Finding Ulcerative Colitis Support In and Around Chicago, Illinois

I live in Peoria, Illinois, which is about two and a half hours south of Chicago. The support for ulcerative colitis in Peoria consists of three great hospitals and a dynamic gastroenterology clinic. Further, there are several grocery stores that supply a steady provision of organic foods.

The major difference in support in a large city such as Chicago is the largess of the hospitals and a couple of University Hospitals. These include Rush University Medical Hospital, University of Chicago Medical Center, Northwestern University Hospital and Children's Memorial Hospital. All of these facilities are renown for their work and, in fact, would be the next place I would go for treatment were I not able to solve my problems in Peoria.

As a reminder about the illness of ulcerative colitis, it is a bowel disorder characterized by ulcers and inflammation and, in addition, may be accompanied by bloody diarrhea, severe cramping and fever.

It has been my experience that larger hospitals and university hospitals, while not necessarily "better" than hospitals in smaller cities such as Peoria (about 100,000 population), they often have access to cutting edge research and the ability to work in teams.

The three major differences you can obtain in Chicago would include first, the above capabilities of the facilities to use team approaches as well as having access to cutting edge research.

A key support that is very difficult to find is treatment for children. Children's Memorial Hospital provides that capability. One of my sons, when he was two, was diagnosed for six months erroneously with a Urinary Tract Infection, when, in fact, he had juvenile ulcerative colitis. This was treated easily and quickly after months of suffering that he needlessly went through. That is one problem with ulcerative colitis. It can mimic other body symptoms; especially in its milder forms.

Finally, there are many support groups in Chicago. At best, you may find one support group in smaller cities such as Peoria, but, in Chicago, virtually every major hospital has a support group set up for psychological as well as physical reasons.

As with several large cities, there is no question that Chicago offers massive amounts of support for a sufferer of ulcerative colitis. However due to the University of Chicago and Northwestern University Hospital, it has excellent research facilities which not every large city has. Further, it has excellent resources for children.

I do feel lucky to live as close as I do to so much support in the event my ulcerative colitis gets out of control.