Esophageal pH Test

This post isn’t really about Crohn’s, but I figured I’d write about it anyway, because it is digestive system related.

I’ve had a cough since about June 2013, so nearly two years. This cough happened nearly every day after I ate, especially in the morning. The cough improved after about a year, when I stopped drinking Crystal Light. It’s still around now, but much less severe. I’ve had a bunch of x-rays and breathing tests, and everything so far says I’m fine. My doctors seem to think it’s most likely acid reflux, and that’s what the esophageal pH test will tell us. I was on Prevacid for a while, and it seemed to help at first, but it never made it go away completely.

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See ya in six months

It’ll be a year tomorrow since the last time I’ve written. And why? Well, because there’s been nothing to write about! And no news is good news, so they say, and in this case, they would be right.

I had an appointment with my gastro doc last week, which I continue to do every six months. My last few appointments have gone basically the same: she says hello, how are you? I say good, and how are you? She says fine and asks what medications I’m taking. I say Imuran, two pills a day, however many milligrams that works out to, and a multivitamin. She asks how my bowel movements have been. I say typically 0-2 every day. She asks if they’re well-formed or loose, and I say they’re good, and I forget that I had a few loose ones last week, but whatever. She asks if I have any joint problems. I say no, not that I can think of. She asks if I’m seeing a bone doctor, and I say yeah, I have an appointment with him in like a year or two. She asks if I’m taking anything for my bones, and I say no, I was taking calcium, but the bone doc said I get enough calcium in my diet so I shouldn’t take the pills. She looks at my blood work, which I go for every three months. She says the numbers are good and asks if I need a new requisition. She asks if I need any refills on my prescriptions. I say nope, and I’ll give them a call if I do need them. She says great, any questions, anything bothering me? I say nope. She says I’ll see you in six months, and I say thanks, see ya.

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A regular appointment

I had an appointment with my gastroenterologist the other day. It was just a regular checkup to see how I was doing.

Blood test results

My doctor said my blood test results have been normal. She said if the marker that they look at for Crohn’s — CRP (C-reactive protein) — is under 10, it’s normal. My past few test results have all been under 10, though they have been increasing (from 1 point something to my most result result, 4 point something). My doctor didn’t say anything about this pattern, so I guess that’s not a big deal.

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Crohn’s, diarrhea, and a heating pad

I’ve been lucky enough to only have about two days in the last four months that I’ve felt “Crohn’s-y” at work. Unfortunately, today was one of those days.

I’ve always found that I feel like going to the bathroom when I’m cold, even before I had Crohn’s. I don’t think it helps that I’m anemic and I get cold easily.

Luckily, at home, I can just grab a heating pad, and I feel much better. After a few minutes of using the heating pad, I’ll go to the bathroom maybe one more time, and then not so much (if at all) after that. I feels like the heat gets the bowels going and gets everything out at once, rather than dragging it out over an hour, which is the worst part for me.

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