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OK I agree that is an odd question but how do you determine the difference between a bug and a flare? Over the last week I have had three episodes of D - the last one just now! On my way home I began to feel nauseous and when I got off my train and into the car I realised I was going to have to put my foot down to get to my house. Luckily I made it but had explosive D! What is frustrating is that I have been sticking to my diet and have continued to be symptom free. Last week I put it down to stress - I have had a very busy time at work and as soon as I stopped for a holiday BOOM! Imodium sorted that and things returned to normal. But this episode has come on so suddenly and specifically that I am uncertain whether this is a flare starting or maybe I have a bug? After so long you forget how C**p this all makes you feel! Other than the nausea and feeling sweaty before the D I am otherwise fine. The food I have had today has been no different to normal and while this morning I was starving I now have no appetite! Any suggestions/comments welcome!
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
I'm sorry that you're having GI issues. You've posed a tough question to answer, because in many cases the symptoms are very similar. And to complicate matters, a virus can also trigger an MC reaction, just to ad insult to injury.
If you are aware of one or more bugs going around, then there is a decent chance that it is to blame.
Of course, for many of us, a really stressful situation is often enough to trigger a flare.
Sorry that I'm not very helpful. Maybe someone else will have some more useful insight to share.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Some people in the office had a D&V bug but that was 3-4 weeks ago? I haven't vomited and I have eaten a simple rice based meal which was really cooked!! I am feeling a bit better and have had no recurrence so I am hoping that maybe this is stress related! That sounds bad but today was my first day "solo" in a new role in the Press Office. It was also a busy day - my boss was swearing a lot!!! While I was not directly involved, I could feel high adrenalin levels pretty much all day! While that might explain today, it doesn't really explain the last time! I have just had a 10 day break and the first episode was on day 2, then day 8, then today. Let's hope it will settle but I guess I am right to think keep diet simple to rice, chicken and apple
sauce until things settle?
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
Yep, new duties, busy day, and the boss swearing a lot strikes me as an environment that could be plenty stressful, but I have to admit that I don't have a degree in stress taxonomy.
In view of the situation, I agree that a "safe" diet might be prudent. One thing you might try is a significant dose of vitamin D. Vitamin D has been shown to work synergistically with corticotropin-releasing hormone (the hormone that controls cortisol production) to help to minimize the adverse effects of stress.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Hi...an unexplained flare is a miserable state to be in...I have just come out of one myself and I have no idea what caused it (2 months) or why I am better now. Does it matter whether you are in a flare or have a bug? I guess there are medications for bugs? But I think I would treat both the same in any case, ie really simple foods. Perhaps you have picked up a trace of gluten...the only explanation for my flare was going to a friends house for dinner and eating a salad which may (or may not) have been prepared on a surface that had previously been used to cut bread.
But what I really wanted to share is the fact that, during my flare, I really beat myself up about not being able to control it with diet, no matter what steps I took to restrict my food intake. I have always had strong will-power, for example, if I needed to lose a few pounds I would just eat less...but this flare left me feeling completely out of control...there was nothing I could do to stop it...I became depressed, anxious, thin and miserable.
I think that stress can be a highly significant issue...and the original stress is compounded by the stress caused by your symptoms. Try to keep positive...in my own case, the flare ran its course and resolved itself as mysteriously as it began...but I think I only prolonged it by getting so stressed out by it. Lets hope your situation resolves quickly...Good luck! Nick
Excellent post! You definitely raise some good points. Sometimes a flare seems to have a mind of it's own, and stress can indeed be self-perpetuating. And it's certainly true that the situation can seem to be beyond our control at times, and when that happens we are probably better off to simply stop worrying about it, and let things run their course.
It's good to hear that your health is back on track, and thank you for sharing your thoughts and your insight. They should surely be helpful to many of us here, if/when we find ourselves in that type of situation.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Another day of D and Imodium!! This has been coupled with feeling really fatigued, which I now realise has been plaguing me for the last three or four weeks (hindsight!!). So I guess this is a flare! I feel rubbish tonight and at 9pm I am heading for bed because I feel exhausted. I am going to phone my doctor tomorrow and discuss going back on budesonide to kick this into touch quickly. I left it far too long last time and as a result it took 18 months or so on steroids to get to remission. Nick - thank you for your comments. It is frustrating when I have been really careful with my diet - I do not know what has triggered this but hopefully a short sharp course of steroids (I'm thinking 3 months) will get me back to remission again.
