When living with certain medical conditions, a flare-up can happen at any given time for any reason. Once a flare-up is triggered, it can be extremely hard to manage. Not only can it be hard to manage, but it can be extremely painful as well. A bad flare will leave you feeling defeated, with no hope that it will get better. Thankfully, that doesn’t have to be the case at all. Yes, you may experience a bad ulcerative colitis flare-up, but there are so many ways to manage it naturally and with resources that are accessible to you.
What Causes A Flare-up?
Say you are someone who is living with IBD, specifically Ulcerative Colitis. You are bound to experience a flare-up or five every now and then, but what causes a UC flare?
Well, first let’s answer what ulcerative colitis is. Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease, or an IBD, that causes inflammation in your digestive tract.
Once inflammation begins, ulcers can develop in your digestive tract as well. It affects the inner lining of your colon (large intestine) and your rectum.
So what causes inflammation or a flare-up with UC? Well, a few things can cause a flare-up.
Your diet can be a reason for a flare-up. Eating dairy may cause inflammation, as may too much fiber and unhealthy or processed foods.
Stress can also worsen or trigger inflammation.
RELATED: How To Manage Ulcerative Colitis
21 Tips You Need During A UC Flare Up
- Drink lots of water throughout the day
- Stay away from coffee
- Skip alcoholic beverages as well; they’re too high in sugar
- Try drinking bone broth
- No nuts
- No seeds
- Lower your sugar intake
- Go skinless with your fruits and vegetables
- Dairy is not your friend; stay away if you can
- Healthy fats are great! Incorporate them into your diet often
- Be mindful of your fiber intake
- Carbs are okay, just remember not to consume too much
- Artificial flavors and chemicals are a no-go; remove them from your diet
- Use less seasoning when cooking
- Meditation works wonders
- Sleep as much as you can
- Supplements and vitamins help a lot, take them
- Low-intensity exercise is the way to go
- Yoga isn’t just for hippies; it helps with flare-ups
- Talk to your doctor to help find a plan that works best for you
- Give yourself grace and know that this flare-up will pass
RELATED: 5 Alarming Myths About Ulcerative Colitis in Black Americans
How These Tips Actually Help
In the middle of a flare-up, know that these tips can help you in more ways than you think, even if they don’t seem like it at the moment.
When living with ulcerative colitis, your symptoms don’t all happen at once. They instead build up over time. This means that you’ll most likely know when inflammation is starting to occur once you learn how your body reacts to a flare-up.
If you notice symptoms such as fever and fatigue, rectal bleeding, or the urge to poop suddenly but feel as though you can’t make it to the bathroom, then that’s when a flare-up is occurring.
Diarrhea with bloody stool, being unable to defecate (poop) even though the urge is there and strong, as well as rectal pain, are also all symptoms of inflammation occurring in your body.
These tips and tricks will help lower the chances of your symptoms worsening. For example, eating dairy may upset your stomach, which will make the urge to poop twice as bad if you’re living with ulcerative colitis. This could lead to rectal pain, bloody stools, fatigue, and more, all because you indulged in some regular ice cream.
Meditating and taking naps when you can will help lower your stress levels if you feel them rising, which can strain your digestive tract.
Again, at the moment, it may feel as though there’s nothing you can do during a flare-up, but know that there are ways to prevent inflammation and severe symptoms.
Though there is no definitive cause of ulcerative colitis, there are ways to manage it. Taking your power back from a disease like this will show that even when you feel that things are out of your control, you can control them.