Unusual Ideas to Get Sleep During an Ulcerative Colitis Flare-Up

Ulcerative colitis is an autoimmune disease that causes a person's immune system to attack their digestive tract, particularly their colon and rectum. This disease causes flare-ups of extremely bad diarrhea. The diarrhea means a lot of trips to the bathroom; some of which are lengthy.

Sleep is often illusive during a flare-up due to the stomach cramps and emergency trips to the bathroom. Throughout my years of suffering with this disease, I have learned some ways to help me get the sleep I need to help my body recuperate during a flare-up. I must admit that I have tried some unusual methods.

I have tried sleeping in the bathtub. I did this during a really bad flare-up. I lined the tub with blankets and brought my pillow with me. That worked pretty well because I didn't have to make a mad dash to the bathroom. The downside was the soreness from having to sleep in the cramped space.

Sleeping on the bathroom floor would probably work for someone with a large bathroom. In my case, I was living in an apartment at the time, so the floor would have been more crowded than the tub.

One idea that works if you are really desperate to get some sleep is to use adult incontinence diapers and a plastic liner on the bed. I say that this is for the person who is desperate to get some sleep because you will have to deal with going to the bathroom on yourself. That is a pretty nasty thought but, some people may find it necessary if they have been without sleep for a few days because of a flare-up.

If you do this and stomach pain or cramps are keeping you awake, you can take pain killers or sleeping pills. I must stress the importance of talking to your doctor before you take either of these medicines. Some pain killers or sleeping pills, even ones that are available over the counter, will affect the way that your ulcerative colitis medications work.

Anti-diarrhea medications may be an option for some people with ulcerative colitis. Even if these work, I suggest that you use them only when it is very necessary because if you use them too often, they will become ineffective.

The most important thing you can do to feel rested during a flare-up is to sleep whenever possible. Even a ten minute nap between trips to the bathroom will help your body to recuperate.