Treatments for IBD - need advice!

[Art]

Hello fellow TTBs,

 

I am wondering if any of you have experience either first hand, or through close family/friends, with any of the diseases categorized as IBD - Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's or Ulcerative Colitis)? I currently do not have health insurance and am facing a tough decision regarding treatment. Continuing to suffer and deal with the symptoms is unacceptable and I do not want to take unnecessary risks with my health any longer.

 

First and foremost, I do plan to enroll in a Medicare package and seek out a doctor soon. There is a small window for surgery (I'm fairly certain is needed) to where I shouldn't lose too much "work" (expecting 4-8 weeks). This window is at the end of July/August, but I need to start getting my ducks in a row now.

 

Second, I would like to proactively manage my treatment using any and all sorts of alternative treatments that have worked for others. I doubt I will be able to "skip surgery", but afterwards would rather practice homeopathic/natural therapies as opposed to pharmaceuticals.

 

Any and all information would be greatly appreciated!

 

Regards,

 

Art

[ShaktiMama]

Hello fellow TTBs,

 

I am wondering if any of you have experience either first hand, or through close family/friends, with any of the diseases categorized as IBD - Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's or Ulcerative Colitis)? I currently do not have health insurance and am facing a tough decision regarding treatment. Continuing to suffer and deal with the symptoms is unacceptable and I do not want to take unnecessary risks with my health any longer.

 

First and foremost, I do plan to enroll in a Medicare package and seek out a doctor soon. There is a small window for surgery (I'm fairly certain is needed) to where I shouldn't lose too much "work" (expecting 4-8 weeks). This window is at the end of July/August, but I need to start getting my ducks in a row now.

 

Second, I would like to proactively manage my treatment using any and all sorts of alternative treatments that have worked for others. I doubt I will be able to "skip surgery", but afterwards would rather practice homeopathic/natural therapies as opposed to pharmaceuticals.

 

Any and all information would be greatly appreciated!

 

Regards,

 

Art

 

Speaking as RN with about 20 years of experience in hospitals and with holistic care I would have to say I have seen some amazing results for IBS with acupuncture, even to the total relieving of symptoms.

 

My acupuncturist is a PhD in chinese medicine who was a Professor of Chinese Medicine at University in China. I have seen him do work on IBS that from a western medical standpoint looks miraculous. But it is not. Acupuncture brings the body into harmony especially when combined with herbs and prescribed diet so it can begin to heal itself.

 

I would suggest you give that a try befor you have anything removed. Either ask around for recommendations or find a local acupuncture school and try there. You could be treated for a lower price by students under the supervision of an instructor or find an instructor who has a private practice.

 

blessings,

Susan

[cheya]

 

 

I am wondering if any of you have experience either first hand, or through close family/friends, with any of the diseases categorized as IBD - Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's or Ulcerative Colitis)? Any and all information would be greatly appreciated!

Hi Art,
Chinese medicine often works where western medicine has no good answers.

I have a friend who's had ulcerative colitis for 40+ years, and escaped surgery a number of times, scaring some of us pretty bad with how close he was to dying. If it gets real bad (and I mean REAL bad!), which it tends to do every 5 or 6 years (always when he's under unusual stress), he has taken prednisone and sulfa drugs for awhile to calm it down, and then weaned himself off the med as soon as he could, due to the side effects. He says acupuncture didn't work for him, but swears by TCM herbs.

However, he has found that nutrition plays a huge part. The big three for him are cod liver oil, glutamine, and pantetheine (a form of pantothenic acid). Also something called short chain branched amino acids, which I think feed the cells lining the gut, as does the glutamine. He takes a LOT of glutamine, and a LOT of cod liver oil. As long as he keeps his nutrition up, he seems to do pretty well, but if he gets complacent about it, letting it slide, the early signs of a problem come back. There is NO question in his mind that the nutrition approach is better than going the surgery route.

There is another theory, which you could check out, that gluten (grains) and/or casein (dairy) are offending the gut and should be avoided. No grains �period� for a year or more has apparently helped some people. Google Elaine Gottshall, Breaking the Vicious Cycle for more on that and other possibilities. Her website has an extensive list of foods to avoid and which ones are okay.

My friend with UC happens to be sitting here right now, and recommends "under acute conditions, 5-10 grams of glutamine powder daily (he gets it at Walmart) dosed out over the day, best between meals, along with cod liver oil 3x per day (one large tablespoon each meal, Carlson's lemon flavored is the best), and pantetheine, around 2000-3000 mg per day. You can taper off as you improve, down to a maintenance dose, which may vary from person to person. If symptoms return, crank up the doses." He says also, a good B vitamin and vitamin C, being careful not to take so much as to cause diarrhea!

He wants to add, continue with the high dose until symptoms abate, and that none of these should cause problems. He says he saw improvement in three days and "miraculous remission of symptoms in a week." If you pm me, he's offering his phone number.

Hope this helps!