The holidays can be hard on a person with Crohn's Disease like me. I've found over the years that the best way to prevent flare-ups is to maintain (the best I can), some sense of normalcy and moderation in my life during this period. How you do this you may ask? What has worked best for me is, closely monitoring four different things in my life...watching how I eat, making sure to get enough sleep, keeping up on my medication and controlling my stress the best I know how.
First, it is absolutely necessary that you control not only the kinds of foods you eat, as well as the quantities of food you take in. Naturally, it is important to stay away from the main foods or drinks guaranteed to cause problems in Crohn's sufferers, big holiday favorites like nuts, popcorn, beer/alcohol, etc. But just as important as steering clear of the wrong kinds of foods, is to remember to avoid eating too much food. I've found that overeating causes a host of problems in me (just like eating the wrong foods does), with symptoms like nausea, bloating, gas, cramps and diarrhea. None of these things are very pleasant to deal with when you are trying to have fun with friends and relatives during this very joyous time of the year. Need I mention the importance of moderation again?
I'm sure that many of you have experienced a set back or relapse in your Crohn's as I have, if you miss a lot of sleep. If you do the best you can to maintain a steady routine of sleep, you'll have a lot less grief with your Crohn's condition.
The third point I made in controlling your Crohn's during the holidays is making sure you maintain a steady routine in taking my medication. Forgetting, or refusing to bother to take your medicines will obviously have detrimental results for you over the holidays. So be sure not to skip the medications.
Lastly, but absolutely not the least important of the four ways to control your Crohn's Disease over the holidays, is how effective you are at controlling your stress. In many ways, this is the hardest of the four to control. With the holidays comes stress, which is an absolute certainty, for sure. This stress can be derived from a multitude of things.
Issues like worry over money, or fear and dread over having to associate with friends and relatives that you really don't like that much. Whenever you have to be out at the malls fighting the crowds it usually is stressful. You can even become stressful over having to watch what you eat or drink at parties. I have felt self-conscious having to admit to people that I have Crohn's Disease and felt guilty about having to turn down the food and drink that everybody else is enjoying and this causes me stress.
The only thing I can advise that has helped me defeat stress is by planning ahead, trying not to put myself in stressful situations in the first place. First off, I avoid going out to the malls altogether (if I can) by doing most of my shopping online. More often than not you can get bettor deals online in the first place and you avoid lots of traffic. If you are going to a party where you know there will be foods you can't eat, eat in advance or bring foods you can eat to the party. Thirdly, to control stress, I make sure to maintain regular visits to the gym. Exercise I've found is singularly the most effective way to control my stress. By the way, while you are exercising and alleviating stress, you can burn up some of those holiday calories in the process. If you aren't already on a regular exercise program, I would seriously consider doing it. Even if you're Crohn's symptoms are more severe and are limited in what you can do, try and do what you can. You will be amazed at the effects just a little exercise will have on your Crohn's condition. In regards to dealing with stress over difficult relatives and friends... well good luck, do the best you can.
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