Are Your Crohn’s Disease Symptoms Under Control?

Crohn’s disease can be notoriously unpredictable. Not only are the symptoms different from person to person, but your own symptoms can also vary over time. Sometimes they can seem a little better; other times, a little worse. What’s most important, though, is that you establish your normal, so that you can let your doctor know if things start to change.

“You have the best understanding of your body and what’s normal for you,” says Reezwana Chowdhury, MD, a gastroenterologist and assistant professor of medicine in the gastroenterology department at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore.

Answer the following questions to get a better understanding of your symptoms — including whether it’s time to check in with your doctor about making a treatment change.

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Additional Sources

Arthritis and Joint Pain. Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. January 2015.
Bakshi N et al. Chronic Pain in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Pain. October 2021.
Bleeding and Blood in the Stool. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.
Bowel Incontinence and Urgency. Crohn’s & Colitis UK. June 2023.
Bristol Stool Chart. Bladder & Bowel Community.
Coates MD et al. Abdominal Pain in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: An Evidence-Based, Multidisciplinary Review. Crohn’s & Colitis 360. September 26, 2023.
Constipation. Crohn’s & Colitis UK. December 2023.
Constipation. MedlinePlus. July 21, 2025.
Diarrhea and Urgency. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.
Eating and Drinking With IBD. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.
Eye Complications. Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. January 2015.
Fatigue. Crohn’s & Colitis UK. March 2025.
Flare-Ups. Crohn’s & Colitis UK. September 2023.
IBD and Fatigue. Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.
IBD Pain: Types and Causes. Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.
Johnson-Martinez JP et al. Aberrant Bowel Movement Frequencies Coincide With Increased Microbe-Derived Blood Metabolites Associated With Reduced Organ Function. Cell Reports Medicine. July 16, 2024.
Loss of Appetite. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.
Malnutrition and Weight Loss. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.
Managing Flares and IBD Symptoms. Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. June 2019.
Nausea and Vomiting. MedlinePlus. September 17, 2024.
Pecci-Lloret MP et al. Oral Manifestations of Crohn’s Disease: A Systemic Review. Journal of Clinical Medicine. October 10, 2023.
What Should I Eat with IBD? Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation.

Yuying Luo, MD

Medical Reviewer

Yuying Luo, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine at Mount Sinai West and Morningside in New York City. She aims to deliver evidence-based, patient-centered, and holistic care for her patients.

Her clinical and research focus includes patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction such as irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia; patients with lower gastrointestinal motility (constipation) disorders and defecatory and anorectal disorders (such as dyssynergic defecation); and women’s gastrointestinal health.

She graduated from Harvard with a bachelor's degree in molecular and cellular biology and received her MD from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where she was also chief resident. She completed her gastroenterology fellowship at Mount Sinai Hospital and was also chief fellow.

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Erin Coakley

Author

Erin guides editorial direction and content for custom projects. Before joining Everyday Health, she was associate editor at dLife, an online resource for people managing diabetes. Erin majored in English with a minor in psychology at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts. Outside of work she enjoys reading, going to concerts, traveling, and working out. She recently did 867 pushups in an hour to help send children with serious illnesses to camp.

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