Sorry to hear about your problem. I am lucky. I only get runners trots after about mile 12.

My husband has Ulseritive (sp) colitis.  There are many types of colitis.  He was told he had non specific until the doctors did more test to narrow down which type.

Maybe you need other tests.  You can get a lot of info at the chrons and colitis foundations webpage. 

http://www.ccfa.org/

~Sarah

Hi all,

I too have ulcerative colitis.  I was diagnosised 4 years ago after pooping blood (lots!) after a long run. I did not give up running.  I have to watch my diet very carefully ( I also have interstitial cystitis which has its own set of dietary restrictions)  and take 12 pills a day to manage both condititons, but have continued  to not only stay active, but to  become a triathlete.  I have completed in 7 triathlons so far and am currently training for an Ironman.  Yes, I have trouble some days, but with trial and error I have figured out what to and what not to eat to keep the symptoms in check while getting the nutrition I need for an endurance sport.  So, I guess what I'm trying to say is,,,, Have hope, take charge and keep a positve attitude.

I'm sixteen years old. Over the winter I trained (probably a little too hard) and I started to get really bad diarrhea every time I ran starting last winter I trained on treadmills so that I could go to the bathroom whenever I needed to; I thought it was just a little bit of the flu, but it never went away. I became underweight and was really suffering. I went to the doctor in January because I was having bloody stools, She told me that everything I was experiencing was normal & that the blood was probably just because of a fissure I got from going to the bathroom so often (IDIOT). Getting her okay, I continued my training  and things got worse.  My mom finally called another doctor, & I got sent to eating disorder therapy... That was a joke, I wasn't eating enough calories at the time, but it was not because I wanted to lose weight it was because I wanted to be able to run without having "problems". I knew I was okay as long as I could train on treadmill, but then track season came. It was the most awful thing I have ever endured. I wouldn't eat anything all day before practice & still have accidents. It was like I had this big secret. My coach is absolutely worthless and knew nothing. My small town in Wisconsin has like NO BATHROOMS. Honestly, my school has a really weak distance program, We had no distance coach this year so I would do the workouts on my own.... all 3 of the other distance girls just thought I was stuck up since I never ran with anyone.  I would pretty much run the workouts accidents or not, and then I would attempt to clean up and then make my boyfriend (the state runner up for XC) take me home, sooooooo embarrassing. it got so bad I couldn't finish the season & no one had any idea why & I couldn't exactly tell them. I took a month off hoping it would help. All it did was add 15 lbs. and thus ruin my self-esteem. This summer has been awful for training, I just don't know how to get past this. It's like the anxiety of having an accident make it worse. I take 2 immodium, still go to the bathroom during my run,  but then I don't go to the bathroom for 2 days after that. My GI told me I could take up to 8 in a day ( I was like... "Are you insane??). So before my last race I decided I would try it out.... yeah I thought I was going to die my stomach cramped so bad. I ran my 5k 2 minutes slower (probably partially to blame on my weight gain) and I almost made my boyfriend take me to the emergency room for overdosing on immodium. I tried Kaopectate... but I have this thing about taking medicine... I ABSOLUTELY HATE IT. I've been tested for everything... Chron's, Celiac, you name it. My GI told me it's just runner's colitis.. and it's never going away.  And the Doctor who did my colonoscopy  confirmed it. He said "Why don't you just stop when your stomach starts to cramp?" (once again IDIOT). & My doctor in Internal Medicine thinks she can give me Provac and make it better... So I won't care that I'm ******** my shorts (I hate her) I now just run on treadmills at the gym or out in the country where I can go out into the woods... I have lovely scratches from all my adventures out to the woods and last week I even got a rash on my rear from wiping with the wrong leaf. It's such a disgusting disease.

My mother and I are currently trying accupuncture and hypnosis. I've seen minor result, but maybe it's just the belief that something might be working, but honestly I don't think either of us can afford it much longer. I've also finally got a nutritionist who is mildly helpful, but my XC season starts Monday. This was supposed to be solved by now. My mom says she's going to buy me Depends... Yeah I'm considering it, but if that got out that would be beyond humiliating.  I'm so tired of it, I considered quitting. I have honestly spent nights bawling about this. I hate this problem but I love running more than anything else. I need someone who knows what they're talking about.

hal, I don't normally post on this thread, but your post moved me. Many of us have this problems.

If I have a cramp it is usually in the few miles so if I run with other people I try to run a few warm-up miles by myself and then join them.

I had a bad stretch this summer where every run was interupted. It seems once the colon gets pist, it's likes to cramp more frequently.  I had to eat a restricted diet and take immodium a.d. for many runs until it better. Really was my own fault, my miles were increasing and I was not watching my diet like I knew I should have been.

I have found watching my diet very carefully helps the most. I found the removing dairy (including chocolate) and any sort of junk or processed food helped me the most. Bananas and pankcakes before a run also make me cramp. I found it is imperative to run on an almost empty tummy, eating nothing 3 hours before a run. A longer run might be 4 hours.

You also want to try to figure out what in your diet will assure you a good bathroom break in the morning. For me it's some salsa the night before. Before an important run I will eat either a baked potatoe with salsa or a few baked chips with salsa, and some whole wheat noodles with olive oil and a pinch of parmesan cheese.  Another friend swears by a few baby carrots. My point is that you should try to see what in your diet works for and against you.

Good Luck.

thanks for the replies... sorry about the life story.

I never eat junkfood or processed food.. at least I didn't when the problem started (thus why they thought the eating disorder), so that's not the problem. My mom and I have tried desperately to pinpoint it to certain foods, but It seems like it doesn't really matter. I could eat one thing one day and be ok. but then eat it again the next and have problems... I will try the warmups close by, but I usually go multiple times. I think that would help though. I have an internal medicine appointmet next week so maybe I'll ask for a different GI. I sometimes have problems when I'm not running, but it's not frequent.  I think I just need to figure out the food and medicine and running timing. It's hard because I have made no progress, I have not found a single thing that works consistantly. & it's agonizing.

It's so crazy to see how many people have this issue and how it's different for everyone. Like one person says something works for them, but it doesn't work for someone else.  I'm actually considering printing off  this thread and showing my doctor so she'll stop treating me like i'm freakish

Hi all you suffering runners. I have been following this thread for a long time and it has made me feel a whole lot less of a freak! I have had very similar symptoms to many of you over the years but in the last couple of years, the cramps and occasional bleeding stopped. Now I often have to go into the bushes on my run- sometimes not.  I have finally scheduled myself for a colonoscopy after procrastinating far to long and wondered if anyone had a problem with the actual procedure due to scarring of the colon or inflamation. It that worry that has kept me from scheduling the procedure until now.

wow- can I thank you for re-posting on this thread?!  I have been trying to find answers to this problem, had found a lot of forums with people sharing the symptoms, but not much else.  I have been taking 2 ibuprofen about an hour before running, and then 2 pepto chews about 15 minutes before starting, but would definitely like a more natural approach, like how you felt taking the Immodium.  just seems wrong to be taking meds all the time, but I have really taken to love running and so far that's been the only help...  I am interested in cutting back on gluten in my diet and will have to monitor myself and give it a try.  again, thank you for re-posting!