Diverticulitis -Hope this is in the right section-

Just wondering if anyone here suffers from or knows someone who suffers from Diverticulitis and is willing to share their experiences with this?

My h was diagnosed not too long ago with this, it isn't bad, just in the early stages so hopefully eating more fibre, drinking more water (he drinking hates water so this has been quite a challenge), changing his diet and ofcourse more exercise.

Thanks in advance.

I have diverticulosis. I have several diverticuli in my sigmoid colon and one in my cecum [rare]. I have had two flares of cecal divertiulitis and one of sigmoid diverticulitis. One more bout of cecal diverticulitis and they said it might have to go.

Diverticulitis is very common in the western world because of our diets. You are correct that increasing fiber is a must. For those that have a difficult time eating enough foods high in fiber, fiber supplements can be useful. In the US, Benefiber and Fibersure are two products that are well tolerated and easy to use. In the powder form they can be added to any liquid, totally dissolve without grit, and have no taste. They can also be added to soups, gravies, casseroles, etc making it far easier to get ones daily finer needs.

Recent studies have indicated that avoidance of nuts and seeds is no longer needed when one has diverticulosis. I have no problem with seeds but do have a problem with popcorn husks and some nuts. All my diverticulitis attacks were after consuming popcorn or pistachio nuts. So I think this is likely something one should test and see how they tolerate it. Of course, your husband should follow what ever diet specifics his doctor outlined.

Yep. I have diverticulum in small intestine. We found it by chance during the SBFT test. And, yes, I have had diverticulitis. The pain was different and I recognized the difference immediately. Pain was not localized but in about four different places. I was put on Leviquin and two other medications that I don't remember the names of. They helped keep me out of the ER and symptoms were better in about a week.

When the doctor says not to eat ANYTHING with seeds the do so with reason... I tested this and will never do so again. Yesterday I ordered a sandwich in a rush and forgot to tell them no pickles or tomatoes (miss both). When I opened it, I panicked and picked off every seed on the bun. When I am grocery shopping for anything that may have seeds me and my daughter both look very closely at the jar (never buy if I cannot see through the container) to make sure no seeds. If in doubt I will run it through a strainer.

I asked my (then) GI doctor if they could be cauterized or removed and he said that I am "prone" to diverticulum and that they would return.

-Leslie

yes red (unless you filter out the seeds). But see how he tolerates it, because the last thing you want is for him to dig his heels in further.

My MIL has diverticulosis as well and those that suffer with it can also get bowel perforations so if he ever feels oddly ill with stomach flu-like symptoms then play it safe and get him to a hospital and make sure they know he has diverticulosis...not trying to scare you just wanted to make sure you're aware of this since my MIL kept getting sent home from the hospital and told it was simply the flu bug and she almost died from feces poisoning because of the preroration and she ended up having to wear a bag temporarily for about a yr before they did the reversal. Just a heads up.

:)