Remission without Meds

Here you can find information on medications found by the members of this discussion board to be generally safe and effective, and to minimize the risk of provoking a microscopic colitis flare or relapse.

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layotte25
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Remission without Meds

Post by layotte25 »

Hi everyone! I am wondering whether maintaining remission is possible without prescription meds? I have been taking Apriso for 8 months and switched to Liada because of bad side effects. Unfortunately, I experienced even worse side effects on the Lialda and stopped everything all together to give my body a break. I have not taken any meds for about two weeks and feel surprisingly well. With that said, is it possible to stay in remission just by diet alone? I am also considering trying naturopathic remedies. Has anyone had any luck with this?

As always, I appreciate any feedback.

Thanks,

Leanne :)
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Post by Deb »

Leanne, if you'll read some of the posts here you'll discover that many of us reached remission with diet alone. A lot of us have tried naturopathic remedies as well. It really becomes an individual journey. I'm glad you're feeling better and wish you continued success. Deb
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ldubois7
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Post by ldubois7 »

Hi Leanne,

I achieved remission without meds. I don't do well with prescription meds anyway, so I avoid them. In the early stages of the disease I couldn't even take supplements. It's best to keep things simple while you heal.
After about 6 months I introduced Vit D3, slowly, and successfully.

Eat small meals, rotate your safe foods, rest, and stay hydrated.

Be patient too...it's so easy want it to happen quickly....we all have felt that way!
Linda :)

LC Oct. 2012
MTHFR gene mutation and many more....
layotte25
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Post by layotte25 »

Thanks for the advice! I am glad to know that you were able to achieve remission without prescription meds :)

Leanne
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tex
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Post by tex »

Leanne,

FWIW, I have never taken any prescription meds to treat my symptoms, either, and I was extremely sick before I discovered that diet actually was the key to remission. Outside of an occasional brief diet issue while traveling, I've been in remission for over 11 years now (by diet changes alone).

Your young age is all the more reason to try to manage your issues by diet changes rather than meds. As you are probably aware, personal experiences show that decades of treatment with the medications typically used to control IBD symptoms virtually always results in adverse health consequences. And most people who choose medications over diet changes also tend to develop additional autoimmune issues as the years roll by. That doesn't mean that it is impossible to develop additional AI diseases while using diet changes, but the odds are greatly diminished.

And when we compare meds with diet changes, there are no adverse long-term health effects of controlling IBDs and other AI diseases by diet changes. Treatment by diet is a safe treatment, and it's safe for everyone. By contrast, there is no such thing as a medication that is totally free of the risk of side effects, especially when long-term use is involved. All meds carry side effect risks, and for some of us, the risks can be extremely significant.

Tex
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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.
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humbird753
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Post by humbird753 »

Hi Leanne,

I am in remission by diet changes only. It is definitely possible.

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Post by brandy »

Hi Leanne,

Welcome to the forum!
I am wondering whether maintaining remission is possible without prescription meds?
Yes!
I am also considering trying naturopathic remedies. Has anyone had any luck with this?
The safest thing is stick to simple foods and minimizing stress. Naturopathic remedies can make things worse early on.

Brandy
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Post by Grahm »

I'm also in remission with diet only. My body definitely lets me know when I eat something that doesn't suit.
Good luck to you!

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Connie
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layotte25
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Post by layotte25 »

Thank you everyone! It's so nice to have the support of all of you on this site.

Leanne :)
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Leanne
I took small amount of questran and loperamide in the early days, once I removed all the major food triggers I no longer needed them.

minimal MC symptoms is achievable if you follow the right eating plan, and make lifestyle adjustments (minimise stress, avoid environmental triggers etc) and fix nutritional deficiencies like Vit D3, magnesium, B group vitamins.

I am coming up to 6 years post Dx. it took me 9-12 months to 'transition' into the adjustments and be at peace with the changes. It can be overwhelming at first, but it is worth every ounce of effort to maximise wellness...
Gabes Ryan

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layotte25
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Post by layotte25 »

Have you seen a nutritionist? My GI thinks I would benefit from that.

Leanne
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tex
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Post by tex »

Leanne,

I am aware of only 1 nutritionist in this country who understands MC well enough to be able to advise anyone who has MC, and she is a member of this board, but I believe that she has moved on to a career in marriage counselling, and she hasn't posted in a long time. You would be wasting your money on most nutritionists, because there is no way that they would be properly trained to deal with MC. Many members here have tried that, and most have been very disappointed.

Tex
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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.
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Leanne
in line with Tex's comment, not many practitioners (nutritionists, functional medicine doctors, naturopaths etc) fully understand MC, it is not the same as other IBD's.

for the first few years, I was lucky that i had the support of my best friend who is a naturopath who would guide me a bit based on what I was reading on this site and other research i did myself.

only recently as I focussed on other AI issues/other health issues (pyrrole) I found a fantastic nutritionist who was able to help me. It was more a collaborative approach and she learnt quite a bit of stuff from me, based on the knowledge shared here and she has used this for other clients...
the focus of my time with her was to fix nutritional deficiencies and methylation cycle corrections.

I had done 80% of the work of healing the gut myself.

my suggestion is, get your eating plan / lifestyle plan figured out, get some good healing happening, THEN see a nutritionist to look at balancing any nutritional deficiencies that may be occurring.
once you know your safe eating plan do not let any doctor, specialist, practitioner try to change it.
Gabes Ryan

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layotte25
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Post by layotte25 »

I was thinking the same thing. No one really understands the way my body works except for me at this point and even I don't understand it sometimes. I simply eat the foods that I believe to be my safe foods and experiment with some in question to see what works. Its only been about a year. I hope once I've reached the 6 year mark I'll have everything figured out too. :)
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Leanne,
I had had lifelong digestion issues (3x bowel surgery by age 25) life long menstration issues,
And when MC started, over the next couple of years had multiple AI issues and complex issues.

By sharing my learnings, and helping others, I hope people here can avoid 6 years like I had....

Listen to your body... Learn how to decode its messages..
Gabes Ryan

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