Paging Dr. Hive again: more post-infectious IBS help needed

[Laurie4b]

I got a lot of really good info on the other thread, but things went downhill badly a couple days  after I started an antispasmodic and Culturelle (dr. recommended an OTC pro-biotic and it was the cheapest of the ones she suggested.)  I googled and both can cause diarrhea. I had also stopped eating dairy and fresh fruit &veges. I made a couple mistakes over the weekend (ate jarred salsa without thinking it probably wasn't cooked and ate French toast not thinking of it as a "dairy" food, but still, much less intake than I had had previously, so I figured the major backsliding in terms of symptoms was probably meds.   :glare:  So yesterday, I stopped taking them and ate mostly white rice all day, a couple eggs, chamomile tea, some quinoa, and a few squares of dark chocolate. :) Things got better. But....

 

I'm not really in a place to experiment right now. I really need to sooth my gut. I also have lost 60 lbs over the past 5 years. I wasn't "on a diet" but I did strive for lots of fruit and veges and I limited grains (though did not eliminate them.)  I am worried about reversing the changes in body chemistry by all the grain. 

 

What are my best bets for a soothing diet to start off with? ie I know I will add things later, but what is not going to aggravate things? 

 

I got some ginger tea by Yogi. Not sure I can choke that down again. Do any of you make your own? 

 

I'm going to see if things are better today and then contact my doctor, but I haven't found that doctors are especially helpful with dietary issues, nor have I found the dieticians I've met with to be much more helpful than the doctors. In my experience, they typically spout whatever the latest government recommendations are and don't seem to really analyze a situation on their own, if that makes sense. 

 

 

 

[wapiti]

I would also go with Florastor (s. boulardii, which is actually a type of non-colonizing yeast; I prefer a less-expensive brand like Jarrow; also comes in capsules; bought at my local vitamin/natural food store).  I might also look at probiotics of the bifido species rather than the lactobacillus.  Kiefer would be another excellent option - my kids like Lifeway and it's sold at our regular grocery.  S. boulardii is good for diarrhea while Culturelle is better for constipation.

 

For an intestinally-soothing tea, rooibos red tea (my grocery even makes a generic brand of this tea variety).

 

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

This is what I did when I had c-diff.

 

I took Renew Life - Ultimate Flora - Extra Care probiotics in the am.

I took Renew Life - Ultimate Flora - Critical Colon probiotics in the pm.  (my reasoning is that one targets the upper intestine and one the lower.  I actually still take both of these.

 

I took Florastor a couple of hours later in the am so that the probiotics would not cancel out the Florastor (which is a beneficial yeast).

 

I ate chicken and rice for days.  It was the only thing that felt good on my tummy and didn't make me get worse. 

[wapiti]

Jean makes a good point.  If I recall correctly, the ones she recommends have several times the amount (as well as a variety of species) as Culturelle.  Some people need that huge amount (50-100 billion once daily).  I might do it the other way, Florastor (or other brand of s. boulardii) and then a couple hours later take the probiotic.  Still other people do best with a smaller probiotic three times daily...  Eta, besides Renew Life brand, I think Nature's Way makes a few giant-dose varieties e.g. http://www.amazon.com/Natures-Way-Primadophilus-Probiotics-Vegetarian/dp/B005S6W96Y/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1453744191&sr=8-7&keywords=nature%27s+way+optimabut either way, I like to buy in the refrigerated section at the vitamin/natural food store rather than online because I feel more confident in them having been kept cold.

 

Also, Costco sells VSL#3 at the pharmacy, no prescription needed.

Edited January 25, 2016 by wapiti

[Laurie4b]

The French toast certainly could have been enough dairy to cause significant stomach upset. After something like this, your system can be extremely sensitive to dairy, even if you never were before. So, dairy would be the big one I would make sure your diet was 100% free of--read labels. I'd also recommend getting Florastor to take as a probiotic. The Culturelle should be pretty good, but Florastor is a totally different type, so if you're worried the Culturelle contributed, you could just switch.

 

You dislike the Yogi Ginger tea? You could try one of the blends, like Easy Digest tea. The taste of that one is much milder.

 

The French toast was Sunday morning so all Saturday's upset came before that. And I got better later in the day, but by then was on the rice stuff. 

 

I actually put the milk in myself. Just stoopid. Fortunately, I don't eat much processed food so shouldn't get it sneaked in!

Edited January 25, 2016 by Laurie4b

[zoobie]

Oatmeal (no milk!)

Chicken

Chicken broth

Cooked apples and pears (sauce, baked, poached)

Cooked sweet potatoes, pumpkin, winter squashes

Rice

 

If you have a pressure cooker or slow cooker, you can cook a whole chicken, pick the meat off, then return the rest and add more liquid to make really delicious broth. You can do it on the stove or oven too of course, but it's easier for me in the pressure cooker.

 

I would avoid wheat, grains, soy, dairy, and uncooked vegetables and fruits. The bread in the French toast may be irritating. Maybe eggs too?

 

Good probiotics aren't cheap, but your gut is worth it! Digestive enzymes weren't on my radar when we went through this with DH. I used Digest Gold when I was on a strict elimination diet for my nursing baby. Also you may want to check that the probiotics and any supplements are dairy free as you seem to have established that dairy is problematic for you right now.

[Laurie4b]

This is what I did when I had c-diff.

 

I took Renew Life - Ultimate Flora - Extra Care probiotics in the am.

I took Renew Life - Ultimate Flora - Critical Colon probiotics in the pm.  (my reasoning is that one targets the upper intestine and one the lower.  I actually still take both of these.

 

I took Florastor a couple of hours later in the am so that the probiotics would not cancel out the Florastor (which is a beneficial yeast).

 

I ate chicken and rice for days.  It was the only thing that felt good on my tummy and didn't make me get worse. 

 

Do you have to go to a specialty store for these or might I find them in the regular grocery store or pharmacy? 

[Jean in Newcastle]

Do you have to go to a specialty store for these or might I find them in the regular grocery store or pharmacy? 

 

They are refrigerated and most grocery stores and even pharmacies around here only have the shelf stable kind.  I went to a specialty store (Super Supplements). 

[wapiti]

I see them at Natural Grocer/Vitamin Cottage.  It is very likely that Whole Foods carries them (refrigerated).  If you have no stores of that type, the Costco pharmacy may have VSL#3.

Edited January 25, 2016 by wapiti

[zoobie]

Do you have to go to a specialty store for these or might I find them in the regular grocery store or pharmacy?

I bought them at Whole Foods. As Jean said, they're kept refrigerated.

[Jean in Newcastle]

BTW - they are expensive.  In my case, with c-diff, the smell of rotting decomposing bodies (which really is what it smells like) and the specter of having to enter a hospital if I was not able to reverse it at home, made the price well worth it