Flare-up

A flare-up, often just called a flare, is a period when inflammatory bowel disease becomes active again and symptoms return or get worse after a calmer spell. In conditions like ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, symptoms usually come and go over time, and the flare is the difficult half of that cycle, the opposite of remission (NHS; Cleveland Clinic).

What a flare can feel like

A flare can come on gradually or quite suddenly. Common signs are more diarrhoea, belly pain and cramping, bleeding, weight loss and deep tiredness. How a flare shows up varies from person to person and depends on which condition you have and where it is active (Cleveland Clinic).

What can set one off

Flares do not always have an obvious trigger, but one is worth knowing: stopping or skipping medicine can bring a flare on and make the disease harder to settle again. This is why treatment usually continues even when you feel well (Cleveland Clinic).

What to do

A flare often means treatment needs reviewing, so it is worth getting in touch with your care team rather than waiting it out. Care is usually closer during an active flare than during remission, and getting on top of it early tends to make it shorter (Cleveland Clinic).