Crohns flare up during wedding time

everyone journey with this disease is very different, and people seem to respond difderently to the various medictaions.

my friend has fistuals and had setons in place for 3 years, she has influximab 3 montly and is doing really well.

my story is different as i had strictures. I have probably had the disease 26 years and i had a resection 7 weeks ago. 

I have gone from 5.6 stone to 6.13 stone since being admitted.i had a right hemicolectomy.

i suffer for panic disorder and have been housebound for 7 years other than the hospital, and i got through it and feel more like myself than i have for years, much to my families horror!

i have had 3 children and worked full time until 7 years ago. I have complete various uni course and led a normal life.

depending on her tests and ct scans, the docs will decided the best way forward, and then you can move on.

always have hope, and as i say, everyone is different.

and remember, noone knows what the future holds for anyone.this is just part of who she is, and shes lucky to have someone who cares.

take each day at a time

take care

Don't worry, it is probably the sheer panic and all the decisions that are being made about your wedding arrangements that have made your girlfriend suspect to a flare. It is one of the things that tends to walk hand in hand with Crohns. Although not a nervy person I suffered dreadfully when things happened and when I started to worry about if I would be well enough to go through it. Stomach and bowel problems tend to do this. Half of your time you wish you could curl up in a ball and sleep until you feel better. I have had a fistula and have had a couple of re-sections, but although it sounds as if I have been ill all the time I have had a lot of time when when I was much better. No rhyme, no reason, just part of Crohns. They still have no real answers but the thing that is essential is that your girlfriend/wife, really trusts her own gastro-enterologist because that is important. I suppose I had 15 years of Steroid treatment, because basically speaking that was the only treatment available. There are good drugs now although you have to undergo tests to make sure that you are tolerating this well.  It is worrying for you as well because you will hate to see her suffering so badly. I don't know why fistula's happen, but I do know that when mine was there, I developed one infection after another and had to go through tests all the time to find out what was causing the discomfort and setting off the side effects. The answer in the end was that some waste product from the bowel was seeping through the fistula and ended up infecting my waterworks and all that area. Sorry not nice to talk about, but all that is now sorted for me. You are doing the right thing in asking for help from fellow Crohns Sufferers, Everyone is different and suffers in different ways, but if I tell you that I have had Crohns from the age of 21, and had my first op for a re-section when  I was 26. I was relatively good in my 30's and early 40's and then had problems with my gall bladder and bile duct which saw more surgery in my 50's. Now 72 and still going strong. I am hoping that you will find this to be something you can hope for, for your girlfriend that she will be able to enjoy her new life with you, whilst suffering from an unfortunate complaint. I am glad you have been able to find a discussion place on line to help you both deal with things and that others will help your worries and fears. I also think it is very good to join NACC which is the National Association of Crohns and Colitis where you can both speak to people who are fellow sufferers and they will also have the latest news from the Health Authorities. A lot of research is being done.

Best wishes to you both for your Wedding and I am glad to read that you are being so supportive. Just try not to be too demanding if she doesn't feel too well. It is hard sometimes. My husband spent a lot of time worrying about me and he would go off happily to football with the belief that when he got home I would be looking forward to going to the pub, a lot of times I had gone past my best and all I wanted to do was to go to bed. So it was hard on him as well.  Sheila 

Could be it's the stress/excitement of your pending nuptials which has triggered a flare up for your fiancée. This is very common.

You say that she has been more or less fine without medication for about 7 years so I'm hoping that if she has recently been given medication it will work quickly and give her some relief in time for your big day.

There are now many different treatments for your fiancée to try but you'll need to be patient as it takes time to find which works best. This will probably involve some pretty uncomfortable tests so she will need lots of love and support.

I have had the disease since 1987. I had seton surgery years ago but more recently major surgery (loop Ileostomy & then reversal). These are the only intrusive surgeries I have had in the 20+ years. I consider myself lucky.

Personally, the worst thing for me over the years is the fact that nobody can really understand how debilitating this disease is unless they've experienced it.

I worked with a guy whose wife was having a rough time with Crohns. When he discovered that I had the condition he grilled me about symptoms etc. It became apparent that he thought his wife was being 'a bit of a diva' and exaggerating her symptoms. I felt so sorry for the woman. Imagine being married to that! After explaining my experience of what a flare feels like he went away with a completely new outlook and was quite ashamed of himself for doubting her.

This is why your sentence which starts 'I love my girlfriend but..' worries me. 

My advice is to imagine how it would feel if the boot was on the other foot and it was you that had Crohns - that's what I told my husband!

There are groups like the National Crohns and Colitis organisation that can give you shedloads of information about the disease and even local groups who can offer support along with a social aspect. 

Wishing you all the best for your wedding day and future. I hope the sun shines for you both!