commandersorebod -
I am so sorry - this sounds miserable. Although I have kind of "been there" with the ridiculous GI problems.
I think you likely have a combination of GI distress from the long-term abx use w/out proper protection, a bacterial imbalance and yeast/fungal overgrowth. All the details and exact diagnoses might not matter as much as fixing the problem.
GI repair
First, I think you need to stop the abx. You didn't mention how they have impacted your lyme & co symptoms, but I think in order for you to get the most out of ANY treatment, you're going to have to repair your gut a little bit. 70% of our immune system IS our gut and no magical combination of Rx and herbs can heal us from lyme & co by themselves - our own immune system has to also participate. As long as you're experiencing the GI distress you've described, you are likely not absorbing food, nutrients, OR abx effectively. And the longer it continues, the more damage is done.
Yeast/fungal overgrowth
Going a few months on abx w/out probiotics or antifungals (for MOST people) will definitely cause a yeast/fungal overgrowth. And once a y/f overgrowth takes hold, probiotics alone aren't going to cut it. And, if it's not addressed, can cause "leaky gut" which is the catalyst for even more GI misery. The yeast/fungus can grow "roots" through the mucosal lining of the GI. These holes allow feces and other toxins, yeast and debris to seep out of the GI and into the blood stream. Your immune system then finds this debris and starts to develop antibodies against it--which means it develops an immune response to all the food you eat, causing "food allergies". It's a nightmare.
SO, my advice is to stop the abx and start on an anti fungal:
- the best stuff for you to be on is PURE Nystatin powder (500,000 units). I can almost guarantee you your MD will want to prescribe the manufactured Nystatin pills, which have very little of the Nystatin and tons of fillers and they're expensive (but most MDs know only about
the Rx that the pharmaceutical reps try to sell them). Please let me know if you'd like more info about
the powder.
- If you can't get your MD to prescribe the powder to you (which you can have a compounding pharmacy fill the Rx) then I'd skip over the Nystatin pills and instead ask for a systemic anti fungal (Diflucan/Fluconazole or Ketoconazole).
- The Nystatin stays in the gut but the systemic anti fungal does cross the mucosal barrier and gets carried through your blood to the liver, where it can be a little hard on the liver. You'll need to have your liver enzymes tested once a month while you're on the systemic anti fungal. If they climb, you can take liver support (milk thistle seed and/or burdock root) which usually helps keep the enzymes down.
- In your case, I'd stay on the anti fungal for a good month (even if you're not on abx) and then reassess.
Bacterial imbalance
The bacterial imbalance can cause the diarrhea and cramping that you described and much more. There are so many blood vessels close to the inside surface of the intestines so they can get ruptured from a piece of food or too solid a bowel movement--or from too much diarrhea. So unless it is streaming or black like PeteZa mentioned, it's not a huge alarm bell.
C-Diff
Your MD most likely tested you for c diff but you should be very sure about
that - please call the office today and ask for a nurse or MD to verify that a c-diff test was done and that it was negative. Obviously, if it wasn't a c-diff test get tested ASAP.
CARE
I also agree with PeteZa that it's disturbing that your MD doesn't sound very responsive to these symptoms. Is this an LLMD? if not, you need to find one. If it is, you need to find a different one. Sorry, but this is indicative of a general lack of understanding about
the GI and also, with all due respect, a general lack of professionalism.
Healing:
1) first step is to stop the abx.
2) get on an anti fungal.
3) check that your probiotic is multistrained (look for probiotics you can only find at a health food store that have at least 30 strains) and whatever dose you're on, double it for a day or two, then double it again --- until you are at 400 billion/day. My gastro who is an integrated MD as well as lyme-savvy assured me you can't take too much probiotic. You just need to regain balance so high doses will be temp.
ETA: I just wanted to modify this #4 - I just read the post above about
fermented foods and I think there is really good stuff shared. As stated, I'd go slowly (I could not tolerate fermented foods and still have trouble and with a significant yeast/fungal issue, you might also have trouble - many people do. But foods are the best sources of probiotics so try it, start very very slowly and supplement w/ the probiotics you can buy).
4) Help your gut to heal (there's more to this but trying not to overload you w/ info).
- You'll need to take care with your diet for awhile - cut out white sugar, white flour, white rice and maybe do liquid meals for a little while. Stick with pureed veggies (there are good low-sodium veggie soups on the market now--broccoli, butternut squash, potato leak, cauliflower, etc.)
- try and also find some aloe vera juice that you can drink - very healing
- eliminate coffee and alcohol for awhile
5) figure out your next step for treatment. You have a little time to put it on hold while you allow your gut to heal and then resume abx with the proper protections in place... although this could take months before you're ready to go back on the abx. An herbal approach can be a little less invasive to your gut but I still think you need some healing time before starting herbs.
6) in the interim, you might need to either find an LLMD or find a more effective one... this can also wait.
Sorry this is so long but I hope this helps! Continue to ask questions if you have any -
-p
Post Edited (Pirouette) : 5/2/2016 12:44:44 PM (GMT-6)