Crohns/Colitis and minyan? Update page 3

amother

↑ Coffee

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 3:24 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

His dr is in the city, we are in Lakewood. He also is due for a colonoscopy but has been delaying. It's a whole ordeal, with two days being out of commission (prep day and colonoscopy day) and needs someone to check him out of the hospital and drive him there...
It's hard.
And he is scared of trying new meds.

I am going to become the colonoscopy pusher on here.
My DH just took a colonoscopy to be extra careful.
The prep wasn’t bad. Only stared at 7 pm. Was out of office by 11 am next morning.
They found pre-cancer growth. Had he waited even 2 more months we’d be facing a way diff story.
Please if anyone has any thought or reason to push off a colonoscopy - don’t!!
And damage to colon while or on meds can take a long time to heal instead of addressing early on.

amother

↑ Seafoam ↓

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 3:31 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

He had a bad reaction to the last med so for now he's just dealing with the symptoms which are manageable but really act up many mornings.

I understand that.
If he's willing to try the scd (specific carbohydrate diet) that might be a total life changer...many people have enormous success with it

amother

Powderblue

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 3:31 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I'm very happy for those who have relatives who are symptom free.
This thread is not intended for that. It's more for chizuk for my situation, where Dh is symptomatic and often misses minyan.

Mine was never diagnosed. He had stomach issues for the first 3-4 hours of his day everyday for years, I'd say he has IBS.

One day we went to a naturopath (he wouldn't go to a Dr) and were told to cut out dairy ("it should be like a ham sandwich") and limit sugar.

Within a year there was tremendous improvement.

Is there anything in his diet that is exacerbating his issue?

amother

↑ OP ↓

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 4:35 pm

amother [ Coffee ] wrote:

You're right. I'm going to nudge him.

amother

Silver ↓

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 4:58 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I don’t live in the us and don’t know the distances you are talking about, but surely it’s worth it f94 the few months of inconvenience in the hope that he will then be symptom free....

He shouldn’t need to be out of commission prep day for colonoscopy- preps usually start in the evening and then again morning of. Just diet has to be managed day before.

It would be worth the time to see drs to get him on the right medication and hopefully feeling much better soon.

It shouldn’t take too long to find something that works, especially if he has already tried something.

Or maybe you can find a good gastro nearer to you? You don’t want something to be rumbling inside him C”V making things a whole lot worse than they need to be.

There are a tremendous amount of good things out there to get life under control with crohns.

Good luck. And don’t stress about the minyan but try to get him well.

amother

↑ Silver ↓

Thu, Dec 24 2020, 5:52 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

He tried a local doctor and ended up in the hospital due to the dr's incompetence.

Even this NY expert isn't offering the option of being symptom free. The colonoscopy is something all people with colitis need to do- I will nudge him to go.

I have crohns as do many family members. BH we are all symptom free - we each take different medication but have found what works for us and stick with it.

I certainly wouldn’t hang around with a dr who isn’t attempting to get him somewhat symptom free- unless there is a major difference between colitis and crohns which I am unaware of??

Good luck with whatever u decide to do, but I would certainly try to get hold of a consultant for whom IBD is their bread and butter and get him well.

Jdoe ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 8:22 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I'm very happy for those who have relatives who are symptom free.
This thread is not intended for that. It's more for chizuk for my situation, where Dh is symptomatic and often misses minyan.

I apologise if this sounds rude or insensitive but allow me to be honest here.
I have crohns. I suffered for years. Still do at times.
My point that I will make is that you will never know what it's like for him to not be able to leave the house in the morning, not be able to go to weddings or take a family trip to hershey park without knowing where the closest bathroom is going to be.
Its a f'in miserable life (when it's not under control).
Please leave him alone about minyin! Our responsibility as wife's should be to be caring and supportive of them. Telling him you found him a minyin after he just sat there for an hour - even if he loves you, I promise you he wants to bash his head into a wall then too.
Be supportive. Don't be his mashgiach. His stomach pain is larger than he tells you and someone who doesnt experience will never understand. Take it from a sufferer. It sucks. The "I'm ok" is often bs.

That said, if you haven't already, please take him to a specialist. I went. It took a while but thankfully Much better these days. Been year bh k"nh since my last flare and life is bh great. So there is a future.
Just focus on what important now. That's his health (not shul). I promise you, he'd rather be in shul then doubled over in pain.

Last edited by Jdoe on Sun, Dec 27 2020, 8:36 am; edited 1 time in total

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 9:25 am

Jdoe wrote:

You misunderstood me.
I don't bother him about minyan. I simply wanted to hear if this is normal amongst people with Crohns or colitis.
And just like I don't bother him about minyan unfortunately I can't force him to see a new GI although we did have a very productive conversation over the weekend with hopes for a new GI in the near future and plans to schedule a colonoscopy soon.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 9:29 am

Ok, please if anyone can offer clarity:
Currently life is mostly normal but he uses the bathroom frequently and for log periods especially in the morning and sometimes at night. There is also urgency. But it seems to be bearable for him. He doesn't seem interested in moving mountains to find a med or a new GI to help with current symptoms. He has had a bad allergic reaction to his most recent med. the alternative was suppositories which he did not want. So he'd rather be med free and deal with moderate symptoms.
Is this normal or should I be encouraging him to search for the right meds?

amother

Blush ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 9:41 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

There is a young man in Lakewood who helps people deal with medical issues through a natural/holistic approach. He tests which vitamins or herbs would help the body function better. He’s very good at what he does and has helped many people who were living with pain. He also helped people wean off of medication. He’s not pushy at all and can answer questions. I know a few people who were helped by him including two of my family members who have stomach issues. His name is Yosef Chaim Finkelstein. Let me know if you want his number. (I don’t think he’s listed)

amother

↑ Silver ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 11:05 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Yes encourage him to get the medication that works well for him.

Do your own research and find a good gastro near you, take the info back to your husband and ask if you can please book an appointment for him.

When he gets the right medication and feels well his life will be immensely easier.

amother

↑ Silver

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 11:08 am

amother [ Silver ] wrote:

I also don’t understand why it is so difficult to find a decent consultant gastro.

Are there medical referral agencies who can assist you? Where I am, my local hospital has a massive gastro clinic with top doctors, as does every other hospital nearby.

I guess things work differently in different countries.

But I would do all the ‘hard’ work for him and come to him with recommendations and get the ball rolling.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 1:41 pm

amother [ Blush ] wrote:

I would like the number please. Thank you

↑ Jdoe ↓

Sun, Dec 27 2020, 1:59 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Sorry I misunderstood.
Glad you had a breakthrough. Huge step forward.
But I'll respectfully disagree with you. While you cane force him to go to Dr, I recommend you continue to persuade him. He will be thankful you did.
It took me 6 months to admit I needed to see a Dr and after was upset it took me so long.
Good luck!!! You got this!!!!