share of tests and colonoscopies. Oddly enough, I was diagnosed with UC in Feb 2010 after I got really sick. I had a colonoscopy in December 2009 and by Feb I was in my first major flare and that was accompanied by a MASSIVE colon infection! I was in the hospital for a week, lost 20 lbs, took a month or so at home to recover! Anyway, I’ve been in this flare since early December – went into the hospital just after Christmas and got out the 2nd of Jan. Happy New Year!! I get MAJOR night sweats, due to the steroids I assume. I barely sleep anymore – when I do fall asleep – I sweat profusely!! I have to change PJ’s through the night and sleep with a towel! I can’t sleep in my bed – I’m couch bound! I just can’t lay in my bed like that, it’s that uncomfortable! I’m trying to drink a TON of water to flush my system and I read that the earlier in the day that I take my steroids, the less I might sweat. I didn’t sweat quite as much last night, but I was awake most of the night. Dozing here and there, sweating here and there! Not sure there is much more I can do, but wait for the weaning to begin. Hoping that will start on the 25th when I see my doc. I’m pretty sure I’ll be weaning until late spring, early summer, as that is what happened the last time I was on this dose. I also have moon face and my emotions are a little erratic. No fun! Trying to be positive and not focus on the bad stuff!! I’m getting better every day and I can eat again! SO, that’s my super condensed story and my explanation on my night sweats. Haha! Not sure if it was helpful at all! I guess it was really just an FYI and a “I got it too babe, your not alone”! Best of luck! Prayers to all!
Dam those night sweats, I have UC and get these night sweats only when i’m in a flare which makes me wake up and run to loo 2-4 times during my sleep. I have not touched steriods for 2 years I am only taking pentasa so I feel the sweats are not drug related for me.
I also do not take steriods ( I take asacol) and often have “night sweats”. I am currently having a flare up and I find myself sweating even through the day. I also do not think that the night sweats are drug-related.
I have UC and on Asacol and Buscopan, with paracetamol for pain, I have had night sweats for the last few of months , have a change of pj’s ready every night, the last month or so my arm has started to tingle and go numb
I’m also having an IV Infusion of Infliximab every eught weeks for rheumatoid arthritis . Sometimes I wonder…
When I have a flare upI go hot anc cold. Blankets on and off all night. I sleep with a fan on all year long.
Also experiencing night sweats. These have persisted before and after taking prednisone. So, in my situation it seems it is related to body fighting infection.
I have just had my first night sweat!!! Before sleep I was cold so pulled 15 tog duvet over
me, this might be partly to blame. Having a flare up, with flu like symptons and
arthritis in my knees, can’t walk about much.
Finding it quite hard to get my head round all this….!
Does anyone else have regular (monthly) flare ups?
I am in the hospital now, no steroids, since I am allergic. But have been experiencing night sweats since I have been in here. Chills, and aches seem to come with the night sweats, almost like a fever but without a temp. Managed to get in here before I was in need of a blood transfusion but not before the weight loss and dehydration. I was diagnosed with UC in 2006 after my youngest daughter was born, and have been having one or two flare ups a year since then. Flares have lasted several months before, and I am hoping this one is short lived. Feel better everyone.
Try ibuprofen or acetomen as they sometimes help my night fever/sweats go away or be minimalized. Prayers for you all!!!
Never use IBUPROFEN if you have Ulcerative Colitis.
