Ulcerative Colitis - Mild Flare Up

Hi everyone,

I haven't posted on here in a while so here it goes. I was diagnosed with Moderate UC in October 2014 when I spent 8 days in the hospital. I was given the usual treatment of corticosteroids, Painkillers, and Asacol HD. I was weened off the corticosteroids and the painkillers and was relatively fine for the first few weeks after. I have been taking Asacol HD ever since and have had no flare up since Oct 2014. In July 2016 I had a full colonoscopy and endoscopy and was downgraded to mild UC. In Jan 2016, because my insurance no longer covered Asacol HD I switched to Sulfasalazine 2 500mg tablets 4 times a day for a grand total of 4000 mg a day. Since it was such a high dose my doctor lowered it to only 2 times a day and for the past 5 months or so I have been rather derelict about taking them. I recently did an environmental fellowship where I lived in the woods practically for about 2 months and when I got back to the city and returned to my job about 2 weeks ago I started showing slight symptoms of stomach upset. On Thursday Aug 10 I felt something was wrong and since then have been having a small bout of a flare up. I instantly upped my medication to the prescribed 4 times a day and spoke with my GI tellling him everything that I've been eating and doing. He has prescribed Canasa suppositories which I should be getting today. I have been eating microwable rice (which I just read might not be the greatest thing for me) salmon, and bland chicken for lunch and dinner since Saturday. I am meeting with a dietician in a few weeks to see if she can help me with anything. I'm wondering, since this is my first flare up in almost 3 years is there anything particular I should be doing that I am not? Should I go back on corticosteroids for a bit? Do I need a folic acid and vitamin supplement, if so which one? Should I be getting a blood/liver/kidney test for side effects of sulfasalazine? The pain seems to be growing a bit which is what bothers me so much because that's never a good sign. There's no blood in my stool and the stools aren't very pellet-y but they are a light brown color and don't have the girth and shape that we all want them to have. Does anyone have any other recommendations for what to do during a flare? I'm not too worried at the moment but I would certainly like to prevent a serious flare from occurring. The idea that someday I might possibly have my colon removed is a very scary thought to me but my GI says that I am nowhere near even having to think about that possibility, but it's still irksome. Oy vey, when will they find a cure for this already??

Thanks

almost 25 years old, diagnosed at 22
Currently taking 2 Sulfasalazine 500 mg tablets 4 times a day
Lactobacillus GG probiotics 2x day (Culturelle Formula)
1 cup Fage Greek yogurt 2x a day (morning and night)
Low-fodmap diet (to the best of my ability)
yoga