BCIR Advocate Living with the Barnett Continent Intestinal Reservoir 
When it comes to discussing pouchitis, I cringe a little because it is one of the few (yet sometimes common), annoying and often painful issues with the BCIR. Although my bouts with pouchitis have lessened over the years, I thought I’d list some of the signs of pouchitis in a short summary.
From my experience, here is a list of signs that one may have pouchitis:
+ Abdominal pain (This pain or soreness will grow by the day, and feels like you did 300 sit-ups the day before)
+ Cramps (Pains that also grow in intensity, and will come in intervals throughout the day)
+ Increased number of bathroom trips (The fullness and bloating will lead one to believe you need to go, but yields little, and that same fullness returns quickly, sending you to bathroom once again)
+ Watery/ more clear stool
+ Bloating/ gas (The gut feels full of air, like there is basketball in there)
+ Noisy gut (Lots of strange sounds and the sensations that gas is forming)
+ Strange odor
What is the solution to pouchitis?
For me, it’s always been antibiotics. Just one cycle of the doctor recommended antibiotic, and relief will start within a few hours. The trick is to catch it early. If you’re getting some of the signs listed above, don’t try to tough it out, or wait a day to see if it will get better on it’s own, because it will take that much longer for the antibiotics to do their thing. Just give your doc a call, and describe your symptoms and they may be able to diagnosis the issue over the phone without having to go to the doctors office. Your pains/ symptoms may not be pouchitis, but your doctor will be able to determine what the next step should be.
I have a more detailed post on the always pleasant pouchitis listed here: Pouchitis