So I’ve had random heavy night sweats the last several months, the UC diagnosis is still pretty new to me and I’ve been struggling with my first flare up for probably longer than I should have – am just now starting to learn how to manage it – finally. Anyway the night sweats have been very bad the last 3 nights in a row, I’ve needed to change close and find a dry spot on the bed. So needless to say I haven’t been sleeping the best. I didn’t realize it might be related to UC, but put the terms together in a search and found this board. Glad I’m not the only one…
I have had UC since I was eight years old, and have never taken a single medication other than marijuana. right now, at 49 years old, I am having a particularly bad flareup, and have been experiencing the night sweats. It is definitely not from drugs, because I don’t take any (unless you count marijuana). Good luck in your healing everybody. Meditation and exercise are great additions to your protocol…
Ive been suffering from ucsince 17yrs old for 10 yrs now. Recently I was admitted to the hospital for the first time in having a flare. My colonoscopy results showed severe inflammation. I was admitted for 6 days and was placed on iv steroids which caused a major case of oral thrush(anyone else?),lialda, rowasa enemas,iv flagyl and u name it! Upon being released the doctors mentioned my last resort would be a biological drug which im terrified of! Ive decided not to resort to that until I feel I tried everything else. Right now ive notice a change finally in my flare with managing my diet. I also did my research on a herb called Boswellia, studys show that many people have gone into remission by taking a 6week course of this. Ive stsrted it 3 days ago & noticed a big change already. Ive also been managing this flare with an app on my phone called my ibd tracker, its very helpful with determining what food caused psin,or an episode. And it charts & counts your stool with blood. Im getting much better thank God! Now im trying to see how to decrease these night sweats & I think ill have it covered! I hope I was helpful & I pray for everyone a safe recovery!
I was recently diagnosed in January of this year and have been flaring ever since. I too have had these nasty night sweats off and on and I notice before I ache all day and am freezing. I thought I could attribute it to the prednisone I was on, but I have been off for two weeks now. I feel like when I am very active(well active for me which means two or so days of being normal) I get really bad arthritis pain in my knees and feel like I have the flu. Recalling what happened before every night sweat episode I had the same achey flu like symptoms. I take apriso, imuran and have remicade infusions every eight weeks. I’ve also read that night sweats is related to the imuran, but I had the, before I started it and have been on it for almost two months now. Going to see my doctor next Tuesday and hoping to get some relief from another annoying symptom of UC. Seems like every corner I walk around I have a new symptom related to the UC.
I have had the bad knee arthritis too during a flare of what the colonoscopy report called (visually) ‘severe colitis’ (bleeding rash on colon walls). I found that the Hydrocortisone suppositories and mesalamine suppositories and enemas helped. (I have a recto-sigmoid distribution of UC.)
I was diagnosed with UC in 2010 and every time I have a bad flare, I have the night sweats. Once I got on the right medication to control my flare, the night sweats went away, so hang in there and make sure you are getting the right treatment!
I am 24 and was diagnosed with UC in July. I was admitted to the hospital fr 9 days, over ten blood transfusions later, tons of antibiotics, and a colonoscopy later I was diagnosed with UC. Now I’m on Lialda and Prendosone, this sucks! I have severe hot flashes during the day and cold sweats at night seems like I just jumped in the pool :( on top of it all some days I have flu like symptoms! When I wake up feeling like I have a cold I know it’s going to be a bad day! The body aches start with my knees, my whole back and chest which make me feel like I can’t breathe! I ended up in he ER last weekend because I couldn’t take the pain anymore ( nothing to so with my guts just body pain). The docs just have me stronger pain meds ie Percocet and a longer/ stronger dose of Prendosone. Help me! I feel like the doctors are just stringing me along like ” oh it might be ur UC” :(
Even low doses of Prednisone can cause hot and cold sensations too.
The knee pain for me was basically a measurement of how bad my inflammation was in my gut.
Also, remember to TAPER with cortisones. Be careful Stopping them rapidly as it can cause flares and cortisone withdrawal syndrome.
I also try to take the lower end of what the doctor want to give me meds wise.
I find that re-populating my gut with probiotics helps symptoms.
I’ve been flaring for awhile, off all meds., trying various supplements to see if anything natural helps before going back on conventional medication. Started experiencing night sweats about a week ago., and have had them during past flares as well (when not on medication). Just wanted to add to the consensus that it can just happen, as part of the disease.
I was diagnosed in sept. Of 2014. But had been fighting UTC and c diff. At same time for month until I went to the er and was diagnosed with a whole mess of things and the initial uc. Nothing is working I have god awful sweats that smell mixture of chemical and sickness. I wasn’t sure it was uc or. What ever. I’m hopefully going to start remicaide next week. My body isn’t even digesting my pills they shoot out the other end whole.
