I know you're tired. That's the disease. And I'm about to ask you to do homework before a doctor's appointment.
But here's the problem: you get 15 minutes with your GI. Half of that gets burned on "How have you been feeling?" while you try to remember if that bad week was January or February, and whether it was a flare or just stress.
Your GI wants data: calprotectin trends, trough levels, clinical scores. Instead they're stuck with your brain-fog memory of the last three months.
You won't do all of this. I don't. But even one or two of these things will make your next appointment less frustrating.
Symptoms
A symptom log covering the last 4 weeks is the most useful thing you can bring. Paper diaries get abandoned. Daily apps are exhausting. We're tired. That's the disease. But if you can manage it: bowel frequency, urgency, pain, blood, fatigue. Even retroactive logging helps - "rough week around the 3rd week of January" is data.
There's also a score your GI calculates every visit based on your symptoms (HBI for Crohn's, SCCAI for UC) that goes in your chart. You can ask what yours was. A 6 dropping to a 4 means something different than a 4 rising to a 6.
Meds
Your GI knows what you're on - they prescribed it. What they need from you: how you've been since last visit (better, worse, same), honest adherence ("I've missed maybe 3-4 doses"), any steroids you got elsewhere (ER, PCP), and side effects you've noticed even if you're not sure they're related.
If you've been on a biologic for 6+ months and still having symptoms, ask if a trough level has been checked. Subtherapeutic drug levels are one of the most common causes of secondary loss of response.
Labs
A calprotectin that's been quietly rising for three months while you feel fine is different from one that spiked during a flare and normalized. "My calprotectin was 180 in November, 240 in January, and 310 last month" is a completely different conversation than "my last stool test was a few months ago, I think it was high."
| Test | What it measures | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Fecal Calprotectin | Gut inflammation (non-invasive) | Highly sensitive for active intestinal inflammation; elevated even before symptoms worsen |
| CRP (C-Reactive Protein) | Systemic inflammation | Rises during flares; less specific to gut than calprotectin but easy to trend |
| ESR (Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate) | Systemic inflammation | Slower to rise and fall than CRP; useful alongside it |
| CBC (Complete Blood Count) | Anemia, white cell count | IBD-related anemia and low platelets are often missed; white count elevated on steroids |
| Albumin | Nutritional status, inflammation | Low albumin can indicate malnutrition or significant systemic inflammation |
| Biologic Trough Levels | Drug concentration in blood | Subtherapeutic levels = loss of response. Essential for patients on biologics. |
| Anti-Drug Antibodies (ADA) | Immune response to biologic | If your body is building antibodies to your biologic, the drug stops working |
Questions
Generic questions get generic answers. "Is my medication working?" is less useful than "I've been on Skyrizi for 8 months and still having symptoms - should we check a trough level?" Write down 2-3 specific questions before you go in. Notes app on your phone. Back of a receipt. Anything you can glance at when your brain goes blank.
Generates a clinical PDF in one tap - symptoms, labs, meds, questions. AirDrop it to the nurse, pull it up during the appointment, or email it ahead of time. See a sample report
Before You Go In
- Symptom log or at least a mental summary of the last few months
- Recent labs if you have them (calprotectin, CRP)
- Honest adherence estimate
- Any steroids or ER visits since last time
- 2-3 questions written down
- Prescription refills you need before you leave
Your GI isn't cutting you short because they don't care. The system gives them 15 minutes. That's the reality. Showing up with data makes those 15 minutes actually useful.
I built Flarity because I was tired of leaving appointments feeling like I'd wasted both our time. I'm not saying I've solved it. But it's better now.
Flarity generates the report for you
Symptoms, labs, meds, clinical scores. One tap before your appointment.
