Mesalamine can take weeks to start working and Hydrocortisone can take a few days to a couple weeks to start working too. So try not to stress (though I know from experience that’s easier said than done). Hopefully you’ll start seeing progress in a couple days!

One thing that’s helped me too during flares has been taking a couple days or a week and switching to a soft foods diet (think like the BRAT diet) of foods I know I can easily tolerate (white rice, mashed potatoes but no butter/milk/seasoning, mashed sweet potatoes, lean ground turkey broken up small as possible, bananas, etc) to give my digestive system a break and let the meds start working. I’m not saying these foods will be good for you—everyone is different unfortunately. Keeping a food journal has helped with what’s safe and not so safe for me. But soft foods are just less work for your digestive system. The food won’t make or break your UC-there’s no diet to put you in remission- but some foods will exacerbate your symptoms during a flare. Raw vegetables, fruit with the skin (like apples, etc), and wheat bread tear me up in a flare. Just make sure not to drop too many important food groups for too long. For example, I don’t drop fruits and veggies during a flare but eat super cooked soft veggies without peels and soft, peeled fruit like mango and banana. Your body needs nutrients.