Just wanted to give you all a little update.
I'm doing really, really well! My BMs are normal and down to once a day!!! I do believe the prednisone helped (I'm down to 5 mg every other day and about to stop it completely) but I have no doubt that it is the diet that has made the biggest difference. Once again, I cannot express how grateful I am to have found this site and Tex's book and gotten some REAL help.
Even after prescribing the prednisone, my GI doc still wanted me to take Apriso but I refuse.
I haven't introduced any new foods yet - I wanted to get off the prednisone first so that it wouldn't mask any reaction.
But to think how horrible I felt just two months ago, unbelievable. When I first googled CC, this site came up as one of the first, so I am hopeful that anybody who gets any form of MC will find this and get the help I did.
Update
Moderators: Rosie, JFR, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
I had an appointment with my GI doc today as a routine follow-up. I really thought about canceling because I feel there's nothing he can do for me, but I went anyway just to let him know that I am doing very well without his meds and that it's the diet that has helped me feel so much better.
I've been completely off the prednisone for over a week now, and I am still doing great.
The doc sounded genuinely happy for me - but he didn't ask a single question about the diet which was disappointing to me. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. As I've seen so many of you say, they are not interested in diets, they just want to write prescriptions.
But good news - he agreed that I do not need to see him again, unless I have a flare-up. Well, guess what - if I do, I will find the solution in my kitchen!!
I've been completely off the prednisone for over a week now, and I am still doing great.
The doc sounded genuinely happy for me - but he didn't ask a single question about the diet which was disappointing to me. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. As I've seen so many of you say, they are not interested in diets, they just want to write prescriptions.
But good news - he agreed that I do not need to see him again, unless I have a flare-up. Well, guess what - if I do, I will find the solution in my kitchen!!
Thank you Gabes.
My diet right now is extremely simple and some might call it boring.
For breakfast I have GF cereal with coconut milk or lactose-free yogurt with probiotics.
For lunch I have turkey, just plain deli cuts, and potato chips with no ingredients other than oil and sea salt.
For dinner I usually have "dirty rice" which is rice boiled in home made bone broth mixed with ground beef. Sometimes I just have boiled potatoes.
I'm getting ready to experiment with new foods, but I'm really quite satisfied with what I'm eating now. I'm not much of a gourmet... But I'm also curious to see what I can or can't tolerate. Looking back, I suspect that aspartame was a big culprit (I was pretty much a Coke Zero addict) but I'm not ready or willing to experiment with that. There's really no point.
For those who crave carbonated drinks, there is Sparkling Ice which comes in a variety of flavors and has no sugar or artificial sweeteners.
I was happily surprised to find out that I can still have my favorite iced coffee drink which definitely has milk in it so maybe dairy is not such a huge problem for me. It most definitely also has sugar in it.
But most of all, I think that the rice boiled in bone broth has had the biggest benefit.
My diet right now is extremely simple and some might call it boring.
For breakfast I have GF cereal with coconut milk or lactose-free yogurt with probiotics.
For lunch I have turkey, just plain deli cuts, and potato chips with no ingredients other than oil and sea salt.
For dinner I usually have "dirty rice" which is rice boiled in home made bone broth mixed with ground beef. Sometimes I just have boiled potatoes.
I'm getting ready to experiment with new foods, but I'm really quite satisfied with what I'm eating now. I'm not much of a gourmet... But I'm also curious to see what I can or can't tolerate. Looking back, I suspect that aspartame was a big culprit (I was pretty much a Coke Zero addict) but I'm not ready or willing to experiment with that. There's really no point.
For those who crave carbonated drinks, there is Sparkling Ice which comes in a variety of flavors and has no sugar or artificial sweeteners.
I was happily surprised to find out that I can still have my favorite iced coffee drink which definitely has milk in it so maybe dairy is not such a huge problem for me. It most definitely also has sugar in it.
But most of all, I think that the rice boiled in bone broth has had the biggest benefit.