The Great October Mystery..

by Pooper
(Texas Girl)


After reading about this mystery on another forum.. i took notice of my Crohns related symptoms and flare-up symptoms of others were happening on or around October. What is it about this month? Any theories?

Here's a few theories Ive found so far:

Some say its because we tend to feel a bit depressed as the days become shorter and darker around OCTOBER. Maybe unrecognized winter-depression (caused by too few light). Some research has been done on the relation of light and the mind.

someone else said:

They think that it is due to the stuffy noses and sinus problems that people usually get around this time of year since a large portion of the mucus drains right down into intestinal tract. A doctor said that the stomach can not digest mucus, so the stomach produces more and more acid which aggravates Crohn's.

Any suggestions??

Comments for The Great October Mystery..

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The Great October Mystery
by: Anonymous

Hello there,

Thank you for your post. Crohn's disease can have an extraordinarily negative effect on any individual and in fact the symptoms can flare-up any time often without any real cause seemingly.

This can make it difficult to anticipate when a flare-up may happen and at other times, the flare-ups occur because of triggers either within the diet or external factors.

Stress is one of the biggest triggers and it is very hard to ignore, especially if you are worried about anything in particular or, as many people find with the build-up towards Christmas, there is often a lot of added pressure. Extra shopping-presents, food and the prospect of being with family units for longer periods of time.So what should be a very pleasant and family orientated time of year, can result in the build-up being too much.

I certainly think the dark nights have a habit of affecting a lot of people, with less sunlight about S A D can occur and I think that we shouldn't ignore that many people suffer with depression through Crohn's disease anyway. There are so many factors that could interrupt a normal mood cycle, be it seasonal or stress related.

I have not personally heard about mucus causing a problem, but that is not to say it doesn't. It’s an interesting thought and I would be interested to know if anyone else has experienced similar. One tip for those stuffy sinuses or sinus problems caused through working in a air-conditioned building, is to drink plenty of water throughout the day and amazingly this can make a big difference. From nasal drip to no drip.
Water will not affect the crohn's either.

I hope you do escape the pain of flare-ups leading through the winter months and wish you the best of luck.

Annette
Holidays
by: Anonymous

I say its the stress of the upcoming holidays. Stress of shopping, planning holiday get togethers, and seeing family members.
Yes October is bad for flare ups
by: Anonymous

I think you might be right, last flare up was October last year, hope it doesnt flare agin this October!! Very interesting theory that I hope has more research.
seasons
by: Anonymous

Every september i have a bad flareup.and spent a week in hospital. i asked my dr why this happenes in september. and he thinks change of seasons can affect chrohns. but your drs theroy sounds very interesting.
October
by: Maudine

I think that you are on to something. Sounds plausible to me. My Crohn's started in October and was triggered by allergies which causes the mucous and acid that you are writing about.

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