When you’re having a Crohn’s flare, you’ll be dealing with symptoms that include abdominal pain and cramping, diarrhea that can be both sudden and explosive, gas, bloating, nausea, and more. If you have a career and can’t just stay home, or if there is an event that you simply must attend, and can’t get out of or postpone, or an important meeting, you may want to keep the fact that you have Crohn’s disease to yourself, and hide the symptoms that you’re having as best you can. It is probably impossible to completely hide all your Crohn’s symptoms, but the following 20 tips may help.
1. Take the medicines your doctor has prescribed. This sounds like it should be too obvious to even list, but not everyone is “med compliant,” to use the term a physician would. Some medications, like steroids, have side effects you may not enjoy, but this isn’t the time to choose what you will and won’t take. Use your prescriptions as they are prescribed. This is also the time to ask your doctor for other medications that may help you hide your symptoms. For example, a medication such as Bentyl TM can help stop your abdominal cramps, so you won’t be doubling over in pain. A pain medication, especially a low-dose of a narcotic pain medication, might be appropriate at this time too; some of them have the added benefit of slowing diarrhea, making it less obvious. and 2. Ask your doctor if you can use a gas preventative like over-the-counter (OTC) Beano TM or something like Gas-X TM ; you should always ask your doctor, because OTC medications could have adverse affects with your prescribed medications, and only your doctor will know what is best suited for your Crohn’s symptoms.
3. Wear loose-fitting clothing. You may be wearing extra undergarments that you want to keep hidden, and you also may need or want to hide the bloating that is characteristic of a Crohn’s flare. Besides, you’ll be much more comfortable in looser clothing.
4. Avoid control-top pantyhose. Going along with the loose-fitting clothing, this is not the time for control-top hose. It won’t help hide your bloating, and it will make getting to the toilet promptly more difficult. If possible, don’t wear pantyhose at all; try thigh-highs if you are in a dress, or wear tall boots to hide the fact that you aren’t wearing hose. You don’t want to be getting in and out of pantyhose in a hurry when your Crohn’s is flaring.
5. Carry your largest bag or purse. Most women have more than one purse; this isn’t the time for that cute little clutch. You’ll be needing to tote along some extras to help hide your symptoms, and you’ll need a bag large enough to carry them.
6. Bring at least one pair of extra underwear. You can’t be sure that you’ll get to the bathroom in time, and you want to be as odor-free as possible. Bring along at least one extra pair of panties; two or three is a better idea if you’ll be away from your home all day. At least once, you won’t make it to the toilet in time, and you’ll need to change your underwear. It happens to all of us with inflammatory bowel disorders at some point, so don’t be embarrassed; just keep the panties hidden in your bag until you need them.
7. Wear Depends TM or another adult incontinence undergarment, and 8. bring extras in your bag. DependsTM makes an entire line of different shapes and sizes of incontinence garments; one of them will be right for you. Check out their website, or that of any of the other brands of incontinence garments, and be sure to keep some on hand at home, so that you can carry them with you when you need them. It may save your panties, but just in case it doesn’t, remember tip 5 too.
9. Before your meeting or work, avoid foods you know might cause Crohn’s symptoms. Whether you are eating the night before your meeting or work, or the morning of the event, avoid foods that you know will cause cramping, diarrhea, and gas. For me, that means, among other things, avoiding broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. I
10. Avoid foods that will cause you to have cramping or diarrhea if you are at a business lunch or dinner, or a dinner party. If you have to, say you have already eaten to help hide the fact that the food served will cause Crohn’s symptoms. Stick to foods you know you can tolerate.
11. Wear flats or low-heeled shoes. If you want to get out of the room, or to the bathroom, quickly, this is not the time for 4-inch spiked heels. You need footwear that you can move quickly in, in order to keep those symptoms hidden from the people around you. Like avoiding control-top pantyhose and wearing loose clothing, this has the added benefit of being more comfortable at a time when your feet might be swelling from those steroids you’re taking to stop the inflammation of your intestines.
12. Know where the nearest bathroom is, and know how to get to it quickly. This is another obvious tip for anyone who has Crohn’s, but it’s a good one to keep in mind. You will need that restroom, and you need to know it’s location. If you have any control over where your office or meeting will be, make sure it’s as close as possible to a restroom.
13. Sit as close to the door as possible. If you want to hide your Crohn’s symptoms, you need the ability to make a quick get-away, and that means not having to excuse yourself as you try to sidle past everyone else in the room. Get their a little early, and take that seat by the door.
14. Carry your cell phone, and put it on vibrate. You may need to use “an important phone call” as a way to hide your real reason for that race to the restroom; if it’s set to vibrate, only you will know if it’s actually ringing or not.
15. Tell your colleagues that you are expecting an important call and will need to take it privately when it comes, to prevent surprises when you leave the room abruptly. This is a great way to hide the fact that your real reason is diarrhea, or that you feel a gas attack coming on.
16. Always have extra toilet tissue in your bag. Even if you’re the one who stocks the restroom, you have no way to know how much toilet paper will be in it when you need it, and with the diarrhea from Crohn’s, you will need it. In your big bag, put a stock of both toilet tissue and paper seat covers. You can get a small package of seat-covers at most pharmacies or discount stores. They’re a help when traveling as well, since you never know how clean a restroom will be.
17. Carry a small odor-eliminating product in your bag. Whether you choose a solid, like Glade SecretsTM or a “home fragrance spray” in a small size, it can help hide the evidence of your diarrhea and/or gas in the restroom. Setting a solid product in your meeting room will help to keep that room fresh, but it’s in the restroom that you really need to hide the smell of your Crohn’s symptoms.
18. Carry a wad of aluminum foil or crinkly paper in your bag. You may not always be the only one in the restroom. If the sound of your Crohn’s-induced bowel movement embarrasses you, you can partially hide it by making noise with crumpling up aluminum foil or some other paper that will make a lot of noise. This is not the best tip in the world, because if you’ve ever experienced explosive diarrhea from an IBD, you know there is absolutely no way to cover it up. The best you can hope for is that anyone near will be understanding, and not make it worse for you by laughing.
19. If possible, tell one person whom you trust what you’re dealing with. If one of your colleagues or co-workers is a good friend, or someone you feel you can trust, let them know about your Crohn’s flare; they can help you hide your symptoms by covering for you when you leave, or if you are gone for longer than others might expect.
20. Stay calm and matter-of-fact about your symptoms. If you can’t hide your Crohn’s symptoms, don’t make a fuss about it, and be as straight-forward as possible. Others will more than likely follow your lead and be understanding.
Most people with Crohn’s disease or another inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) would rather stay home near their own bathroom when their symptoms are flaring, but that isn’t always possible. If you must be in public while enduring a relapse, I hope for you that it is a mild relapse, and that you can hide it if that’s what you choose. If even one of these tips can help one person, I’ll be happy.