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Anne
stress, has been and still is a very big trigger for me.
When working in a stressful job, i would schedule the meetings/tasks that were most likely to cause stress later in the day, so I could be at home when the MC mud would hit. The adrenaline and cortisol going into the gut causes big issues.
with recent research/knowledge, magnesium is a very good supp to assist with this, reduce the inflammation and damage on the gut, also help the body with its reactions to stress.
If you are worried about D, there is magnesium spray that will not cause Laxative effect. in USA and Aus, it is a very very affordable way to get high doses of magnesium (when compared to the cost of purchasing MC safe supps)
at the top of the main message board, there is a sticky topic that contains posts about magnesium.
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Quick update! Saw my GP this morning who suspects it is a flare but he is doing blood tests and stool tests just to rule out infection and to check for inflamatory markers. He has started me back on a 12 day short course of budesonide (9mg for 4 days, then 6mg, then 3) and he is going to ring me in a couple of weeks to see how things are going! Still feeling really rubbish but hey ho!
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
OK - the steroids did the trick although I am still going 5-7 times a day with formed stools. My Doctor has given me codeine phosphate to try and reduce the rapid transit but it makes me feel really ill so I am trying not to take it. So my question is how many of you out there have this particular symptom of formed stools but just a lot of them? They tend to be floaters and I am experiencing a lot of wind!
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
It's good to hear that you're doing better, but while I seem to recall 1 or 2 members here posting about the frequency problem you mentioned, I don't recall who they were, nor whether they found a remedy.
Have you tried Imodium (Loperamide Hcl) to slow down your motility?
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I'm sorry you're having such a miserable time. When I was healing and still on budesinide, I would be awakened at 5 a.m. and have multiple bms, all formed. By 6:30-7 a.m., it would be over. Now that I'm off budesinide, my diet is more restricted because of intolerable gas caused by formerly safe foods. Very gradually, the number of bms in the early morning has been reduced to 1-2 and I'm not up before dawn. The healing process has been going on for 3 years.
I haven't had a prolonged flare but have had sudden episodes of D. Generally the episodes are caused by stress or a food I shouldn't have eaten. Sometimes there doesn't seem to be a cause.
Budesinide worked instantly for me. If I had a serious flare like you're experiencing, I would go back to budesinide to get things under control. Hope you feel better soon.
Sheila W
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
Thanks guys - my Doctor has given me codeine phosphate which is working but once the effects wear off I revert to the same pattern. Unlike you Sheila, my repetitions are 2-3 in the morning then another late morning, about 4pm and maybe again in the evening. Basically everytime I eat something! I feel much better in myself and keep hoping it will resolve. I have taken loperamide, Tex, and may well resort to it again rather than the codeine but as I am experiencing some pain, the codeine helps with that. I will give it another week and then review - I may need a longer course of budesonide! hey ho!
Anne
If you ever feel too insignificant to be noticed, you have never been to bed with a mosquito!
Over the last week I have had three episodes of D - the last one just now! On my way home I began to feel nauseous and when I got off my train and into the car I realised I was going to have to put my foot down to get to my house. Luckily I made it but had explosive D! What is frustrating is that I have been sticking to my diet and have continued to be symptom free. Last week I put it down to stress - I have had a very busy time at work and as soon as I stopped for a holiday BOOM! Imodium sorted that and things returned to normal. But this episode has come on so suddenly and specifically that I am uncertain whether this is a flare starting or maybe I have a bug? After so long you forget how C**p this all makes you feel! Other than the nausea and feeling sweaty before the D I am otherwise fine. The food I have had today has been no different to normal and while this morning I was starving I now have no appetite! Any suggestions/comments welcome!
Maybe someone else will have some more useful insight to share.
Yep, new duties, busy day, and the boss swearing a lot strikes me as an environment that could be plenty stressful, but I have to admit that I don't have a degree in stress taxonomy. 
This has been coupled with feeling really fatigued, which I now realise has been plaguing me for the last three or four weeks (hindsight!!). So I guess this is a flare! I feel rubbish tonight and at 9pm I am heading for bed because I feel exhausted. I am going to phone my doctor tomorrow and discuss going back on budesonide to kick this into touch quickly. I left it far too long last time and as a result it took 18 months or so on steroids to get to remission. Nick - thank you for your comments. It is frustrating when I have been really careful with my diet - I do not know what has triggered this but hopefully a short sharp course of steroids (I'm thinking 3 months) will get me back to remission again. 
