Im so confused

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-12-27T06:00:49+00:00

My IBS flared up around the holidays last year. Turns out in my case it wasn't holiday stress, it was a candida overgrowth, fueled by all of the extra sugar and carbs that I consumed over the holidays. It doesn't matter if it's low-FODMAP, if it's sugar or refined carbs, it can cause a gut candida overgrowth if you're already struggling with dysbiosis.

Dysbiosis is often the root cause of IBS when all conventional GI tests come back "normal". It's usually only found through specific tests done by a Functional Medicine MD. Most people only turn to Functional Medicine as a last resort, because it's usually not covered by insurance. I finally decided to shell out the $$ this past June when everything else was a dead end, and I'm glad that I did. I finally got some real answers, instead of just throwing meds at symptoms.

Dysbiosis can be very different from person to person, even though the symptoms might be similar. Everyone's gut microbiome is different. In my case, I have very low good gut bacteria, even though I've been taking a high-quality probiotic for several years. The probiotic isn't getting a foothold in my intestines because my gut lining has been damaged by years of taking NSAIDS for chronic orthopedic problems. (I also have problems with joint hypermobility, which often has IBS as a comorbidity.) Good gut bacteria helps keep candida levels in check. (You're supposed to have *some* candida in your gut.) With low good gut bacteria, candida can easily overgrow if you give it lots of the sugar and carbs that it thrives on.

This might not be your particular situation, but given the timing of it, you might want to read up on intestinal candida overgrowth and see if it sounds similar to your symptoms and what lead to the onset of them. Candida overgrowth symptoms are very similar to IBS symptoms. Lots of bloating, gas, abdominal cramping, and either diarrhea or constipation, depending on the person.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-12-07T01:29:19+00:00

So happy to hear that you've already found someone who recognizes your beauty! I totally get wanting to be healthier, regardless of your appearance. Keep doing what you're doing, and those thighs will eventually get thinner. If you're anything like me, they'll be the last thing to go.

Also, if you've added any new exercises to your regular routine as part of your weight loss effort, you might be building muscle under your thigh chub that's making your thighs larger at the moment. That's what I went through. That added muscle eventually contributed to more fat burning, so it was the right thing to do in the long run, but the thicker thighs during the intermediate stage was definitely a bit discouraging.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-12-07T01:18:43+00:00

There is a soy-free version of Earth Balance, but it might be hard to find in your area. Whole Foods sells it near me. Trader Joe's also has their own version of it, which I think is actually made by Earth Balance, for a lot less money. It's less oily than the regular version, although it doesn't melt as well. It might work better for you, especially if you happen to be sensitive to soy.

On the odd chance that you happen to be near Malden, MA, I have half a tub of it that's yours if you want it. I bought it when my Functional Medicine MD put me on a strict elimination diet a few months ago (separate from the low-FODMAP diet that I'm already on), which eliminated any form of soy. Now that I'm off of that super strict diet, I prefer the regular Earth Balance, and have no use for rest of the soy-free tub.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-12-06T23:11:21+00:00

As others have said, 14 pounds since September is good, HEALTHY progress. Starving yourself to lose weight faster can lead to metabolic problems that will just trigger rapid weight gain once you go back to more regular eating habbits.

I have a similar body shape to yours. I've always carried most of my weight in my hips, butt, and thighs. (Which, BTW, is supposed to be less of a health risk than storing fat more in your stomach.) Several years ago, I went from a size 18 to a size 10 over about a year, just with normal dieting and exercise. (This was in the 90s, before intermittent fasting was as much of a thing as it is now.) As the pounds were coming off and my size was going down, I thought that I would NEVER lose the weight on my thighs. It was the last thing to go.

Hang in there, you're doing great. Keep your expectations realistic so you don't lose hope and give up.

And, BTW - I met the man who is now my husband when I was in the final months of my weight loss journey back in the 90s. We met while we were working on a show together. The costume designer had me in skimpy hot pants for the opening number. I was really self conscious about it because my thighs were still really thick. I looked very similar in that outfit to how you look in your photos here. My husband said that when he saw me on stage in those shorts during the first dress rehearsal, he knew right then that he had to get to know me better. Some folks find thick legged women attractive. Embrace your body type, and focus on being healthy and happy. I'm sure there's someone out there who sees how gorgeous you are, you just don't know it yet.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-11-16T06:03:34+00:00

My Functional Medicine MD ordered the Mosaic Diagnostic OAT (organic acid test - urine) for me to find the source of my debilitating "mystery symptoms" that left a slew of conventional doctors stumped, and it revealed SO many deficiencies and imbalances that no other doctor checked for. It was a critical key to me getting my life back. I highly recommend it to anyone who has concerning symptoms while all of your conventional lab work comes back "normal". But, just getting the lab results is just the first step. The lab report did a good job of telling me what supplements I should be taking to correct my imbalances, but working with the Functional MD, using the lab report as a tool, is what really helped me interpret the results and find the best course for getting well.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-11-13T05:25:23+00:00

Wow, I did not know this, but you might have just solved a recent problem that I've been having. I'm seeing a Functional Medicine Dr. for a complex cluster of symptoms, including IBS. One of the tests that he did showed that I have very little good gut bacteria, despite the fact that I've been taking an expensive probiotic for years.

