Crohn's Disease & Ulcerative Colitis Support Group
Crohn's disease is a systemic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) of unknown cause, that results in chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract. It can affect the entire gastrointestinal tract from mouth to anus, and can also cause complications outside of the gastrointestinal tract. There is no known medical or surgical cure for Crohn's disease, but there are many medical...
I need to rant a little, thank you.
I had a colonoscopy today, and since the one i had a year ago, my UC has spread from the bottom 2 inches of my rectum all the way up to consume half of my tranverse colon, with some irritation on the right side as well. in fact the inflamation was bad enough he couldn't scope the entire colon without risking damaging the colon. i think that even surprised the GI, who based on symptoms figured it was still a pretty mild case - i have a high pain tolerance and no weight loss.
so, now i get to try adding enemas and a higher dose of prednisone.
What is annoying me the most though, is that i have thrush from the prednisone. seriously, like i need that. it's embarassing to have a white gross looking tongue and peeling inside of my mouth.
i can barely afford my meds as is, and adding one more thing is stressing me out pretty bad.
anyway, if anyone has a home remedy for thrush, i would love to hear it. has anyone had it and tried rinsing with baking soda?
I had a colonoscopy today, and since the one i had a year ago, my UC has spread from the bottom 2 inches of my rectum all the way up to consume half of my tranverse colon, with some irritation on the right side as well. in fact the inflamation was bad enough he couldn't scope the entire colon without risking damaging the colon. i think that even surprised the GI, who based on symptoms figured it was still a pretty mild case - i have a high pain tolerance and no weight loss.
so, now i get to try adding enemas and a higher dose of prednisone.
What is annoying me the most though, is that i have thrush from the prednisone. seriously, like i need that. it's embarassing to have a white gross looking tongue and peeling inside of my mouth.
i can barely afford my meds as is, and adding one more thing is stressing me out pretty bad.
anyway, if anyone has a home remedy for thrush, i would love to hear it. has anyone had it and tried rinsing with baking soda?
I found this for treating thrush. Hope it help:
Print
A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia.
Thrush
Candidiasis - oral; Oral thrush; Fungal infection - mouth; Candida - oral
Last reviewed: August 24, 2011.
Thrush is a yeast infection of the mucus membrane lining the mouth and tongue.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Thrush is caused by forms of a fungus called Candida. A small amount of this fungus lives in your mouth most of the time. It is usually kept in check by your immune system and other types of germs that also normally live in your mouth.
However, when your immune system is weak, the fungus can grow. The following factors can increase your chances of getting thrush:
Being in poor health
Being very old or very young
Having an HIV infection or AIDS
Receiving chemotherapy for cancer or drugs to suppress your immune system
Taking steroid medicationsm
Thrush is commonly seen in infants. It is not considered abnormal in infants unless it lasts longer than a couple of weeks.
Candida can also cause yeast infections in the vagina.
People who have diabetes and have high blood sugar levels are more likely to get thrush in the mouth (oral thrush), because the extra sugar in your saliva acts like food for Candida.
Taking high doses of antibiotics or taking antibiotics for a long time also increases the risk of oral thrush. Antibiotics kill some of the healthy bacteria that help keep Candida from growing too much.
People with poorly fitting dentures are also more likely to get thrush.
Symptoms
Thrush appears as whitish, velvety sores in the mouth and on the tongue. Underneath the whitish material, there is red tissue that may bleed easily. The sores can slowly increase in number and size.
Signs and tests
Your doctor or dentist can almost always diagnose thrush by looking at your mouth and tongue. The sores have a distinct appearance.
If the diagnosis is not clear, one of the following tests may be performed to look for Candida:
Culture of mouth lesions
Microscopic examination of mouth scrapings
Treatment
For thrush in infants, treatment is often NOT needed. It usually gets better on its own within 2 weeks.
If you develop a mild case of thrush after taking antibiotics, eating yogurt or taking over-the-counter acidophilus capsules can help.
Use a soft toothbrush and rinse your mouth with a diluted 3% hydrogen peroxide solution several times a day.
JulieBC, thank you for the info. I did some searches too, and found that apple cider vinegar, salt/baking soda rinses, and hydrogen peroxide rinses are all helpful, so i am alternating those through the day. there seems to be some improvement - i'll ask the doc for a script for some nystatin on tuesday when i see him.
i am on prednisone, mesalamine pills/enemas/suppositories, and supplements like crazy trying to get out of the flare. My current nemesis is enemas. ** warning: graphic content** I got the enemas, tried to use one, and had some big challenges. 1) the stick that goes inside me hurts like crazy and seemed to just aggrivate the inflammation. 2) the bottle leaked by the nozzle, so rather than getting inside me, it got all over the floor. 3) I am not a cirque du soliel contortionist, so the mere act of trying to use the enemas was beyond frustrating and 4)i squeezed and squeezed that stupid bottle, and couldn't get the stuff to come out properly.
end result, i managed to get about 1/4 of it in, 1/3 on the floor, and the rest in the trash, and the effort is likely the reason for the excess bleeding i had today. Am i just incompetent? or does everyone have issues with enemas? i am getting pretty frustrated.
Oh, and no, i won't be asking my husband to help me, there are limits to what i can ask my fantastic hubby of 15 yrs to do for me - in the interest of keeping him at least somewhat attracted to me in spite of this illness, i won't ask him to get involved in this.
Curt
I am looking forward to seeing more research about it, because if it can be proven to be safe and effective for IBD too, i am interested! but for now, i am nervous to try new supplements without enough clinical trials behind them - i don't want to risk making myself sicker.
I am starting to feel a little better with the increased doses of my meds, well, the frequency of bathroom trips has gone down, but the bleeding is continuing with a vengence - possible from extra inflammation from the recent colonoscopy.
Also, my thrush seems a little better, the alternating rinses through the day must be helping.
Kimgay, i have my colon still and am hoping to keep it for a while, in spite of it being my arch nemesis at the moment. I'm not quite at the surgery stage yet. I hope you can find some relief soon. Have you tried clear fluids for a day or two, then slowly adding back some bland food, like non creamy, gluten free soup and maybe eggs or plain chicken? protien and iron are very important, so finding some easily tolerated sources can be helpful. sadly, all we can do is trial and error till we find what works. good luck to you.
i couldn't use it last night though, because my bleeding was so bad, and pain was bad, and i was scared of poking around and damaging my rectum. the good news is that some of my symptoms have improved over the last few days, such as frequency of bm, so all in all, i am feeling a little more positive today and feeling a bit less sorry for myself. no more pity party!! :)
I have never had thrush but I know people who have gotten rid of it with goldenseal http://www.sleepyhollowherbfarm.com/oralthrush.htm
I hate this mesalamine, it makes me constipated. :(
The prednisone gives me insomnia.
I am ready to try the diet but have to read that book first and I work late then crash into bed, not much time to read.
xoxoxox
I do hope you are starting to feel better, let us know!
I am feeling quite a bit better, the bleeding has nearly stopped - this is huge, since a week ago, the blood was literaly pouring out of me. I just need a good night's sleep, and i would be golden. the prednisone is keeping me awake.
HUGS