New to site

[pandabear73]

Hi there i am new to this site, actually i'm new to forums, this is the first one i have joined. Just a bit about me, i am 35 years old, and have had crohn's disease since i was 16. We have tried all the different drug therapies, where i found out all the meds i was allergic to. 3 years ago we discovered that i had a bladder bowel fistula, and all my docs were telling me that it was time for surgery, and they removed the piece of bowel where the fistula was, and reconnected my bowel. a week and a half after the resection, my bowel ruptured (but they didn't realize it)! i went unconcious and was taken to intensive care. after 3 days in intensive care they finally realized that my bowel was ruptured.(at this point i was septic and dying) so the next step was emergency surgery to clean out my abdomen, and to give me an illiostomy bag. i started to slowly improve and 3 weeks later i was able to go home. I was home for 1 night. the next morning my incision was leaking the most disgusting stuff i have ever smelled, so back to the emergency room i went. They immediately put me in for a CAT scan and discovered that i had approx. 30 abcesses in my abdomen and they were starting to rupture. back to the OR for me again that would be the third major surgery in 3 weeks, all in the exact same spot!! they cleared the abcesses out, and i was on the mend again. i did have 1 abcess on my spleen keep coming back, and i was finally clear of having drain tubes after about 6 months. i spent a solid 2 months in the hospital minus that 1 night i was at home. after 18 months with the illiostomy bag i was healthy enough to have the surgery to reverse the bag. to add to all this i do have children, my daughter was 13 at the time and my son was 6. This was all very devastating to both my children.
now 3 years later i have been doing ok, until a couple of months ago. I now have another bladder bowel fistula and have been introduced to remicade. 3 years ago there was no mention of remicade i had never heard of it and knew nothing about it.
I have had 1 remicade treatment so far and i have noticed a difference. the severe diareaha has stopped, i have a bit more energy, and i'm tolerating food much better. I have noticed that i am extremely drained for 3 days after treatment though. my specialist tells me this is normal. can someone tell me, will this be after every treatment, or just the first couple? I am feeling very good about remicade treatments, i think this might be the answer for me and would have been a great solution 3 years ago when i had my first fistula. I would love any advice or dieting tips or if anyone wants to chat or ask me about my experiences with CD feel free to contact me. I can honestly say i do not have any friends or family members that can relate to what i have been through with this disease, and i think it's time i started sharing with others with the same condition. I might be able to help some ppl and vice versa.