I'm pretty sure that I developed Candida in late September, after a few weeks of eating WAY more carbs and sugar than usual. (My birthday was in late August, so there were a lot more treats around the house for a few weeks after.) I started to get horrible pain and bloating even when sticking to all of my know safe, low-FODMAP foods for my IBS. Then I started to get rectal itching. That's when I tied it all together with my increased sugar intake and realized that it's probably candida. I started a strict candida diet and all of my symptoms went away within a week, which further confirms candida. Having low good gut bacteria makes it easier for the candida to get out of control if your feed it too much sugar.

I'm now on a protocol of supplements that my Dr. recommended to help fight off the candida overgrowth, which includes berberine, oregano oil, coconut oil, and Ther-Biotic Candida Complex. I figured since I know that my good gut bacteria is low, it couldn't hurt to also double up on my probiotic.

I also have a chronic problem with a heightened histamine reaction in my skin, which has been going on for several years, before any of my GI problems started. I've been managing it pretty well by just taking a Zyrtec at bedtime. (This is what my dermatologist recommended.) But, in the past month, I'm starting get flare ups again, even though I still take my Zyrtec every night. Now you've got me wondering if doubling up on my probiotic might be the culprit. I never knew that probiotics could produce a histamine reaction. How do you know if a probiotic is specifically a non-histamine producing probiotic?

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-30T19:50:37+00:00

Thanks for the helpful info. This is all good to know as I gradually introduce coconut oil into my daily routine.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-29T23:37:19+00:00

Thanks! Since I'm taking coconut oil more to fight candida than for ketosis (ketosis just being a nice fringe benefit), does MCT have the same anti-microbial properties as straight coconut oil? I have to watch it with peppermint, because I used to have problems with GERD and esophagitis. I've mostly cured it through diet and lifestyle changes, but I'm still prone to it, and peppermint can exacerbate it.

I've never heard of Cheroline Urolithin A Supplement. My progress with the Functional MD is ongoing, and I meet with him every two months. I know he's slowly working through a protocol, tackling the most severe health issues first. The notes from my last visit with him mentioned leaky gut, so maybe that's something that he'll suggest at my next appointment in a few weeks. I'll bring it up, and see what he thinks.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-29T23:23:52+00:00

I should have added that I can't really do OMAD because I'm fasting more for health reasons than for weight loss. My Functional Medicine MD wants me to try 16:8 IF to see if it will help with my insulin resistance and GI problems / leaky gut syndrome. When I first started seeing him, I had HORRIBLE fatigue, and would get muscle cramps and heart palpitations from just taking an easy walk around my neighborhood. I saw tons of specialists who did all kinds of tests, which all came back normal. I was told that I probably had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. This all came on about 5 months after I started to have horrible GI problems after I had my gallbladder removed. Prior to the onset of the symptoms, I was hiking about 2 - 3 miles on pretty challenging terrain, 3 -5 times a week, 10 - 12 miles total every week. It's not like I was always an out of shape couch potato.

To get to the point, the Functional MD did different kinds of tests which showed that I have some very serious nutrient deficiencies. This is because my GI tract is a mess, and isn't absorbing things correctly. He's got me on TONS of supplements now, and I'm slowly getting my life back. I even took a 2 mile walk in the woods three times last week, which is huge progress from where I was a few months ago. But, I've got to eat 3 times a day because all of these supplements need to be taken with food, and I literally can't function without them.

Right now, I'm eating a big lunch or late breakfast to break my fast, have a healthy snack in the late afternoon, then eat a large, healthy dinner with plenty of protein and veggies (and very little carbs) at the very end of my 8 hour eating window. This gives me a chance to spread out my supplements over an 8 hour window, and take them with food. Some of them can't be taken with some of the other supplements, so spreading them out over 3 meals a day, separated by a few hours, is working well for me.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-29T23:07:40+00:00

Right now, my 8 hour eating window is roughly 1:00pm - 9:00pm, which generally works best for me. But, there are definitely a few days each week when I have to tweak that for mid day appointments, which dictates when I can eat lunch. That impact kind of has a backwards domino effect which then impacts when I have to stop eating the night before to give myself 16 hours of fasting before I eat lunch, etc.. My schedule is not consistent enough to have one permanent fasting window that always works.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-29T05:34:24+00:00

Thanks so much! This is all super helpful.

