What Is Colitis?

Colitis like many other disorders is something few people ever bother to learn about until their friends, loved ones or they themselves have it. For those who aren't familiar with it, it can be an incredibly painful and embarrassing experience. The symptoms are highly personal and while the disease isn't fatal by any means it can be devastating for those affected. Colitis is a disease in which the lining of the colon is inflamed and ulcers within the large intestine form. As one could imagine this condition is anything but comfortable. Many people who have contracted colitis have a hard time talking about it because it is one of the more personal diseases. With symptoms like ulcers in the large intestine, frequent diarrhea and bloody stool it's not hard to imagine why some people have a hard time talking about it to even the closest of friends or family.

How exactly does one diagnose colitis you may be asking? Well colitis like many other diseases can be quite difficult for doctors to diagnose. This can be attributed to a couple of reasons, the first being that the symptoms are similar to many other intestinal disorders and the second being that the disease itself is often times mistaken for some other less serious problem. It's most common for someone who is suffering from colitis to see a doctor and complain about a sore abdomen and diarrhea. These two most common side-effects of colitis are also caused by an incredibly common symptom called irritable bowel syndrome. While irritable bowel syndrome and colitis have some similarities they are entirely different diseases and their treatments are much different too. Because of this general confusion between colitis and irritable bowel syndrome it may take some time for doctors to pinpoint colitis.

If you're unfortunate enough to come down with colitis there is a bright side. Colitis is highly treatable and anything but deadly. The worst aspect of colitis is the general discomfort one will get from the ulcers and the pain along with fever and fatigue that often kick in as the body tries to fight whatever ales you. Most people are able to cope with colitis with general medication and a little bit of instruction from the doctor. The more severe cases of colitis can involve surgery to remove parts of the infected colon altogether. Even in the most severe cases, the surgery is a safe and effective means of eliminating the disease and in the end the discomfort caused by the surgery is usually well worth getting rid of the colitis. For anyone who has had colitis, even after treatment it's suggested regular checkups by a doctor to keep it from coming back.

So there you have it. It may be embarrassing or painful but it's a fact of life. Many people deal with colitis at least once in their life and while it's embarrassing it's not the end of the world. There are worse diseases to have from all standpoints. Some diseases have much worse symptoms while others aren't treatable. Colitis is not like any of these and while it may take some time to fully recover both physically and emotionally, colitis shouldn't leave any lasting scars and there's no reason why one cannot endure and continue on without having colitis be a major obstacle in life.

Colitis