So my little sis has Crohn's Disease

[flex]

What does this mean exactly? What causes it? Can she eat only certain foods. I'm too lazy to Google so help me out. lol

[janiejones]

One of my BFFs has this, I don't know much, but it presents itself like IBS a lot of times. She is sensitive to dairy... that's all I know. It's symptoms come and go for her.

[10outof9]

Lurker putting my 2 cents in:

My mom was diagnosed with Crohn's when I was in 8th grade (when she almost died and spent a month in the hospital, but that's somewhat irrelevant). Crohn's causes the intestines to periodically become inflamed. The body ends up attacking parts of the intestine, causing all sorts of problems. It causes diarrhea, nausea, and abdominal pain, and most people lose quite a bit of weight. You can also have complications outside of the GI tract like arthritis or rashes, but that doesn't happen to everyone.

Most people are diagnosed in their teens or twenties, but my mom was in her 50s when she was diagnosed. Her inflammation was so severe when she finally went to the doctor that she had to have part of her intestine removed. Not fun times. At first, she was on a ton of pills (like 20 pills a day), but since she's been diagnosed, they've put her on a different medication that's only a few pills a day.

Crohn's has a genetic component, and siblings are more likely to be affected (my mom's brother had Crohn's as well). Environmental factors can affect when Crohn's presents. Smokers, for example, are more likely to develop the disease (my mom was a smoker until her month-long hospital stay basically forced her to quit).

There is no cure for Crohn's disease, though it can be managed with medication and lifestyle changes. My mom hasn't had a bad attack in maybe 5 years, so she's considered in remission. Some foods can trigger Crohn's episodes (like dairy or wheat), but it tends to be different for everyone. My mom was on a super restricted diet after she got out of the hospital, and slowly added foods back to see if any of them were triggers for her.

I hope your sister's case isn't too severe and she gets it under control quickly. If you have any other questions, you can always pm me. Thanks to my mom, I know quite a bit about the disease.

[pierogigirl]

My brother has it. He can't eat any dairy and he went through a tough time during his diagnosis and early treatment attempts. He finally went to see a House-like specialist who tweaked his treatment and he seems to be doing better now.

[flex]

Thanks, ladies. This helps me a lot, and I'll pass this on to my sister. She knows about TN, and she knows that you guys are great. : )

[eightangryreindeer]

I worked with a woman once who had it, I hope sis' case is not severe. The good news is that as pp said, it's manageable.

Also, yes please, dd that thread, if you would, just that one.

[flex]

PM me real quick

[murdock]

My husband has this.

Everything has basically been covered, but just to add his is more stress/anxiety driven than food driven. He uses outlets to keep his stress down, and exercises.

Please tell her to try and find a gastro who truly specializes in managing Crohn's. My husband went through a situation similiar to 10outof9's mom. Once he found the right Dr. he has had far less problems. The gastro's by us basically just tried to make him somewhat 'comfortable' and were way to eager to move towards more and more surgeries.

If she is anywhere near the NYC area and can/is willing to sacrifice the money to pay for a Dr. who doesn't take insurance, 'The New Yorker' magazine lists Dr.Golding out of NJ (just moved to Hackensack?) as the best in the country for Crohn's.

[lucky513]

I've had two employees that have it what I have came to find out is that my office is to stressful for anyone with crohns to work here

[starshine]

I was diagnosed with Crohn's 3 years ago, when I was 21. It took months, but my GI finally found a medication that helps (Humira). I don't eat gluten, spicy foods, greasy/fatty foods, very much dairy, or drink alcohol... and I feel so much better! I hope your sister figures out what works for her soon & feels better. PM me if you'd like

[purplelemon]

My Dad has Crohn's. He had to stop eating anything hard to digest (steak, tough veggies, etc.) and reduce his stress levels.

He eventually had to have a huge amount of intestine removed, and has been much, much better ever since.