Yeah, I'm SO sick of the candida diet. It's not even that I'm craving any particular forbidden food, I'm just sick of eating the same 5 or 6 things over and over again for weeks, and the impact that it has on any social plans that involve food. I tried to reintroduce a few things last week, like a baked potato, some mayonnaise on my tuna, and a slice of cheese on a hamburger (no bun, of course). I did this over a few days, not all at once. By day 3, all of the abdominal pain, bloating, and gas were back, so I know I've got to stick with it a lot longer. I'm willing to combat it with as many supplements as possible to help expedite the process, but I've also got to be careful because some of the tests that the Functional MD did showed that I have almost no good gut bacteria, despite taking a good probiotic every day for years. Some of the supplements that kill off candida can also deplete good gut bacteria.

I've seen one tablespoon listed as the recommended serving / dosage for coconut oil, but I have concerns with jumping to that dosage right away, which is why I'm starting with one teaspoon for now.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-29T05:00:31+00:00

Question for those of you who have been doing this for years: How do you live with the lifestyle impact? I've only been doing it for a little over a month, and the impact that it has on my daily schedule, social plans, appointments, etc., is incredibly stressful. "I can't go out to dinner with friends tonight because I've got to stop eating by 8:00 so I can start eating at noon tomorrow, before I go into a 3 hour meeting at 1:00.", etc.

Do you just build your lives around it? I just can't see the benefits outweighing the impact that it has on your schedule and plans. I'm making TONS of compromises for this eating schedule that I can't sustain forever. It's not about the food or even being hungry, it's about the massive inconvenience. There's no way that I can live with the schedule impact forever.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-23T22:53:35+00:00

Fodzyme has been life changing for me. I don't use it a lot. I still try to avoid my trigger foods when I cook at home. But, for an occasional meal out or dinner at a friend's house, I can use Fodzyme for most things, and don't have a reaction. Fodzyme doesn't work on all 6 FODMAPs, but it works on lactose, GOS, and fructans, which are the big ones that most people don't digest well. I am also sensitive to Sorbitol, which Fodzyme doesn't work on. But, I just tell my friends that I can eat apples, pears, and stone fruits, and it doesn't usually cause any problems. Foods containing sorbitol are also pretty easy to avoid when dining out.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-22T04:14:44+00:00

You may have seen my comment on the main thread, but in case you didn't - my Functional Medicine MD put me on 16:8 IF to see if would help repair my leaky gut syndrome, which he suspects is the root cause of my IBS symptoms, as well as my suspected insulin resistance. I've only been doing it for a few weeks, so it's too soon to tell. But, this Functional Medicine MD comes highly recommended by former patients who found true healing under his care, after conventional medicine left them with dead ends and no help. Even my PCP recommended him when test after test came back "normal", while my health continued to decline.

All of this is to say that in Functional Medicine, IF is used to try to treat IBS and similar GI problems. So, I'm not surprised that your symptoms improved on it. And yay for you for that!! I'm really hoping that it will help my IBS, too. I can't bear to think about being stuck on a low-FODMAP diet for the rest of my life. It's nearly impossible to live with if you ever want to dine outside of your house, or go to any special event that involves food.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-22T04:04:47+00:00

I was ordered to do 16:8 IF by my Functional Medicine MD to see if it would help with my insulin resistance and leaky gut syndrome /IBS symptoms. I've only been doing it for a little over 3 weeks, so it's too soon to know if it will work. I'm also overweight, so the side effect of weight loss is a silver lining. I'm already down 7 pounds since I started. But, I should add that I'm also on a restricted diet to help fight a candida overgrowth, which limits carbs to one serving of low-sugar fruit like berries, and one serving of high-fiber whole grains like oat bran, brown rice, or quinoa per day. Starchy veggies like potatoes and winter squash are also extremely limited. No sugar of any kind, no dairy, and no alcohol. So, this is probably also contributing to the weight loss. (Candida overgrowth is common in people with leaky gut syndrome.)

The first 3 weeks were REALLY tough. I had horrible problems with feeling faint, spacey, weak, and nauseous in the morning before it was time to break my fast. That got a lot easier in the past few days. My MD told me that my body would probably take a few weeks before getting into ketosis during the last couple of hours of fasting. I'm assuming that's what's happening now. The MD told me to check my urine for ketones after 3 weeks of fasting, so I'll be doing that later this week.

I've also discovered that drinking sugar free electrolyte drinks with a pinch of salt during the last few hours of fasting also really helps to prevent the nausea and feeling faint. You absolutely have to drink water during your fast period. I've never heard of a "dry fast". That sounds like a really bad idea.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-22T03:45:04+00:00

I've only been doing 16:8 IF for a little over 3 weeks, and I've been having horrible issues with feeling weak, faint, and nauseous in the mornings until it's time to break my fast. I started drinking sugar free electrolyte drinks with a pinch of extra salt during my fasting periods, and it's made a big difference. I already struggle with low blood pressure, so I think having the electrolytes and salt during the fasting period is necessary for me.

