Last January I was in a nasty flare. I was going to the bathroom 30 times a day. I was obese with high cholesterol and high blood sugar. My body was a mess and I wasn’t treating it nicely. So, I decided to make some changes as many of you already know. I joined Weight Watchers to lose weight, which I was pretty good with. For the year I lost about 30 lbs. I also went Gluten-Free to help with my Crohn’s. I wanted to give my intestines a rest from the harsh fiber of wheat. Also, this was supposed to help in reducing my blood sugar levels. Lastly, and this happened later in the year, I switched meds. I went off Humira and started Low Dose Naltrexone.
For the most part everything was working well. I achieved what seemed like remission. I lost weight. I feel good and healthier. I was finally on the right track. And then it all came to a crashing halt. The Dreaded Holidays!!! Anyone that knows me knows I like to eat. Well, the holidays give me that opportunity. Pecan Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate covered anything. With New Years Eve, there is a lot of eating, then some drinking, then some more eating and yes, more drinking.
Well, it is now January 2013. My weight has been fine and I don’t think I have gained too much weight back as my clothes still fit. However, the past week or so I have been going to the bathroom more. I am not feeling as healthy as I should and I know the reason. I have been putting garbage into my body again and have completely looked away from eating right. I am now paying for it.
So now I know that diet most definitely plays a part in IBD. Today is Friday night. This weekend is my last hurrah. As of Monday I start up my experiment with nutrition and IBD and get back to eating correctly. I am going back onto the Weight Watchers plan. I am going to stop putting nasty chemicals into my body. I am going to start treating my body like it should be treated.
A lot of people still say that nutrition means nothing when it comes to IBD. I think I might have proven this past year that it does. When I ate healthy with all natural products I was doing great. When I started eating junk again, I felt like I was on the verge of a flare. I have learned a lot in 2012 and I know that I need to stop NOW. I need to practice what I preach.
So I will continue on my journey come Monday. I won’t look back. I won’t second guess myself and I won’t regret it for one minute. I want to be completely healthy. I want others to look and me and say, “If he can do it, then anyone can” because I couldn’t do it for so many years. I denied the nutrition connection and ignored my weight.
The holidays are done. My denial is over. I had my fill and now I need to continue my journey and my experiment. Welcome to Jeff 2.0. Time to take all I have learned and put it into practice. And there is nothing better on a journey than some company…so Who Is With Me?
A Guy With Crohn's 
It’s good to hear you are going to get back on track. I believe 100% that nutrition plays a part in IBD. I speak from experience with getting my colitis in remission with just the right diet and no medications. I know that may not work for the most extreme cases, but it is still worth a try. It makes sense to put the best food in your body when it is having a difficult time digesting things. Just take it day by day and hold yourself accountable.
Dear Jeffrey,
I wish you all the best as you start 2013 off right!
I have ulcerative colitis, and I’ve noticed that food has no effect on my flares. For me, it’s lack of sleep and stress. If my sleep is disrupted and/or if I’m stressed, the colitis wakes up and doesn’t calm down for weeks. I now see the warning signs, and give myself Pentasa enemas to avoid a full flare.
My blog is called Living – in Harmony – With Chronic Illness. I research and share ways to cope with illness and still be happy! If you’d like to contribute your thoughts on living with Crohn’s, I’d love to have you!
http://theadventurouswriter.com/tips/what-have-you-learned-about-living-with-chronic-disease/
Blessings,
Laurie
I think it’s fantastic that you were willing to give dietary changes a try and found that they work for you. I have Crohn’s disease and also found that dietary changes helped me. I went from being in a position where my doctor was talking about surgery as my only option to being on no medication and feeling good for almost 4 years now. I wish more people with IBD would be willing to make some changes to their diet because I really think it would help alot of people. I hope you keep finding ways to feel great and thanks for sharing your experiences. Best wishes as you go back on the diet that is healthy for you!
Shawna
I agree that nutrition DEFINATELY plays in a role in UC or Crohn’s. My doctor told me that I may be able to eat some things while well that upset my stomach during a flare but for the most part it doesn’t matter what I eat outside of that – yeah right! I try to eat 80% whole (real) foods and can definitely tell a difference in my *bathroom behavior* when I get off track with my eating. I am interested and excited to see your progress this year. I have some really good recipies and favorite real food sites if you ever need to add more variety to your plate 🙂
http://www.gottago-ibd.com
Nutrition DEFINATELY takes a part with my Crohns. During a flare, well I literally can’t have anything but water and some Gatorade, anything I put in causes extremeee pain the second I swallow it, it’s incredible. Now that the holidays are over, I too buckled down. I’m back in remission and when I did I was scared of certain foods but slowly they reentered and when I did regularly… I felt like a flare was coming. As soon as I buckled down and watched closely what I was eating- I feel amazing. Definitely no flare coming (knock on wood). Also, same thing after my college graduation this past year. During celebrations all week for my brother and I there was “good eatin'” everyday… And I felt awful after that week. Bathroom and pain started and I was in a huge panic bc I knew it was starting… I broke out my juicer and soaked myself with vitamins from juicing like crazy for 2 weeks and…. No flare and felt awesome. Nutrition plays a part, maybe you are severe like me and that’s why. Maybe when you’re mild it doesn’t effect yet?? Idk but good luck bc you are so right! God bless.
Part of the thing with me is I wonder if I am gluten intolerant. For years I never was 100% fine but now that I went off Gluten I am great. I have a mild case of CD so it isn’t like I am in bad shape with it. Sad thing is now that I am gluten free I can’t get tested.