Why does ulcerative colitis cause fatigue

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Crohn's disease symptom: Is fatigue common? Products and services. Is fatigue a common Crohn's disease symptom? Answer From Elizabeth Rajan, M.

Thank you for Subscribing Our Housecall e-newsletter will keep you up-to-date on the latest health information. Please try again. Something went wrong on our side, please try again. Show references Lichtenstein GR, et al. American Journal of Gastroenterology. IBD and fatigue. This can lead to low confidence and depression.

You may find it helpful to discuss your feelings with a counsellor. To find out more, see our information sheet Mental Health and Wellbeing. You may find that you feel guilty if your partner or family have to do extra things to help, or if they miss out on doing things with you. Being open and honest about your condition may be helpful. If fatigue is having an impact on your sex life, you may find our information sheet Sexual Relationships and IBD helpful.

Some people with fatigue may be able to manage a full-time job, while others may struggle with such a commitment. Some experience fatigue so strongly that they have to give up work. Working part-time or reducing the number of hours worked each day can sometimes help manage fatigue, but this might have financial implications. Our information sheet, Employment and IBD: A guide for employees provides more information on your options and how you might be protected by law.

Students with fatigue may find studying difficult, and may worry that fatigue will limit their achievements and job aspirations. Schools and universities can often work with students to help them cope with periods of IBD-related fatigue, such as setting extended deadlines or giving extra time during exams.

It can be difficult to discuss fatigue and to explain the problems it causes. You might find it difficult to talk to your doctor about your fatigue, and therefore miss out on receiving help.

Some doctors and nurses are not aware how much fatigue can affect people with Crohn's or Colitis , so they may not ask about it during an appointment. Fatigue is not a personal failing, and is nothing to be embarrassed about. But, living with persistent fatigue is unacceptable, so you may have to push more than usual to ensure you get the proper care you need. I think there can a bit of a stigma attached to fatigue where people might struggle through it not wanting to admit to it for fear of being seen as lazy.

You can find this at fatigueinIBD. If you find it difficult to talk about fatigue, you may find it helpful to print the questionnaire and show it to your healthcare team. There is also a checklist you can use to consider possible causes of your fatigue, in order to make sure nothing is overlooked. You will be able to fill in some items yourself, but for others you will need a doctor or nurse to give you the information.

You can find the checklist at fatigueinIBD. There are a range of actions you can take to reduce or manage your fatigue. The first and most important thing to do is to ask your doctor or IBD nurse to check that you do not have active Crohn's or Colitis. This might be done with a blood test or stool test. If your Crohn's or Colitis is active, then you will need treatment to see whether your fatigue improves as your Crohn's or Colitis improves.

This may mean changing the dose or type of medicine that you are taking. You should also speak to your doctor if you think your medication may be causing your fatigue, as they might be able to adjust the dose or find an alternative medicine. If your Crohn's or Colitis is in remission, you could ask for a blood test to check for anaemia, iron stores, vitamin B12, and other chemical or nutrient deficiencies. Those experiencing emotional or psychological stress should speak to their GP or IBD team about accessing specialist support to help cope with this.

For more information on the different types of counselling and how it may help you, see our information on Mental Health and Wellbeing. There is some evidence that low to moderate intensity physical activity may reduce IBD fatigue. You could try gradually to increase the amount of physical exercise you do, while being careful not to overdo it. This can be simple activities, such as walking rather than catching the bus for short journeys, or going to exercise classes. It is important to achieve the right balance between doing too much and exhausting yourself, and not doing enough to make a difference.

You might need to build up your activity level slowly over several weeks. See our information on Living with Crohn's or Colitis for tips on exercising with Crohn's or Colitis. If you smoke, stopping smoking can also help to reduce Crohn's or Colitis fatigue. You may find our information sheet Smoking and IBD helpful. If pain is contributing to your fatigue, you may wish to discuss pain management strategies with your IBD team.

There are a number of options that may help with pain in Crohn's or Colitis, many of which have already been mentioned above as ways to tackle fatigue. Select basic ads.

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Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Fatigue is a non-specific symptom of many diseases and conditions.

Feeling tired could be the result of not getting enough sleep, or not getting enough quality sleep. In the U. Fatigue, however, is more than being tired and it can't necessarily be overcome by getting some sleep. Fatigue is a symptom often associated with inflammatory bowel disease IBD and tends to be one that is brought up frequently as being most problematic in lowering quality of life.

Chronic fatigue can lead to a host of other problems, including poor performance at work and school, drowsy driving, and feelings of depression. Figuring out that fatigue is a problem is not difficult, but determining what is causing it — and what to do about it — is no easy task.

The reasons people with IBD may feel fatigued include medication side effects, sleep disturbances, related conditions such as anemia, and a flare-up. Some medications that are used to treat IBD can cause fatigue either directly or indirectly by negatively affecting your sleep. Corticosteroids, such as prednisone , tend to give people the feeling of being "wired," which makes it difficult to get rest. When these side effects occur, they should always be discussed with the prescribing physician.

When fatigued, it would seem as though falling asleep quickly and staying asleep longer would be easier. However, when IBD is flaring, sleep may be interrupted by other signs and symptoms, such as trips to the bathroom or night sweats.

In the meantime, try practicing good sleep hygiene in order to give the best chance at a restful night's sleep. For waking because of having to use the bathroom, one idea is to consider scheduling the last meal of the day several hours before bedtime.