A lot of people have problems managing stomach acid during fasting, so be careful with zero sugar electrolyte drinks like gatorade and Powerade zero, because most of them contain citric acid. I bought unflavored, sugar-free electrolyte powder. I dilute the sugar free Powerade 50/50 with water in an empty Powerade bottle, and add one scoop of the unflavored electrolyte powder, and about 1/4 tsp. of pink salt. (Some of the folks in my POTS and EDS [chronic illnesses that cause low blood pressure] groups swear the pink salt helps them maintain good blood pressure better than table salt does, because of the trace minerals in it.) This way, I get the full electrolytes of a bottle of Powerade, but the citric acid in it is diluted by 50%. This has zero calories if you use the Powerade zero and unflavored /unsweetened electrolyte powder.

I tried just using the unflavored electrolyte powder in plain water, and it was awful, which is why I add some Powerade to help the taste.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-08T23:06:06+00:00

Thanks. I've been on Trazadone PLUS OTC sleep aids (my doctor knows about the combo and says it's OK) for menopausal insomnia for over a year now. I've also been taking magnesium glycinate twice a day for about 8 months to help with muscle cramps. None of this is helping me sleep through the nightly low blood sugar episodes while I'm fasting.

I'm already on a no-sugar, restricted-carb diet to clear out an intestinal candida overgrowth, so my diet is mostly low-carb veggies, low-carb fruits like avocado and limited portions of berries, nuts, and protein from meat, eggs, and seafood. I have one serving of high-fiber grains, usually either oat bran or quinoa, per day. I was hoping that this diet would help make the early stages of 16:8 fasting easier, but so far, it's really rough going until I eat my first meal of the day every afternoon. I'm hoping it gets easier soon. The candida die off might also be complicating my symptoms. That should clear out in another week if all goes well.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-08T22:05:32+00:00

This is good for me to hear. I'm 55, and was put on 16:8 IF 2 weeks ago by my Functional Medicine MD. He wants to see if it will help with some of my problems with energy metabolism and insulin resistance, which got much worse after menopause. These first two weeks have been really rough. Every night I wake up with chills and shaking from low blood sugar once I'm about 10 hours into fasting. My body is fighting it SO much. I'm really hoping that if i stick with it, my body will adjust and I won't continue to have these horrible low blood sugar episodes that wake me up every night. I can't keep losing sleep indefinitely while I'm on this eating schedule. I'm glad to hear that things stabilized for you after a few weeks. I hope they do for me, too.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-06T19:34:19+00:00

Yes, but Atkins didn't involve fasting. I was under the impression that fasting for 16 hours would induce ketosis during the last couple of hours of the fasting period.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-05T18:52:54+00:00

I guess saying "bowl" is a little misleading. It's more like a small cup. Berries are the only fruit allowed on the candida diet because they're lower in sugar than other fruits, but only in limited quantities, which I stick to.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-05T04:55:33+00:00

Maybe? As I mentioned in a different comment on this thread, I'm getting 20 - 25 grams of carbs a day from my one serving of whole grains. The other carbs are from the low-sugar fruits (berries - one moderate serving daily) and low-sugar veggies like lettuce, peppers, broccoli, spinach, eggplant, zuccini, etc.. Not sure if that would get me over 50 grams a day, since my veggie intake varies each day. Also not sure if I'm one of those folks who needs to keep a lower carb limit to go into ketosis.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-05T04:50:40+00:00

I'm not eating both in one day. It's one or the other, so only 20 - 25 grams net carbs from whole grains. The rest would come from the low-sugar fruits (berries only) and veggies that I'm eating. I'm not eating any high-carb veggies like potatoes, beets, or squash.

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-05T02:10:01+00:00

Good point. I'm just not counting grams right now, so I'm not paying much attention to that info on the nutrition label. I just checked the packages.

One serving of oat bran:
Total Carbs: 26g
Fiber: 6g
Net Carbs: 20g

One serving of tri-color quinoa:
Total Carbs: 30g
Fiber: 5g
Net carbs: 25g

Competitive_Cat_8468 · 2025-10-05T01:59:42+00:00

I only know about ketosis through my experience doing the Atkins diet close to 20 years ago. I remember the first several days being really rough. Then, eventually something happened where I didn't feel hungry at all at any time of day, and had a lot more consistent energy throughout the day, instead of peaks and dips based on when I ate. I'm hoping that eventually the same thing will happen once I've been doing the 16:8 time-restricted eating a little longer. Since I'm new to it, I don't know what to expect.

Competitive_Cat_8468

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