I’ll have to agree with others here that it is not from the meds at all. It’s part of having UC. I have been off meds for 4 months and I’m on the SCD diet. I notice that a flare would start like a cold where I get the chills then followed by a fever. Once fever is broken and the flare is ending I notice the night sweats become more intense. This flare was caused by re-introducing bell peppers into the diet, which will be put off for a very long time.
I have been in a flare since December 2012 and just started getting severe night sweats about a year ago. They are more frequent than not (about 5 nights a week) and I, like many who have already written, have them when on and off of steroids. Doc just said not to worry about it but it is disgusting! My two dogs don’t even want to be by me in the bed anymore let alone my hubby. Throughout this time I’ve been off and on (depending on the time and effectiveness) steroids, humira, remicade, apriso, simponi, canasa, and 6-mp. I hadn’t had a flare since 1998-2000 and didn’t have night sweats then but it seems straight UC related for me and still disgusting!
3 weeks ago I began the worse flare since being diagnosed with UC 2 years ago. It never occurred to me that the occasional mild fever along with heavy sweating at night are related. I plan to take Tylenol now before bed to see if it helps.
Hi Angie,
I’ve been suffering with IBD for 16 years & they’re still unsure whether it’s Crohn’s or UC. I’ve been very lucky & have managed to treat with mesalazine (Pentasa) when not in flare. For the last 4 years I’ve suffered with terrible night sweats where I wake up, sometimes a few times in the same night, completely drenched from the neck down as if I’ve been in the bath. However, these haven’t correlated with flare ups for me and for this reason hadn’t linked it to my IBD. That said, I’m at the start of a flare now and will be seeing my consultant later this week & will be sure to ask for more information. If anything useful, I’ll post back.
Unfortunately, I haven’t found anything that stops the sweating (I’ve tried sleeping with a sheet instead of a duvet, with pyjammas, without pyjammas. I’d just recommend keeping a towel next to the bed, and if possible, buy a bigger bed so that you can roll over to a dry part.
Hope you get through this flare quickly Angie.
I get severe night sweats, too, but only when I’m in a flare. Also, I’m not on prednisone or any other drugs. I’m only on Lialda (mesalamine).
I think it is related to the UC.
I posted here, actually 4 years ago to the date ironically, so I occasionally get emails of new posts. Tho I hadn’t really looked at them. I had been doing better for a year or so (approx.: July 2015-Oct 2016). This flare started flaring about the time i both went on antibiotics due to being sick – and the coughing caused back pain and being sick for a month deterred my interest in going to the gym so I also started taking a lot of Aleve again as my lost it’s strength (Which i personally believe excessive Aleve use originally caused my 1st flare – while smart, my Dr never believed me on that one.) So was it the antibiotics or the Aleve? not sure? anyway…
I was diagnosed 4.5 years ago with ulcerative proctitis – I was put on 2 meds (I don’t specifically remember which, one was oral and required regular blood work, the other canasa (sp?) suppository. The flare was bad and the night sweats were bad. The meds helped the major part of flare initially but didn’t seem to help with the subtle flare that dragged on for years. This time the flare is minor and the night sweats are back minorly – but I’m not taking any meds yet as I’m trying to balance it out with extra probiotics…not sure if it’s enough – might need to go in soon tho – unfortunately i always felt those appointments seemed like a waste of my time and accomplished nothing – I actually got better once i stopped taking the meds all together. A lot of things in my life changed around that time – so it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what combination caused getting better tho.
My point, Stan & others I would agree – the UC seems to causes my night sweats – not the medications. Dani – I know you said you tried with PJs – but I tended to find if I wore shirt & pants (vs a nighty or shorts without clothing covering my legs) – Yes i had sheet/comforter fully on (live in cold state – i can’t sleep without the comfort of the weight of a comforter), but for some reason I did feel it tended to help (not completely but to lessor degree) some. Good luck to us all!