u/Initial-Shine-5955

Hi everyone, I’m looking for recommendations for a very experienced gastroenterologist, preferably someone who specialises in Crohn’s disease/IBD, in Kochi or Ernakulam for my mother.

She has been dealing with Crohn’s disease for many years and is currently on methotrexate 10 mg weekly. She does have periods where she improves, eats better and gains some weight, but recently her symptoms have become difficult again. She sometimes has to use the washroom around 20 times a day, including during the night or early morning, with recurrent blood and mucus discharge, abdominal pain that can occasionally become severe, bloating, digestive/IBS-type symptoms, perianal discomfort, and significant weakness from the frequent bowel movements.

She recently had an MRI fistulogram which thankfully showed no perianal fistula, only mild nonspecific perianal soft-tissue edema. Her recent CBC has actually improved and her doctor said her inflammation levels have not significantly changed, but the symptoms continue to affect her quality of life quite badly.

She has been receiving treatment at Amrita Hospital for many years, but unfortunately we haven’t found the care there very helpful for her current situation, so we are now looking for a fresh opinion elsewhere. I’d really like to find someone who will look at her case comprehensively rather than just treating individual symptoms, and who has substantial experience managing complicated Crohn’s/IBD cases. If anyone here has personal experience with a really good gastroenterologist or IBD specialist in Kerala, please share the doctor’s name and hospital/clinic. Recommendations from Crohn’s patients or their families would be especially helpful. Thank you so much. 🙏

She’s been a friend for about 3 years, and over time I realized she isn’t just someone I enjoy talking to—she’s someone I genuinely connect with on a level I haven’t experienced before.

What stands out the most is how effortless everything feels. Conversations never feel forced, we naturally bounce off each other’s energy, and I feel understood in a way I rarely do with other people. Around her, I feel calmer, happier, and more like myself. Sometimes it honestly feels like I’m talking to a reflection of myself because we think so similarly about a lot of things.

We have a surprising number of common interests. We’re both into cars, and one of the moments that really stuck with me was finding out she used to spend time configuring/spec’ing Porsches and Mercedes for fun. As someone who’s obsessed with cars, I’d genuinely never met another girl who did that, and it made me feel like we’d found this random niche thing we both enjoyed.
Beyond hobbies, we seem to have very similar morals, ethics, values, and outlooks on life. We often see situations in similar ways, which makes conversations feel natural rather than exhausting.
We’re also from similar family, religious, and financial backgrounds.
Those aren’t the reasons I like her, but they do mean we relate to a lot of the same experiences and perspectives.

One thing that surprised me was my mom’s reaction. She’s never really approved of or commented positively on anyone I’ve liked before, but after meeting her, she said she thought we’d look really cute together. That caught me completely off guard because it’s not something she’d normally say.

The biggest reason I’m conflicted is that she’s already an important friend. I don’t want to lose a friendship that’s taken three years to build if my feelings aren’t mutual. At the same time, because our connection feels so natural to me, I can’t help wondering whether it’s worth taking the chance instead of always asking myself “what if?”

(Used AI to paraphrase)