I went to a checkup appointment with my Crohn’s Disease doctor today to go over the test I had last month.
I’ve been having issues the past few years with the place they reconnected my large and small intestines after my Crohn’s diagnosis and surgery back in 1988. Three years ago I had to be hospitalized because this place in my intestines was scarring up, restricting the flow, and backing me up. Today, my doctor showed me the difference between my scans from three years ago and my scan from last month. He even showed me the staples they put in me back in ’88. It was pretty amazing, and all done with a click of the mouse.
The good news, he doesn’t think I need more surgery.
The bad news, my vitamin D levels are way too low. Also, he thought it would be a good idea for me to go on Entocort.
I have no problem with the vitamin D thing. I know the Sun and I don’t get along too well, so I don’t mind taking this supplement to get my levels up. The possible side effects list isn’t too long, and the aches, loss of appetite, and nausea often come with Crohn’s anyway.
The Entocort is totally new to me. My first concern when my doctor brought it up was skating, and he assured me it wouldn’t affect my training. And, I will only be taking it for six weeks. So, it’s a temporary thing just to see if it changes what’s going on at the site of my surgery. But, the list of possible sifde effects is rather lengthy. A medicine for Crohn’s that may cause gas? How the f- am I supposed to know if it’s the Entocort causing the gas? And I love the “pain” possibility…could we get a little more specific? Even though the idea of starting another drug doesn’t excite me, I trust my doctor, so I will take my Entocort.
Over my life, I’ve had an interesting relationship with drugs. They have made my body feel better and worse. I’ve had allerigic reactions to drugs and others have made no difference with my symptoms. I’ve been given drugs that saved my life, but had side effects that made me violently ill and took my hair. My reaction to alcohol consumption was less than ideal. Drugs have helped me with my cancer and Crohn’s, gotten me into trouble, and have dulled the pain of two kidney stones.
Ultimately, it’s up to each individual what drugs are put inside his or her body. Doctors can suggest and laws can try to control, but it’s really up to you. I think all drugs should be legal and controlled like alcohol. I’d rather see all the money and resources currently used for the “War on Drugs” used for education and treatment instead. Addicts don’t care if a drug is legal, and if someone decides to “try heroin” because it’s newly legal then they are making a very poor life decision. I will go more in depth on this subject in a book someday, but for tonight I’ll just hope that my Entocort is doing what it should…
PS - Go B's!
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