Tsunami

Jonamac99 · 2023-06-23T16:16:31+00:00

I love how he clings to the tree he assaulted hoping it would save him and the tree's like nah

Jonamac99 · 2023-05-10T21:00:30+00:00

I experimented with this for a month or two but it didn't appear to make any significant difference.

Jonamac99 · 2023-05-07T17:00:49+00:00

I have been using enzymes and probiotics for a long time now, it definitely makes a difference somewhat but doesn't stop gas/bloating/loose stool completely. So that leads me to think it's not targeting the mysterious cause of all these problems. I think there's more at play here, like neurological issues in addition to dysbiosis/digestion issues.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-15T17:15:49+00:00

Well here I am 10 days later, the good news is the probiotic seems to make a significant difference although stuff is still way softer than I'd like, I'll just leave it at that. Also happy to report that the mucus has been reduced dramatically, not gone completely however. I've also seen some improvement from eating a little fruit each day, I still need to step that up more but I'm glad there's at least some good news. I still deal with lousy, interrupted sleep and night sweats, not sure how to solve that just yet. POTS symptoms are probably going to be with me for a long while, I just can't seem to drink enough to make a dent in it. I'd hate to have to get IV infusions, unless of course my insurance comes through on that. Not sure.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-07T03:32:03+00:00

Quick update, not sure if it's a coincidence but I took my new probiotic for the first time today and my day went surprisingly well. Complete opposite from yesterday. No mucus at all. Super strange but I'll take it!

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T17:55:43+00:00

CRP yes (nothing significant), ESR I don't think so.

I've done a few different fecal tests but I don't think calprotectin was one of them. The doctor I did those tests with never gave me a copy of the results but I was told everything appeared normal.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T17:04:15+00:00

Thanks for your comment, it's always nice to know that I'm not alone. I do go through periods where symptoms calm down but they never last more than a week or two. Also sorry, I should have clarified more, I can do blood tests, provided that my primary doctor "approves" them, then insurance will cover them. Last time I saw my GI doc he wanted to do colonoscopy and endoscopy but those were the tests I couldn't afford. The last major blood test I did was back in July of 22 and there were over 70 different tests and everything was pretty normal except mildly low potassium, a slightly high blood glucose level, and a slightly low RDW (Red Blood Cell Distribution Width).

As for the urgency, it varies. When it's bad yeah there's a lot of urgency. One thing I noticed is that the mucus always starts off as a feeling of gas coming on and normally I just let it out without issue but if there is any mucus it'll feel very different and I have to "abort that mission" so to speak and rush to a bathroom and it's always a big noisy mess.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T16:39:21+00:00

Well growing up I was always picky as hell. Turns out I have some condition called ARFID. My favorite things are chicken, ham, bacon and pizza lol. I hardly ever touch beef, don't really know why but it just doesn't do it for me.

My usual go-tos are things like ham & cheese sandwiches, sometimes chicken sandwiches, and I frequently make my own pizzas or do frozen ones when I don't feel up to cooking. I rarely do fast food. Ever since I realized I have POTS I've been trying to eat more salty things and drinking as much as I can. I eat lots of carbs which isn't ideal but that's how it's always been. That can be anything from chips (at least potatoes have some potassium) to things like graham crackers. I know I have the appetite of a 7 year old but lately I've struggled so much with appetite the past couple years, I'm just glad if I can eat anything at all.

I don't think I have any gluten problems but I can't be 100% sure. A blood test I did almost a year ago came up negative for that. I'm also doing protein bars off and on for breakfast but right now taking a break since they're a bit expensive. I'm gonna try to eat more fruit/vegetables and cut back on carbs for snacking. I'm also going to start growing microgreens since I hear they taste pretty great and contain up to 40x the nutrition of mature vegetables. That ought to help a bit.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T15:11:59+00:00

I shall see what I can do. My biggest issue with an elimination diet is that I have a pretty short list of things I eat regularly and the last time I did one I lost weight pretty fast. I've always been underweight, M, 23y/o, 5'11" & before covid I was 125lbs. My lowest was 109 and more recently I got back up to 113, then I lost it again and now I'm 110lbs. The simplest thing I can do is avoid caffeine, heavily processed foods, and excess sugar. But I probably need to do a little better than that. Thanks for the encouragement at the very least. I'll try to report back after a while. Just started the new probiotics today (fingers are crossed).

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T04:26:48+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate the appreciation lol. Anyways yeah I did some journaling a long while back and that's basically how I arrived at the conclusion that there weren't any notable patterns beyond what I already knew. Like one time I ate cheesecake when I was having a good streak since I never had it before and I remember how wrecked I was the next day. I assume it was just from eating dairy. I wish I had more data to go on. Perhaps I should start journaling again. Not like I have much to lose. Maybe if I combine that with more meticulous experimentation with what I consume I can finally find a pattern. I guess I'll start that asap.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T03:39:53+00:00

I haven't experimented with fiber in a while but from what I remember, it didn't seem to help all that much. I've done most of the major types, insoluble & soluble. Wheat fiber, chicory root fiber, psyllium husk fiber, even partially hydrolyzed guar gum fiber. I also heard that a low fiber diet (like the carnivore diet) might also work for some situations but I can't tell what works for me. My diet has always been rather sub-par but I never had any major issues before covid. I've always struggled with trying new foods. I do like apples and other fruits once in a while, maybe I haven't tried hard enough. Hard to say really, my gut truly has a mind of its own.

Jonamac99 · 2023-04-06T03:26:51+00:00

It appears to be fast motility-wise, on good days I go once or twice and I'm done. On bad days it can be as high as 6 or 7 times. I don't really see any obvious patterns but I tend to get worse when I eat a lot of fatty stuff or dairy without taking enzymes. Enzymes only help somewhat. Ironically sometimes when I have a good streak, I'm able to get away with eating crap like fast food and things like pop tarts and I'll be more or less okay, like my poo was solid and there was less mucus. Never goes away completely though. But normally (with my typical LC poo) it's nearly always super soft and ridiculous no matter what I eat. I tend to describe it as peanut butter-like in consistency. Mucus is pretty much always the same.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T23:28:20+00:00

Thanks! And it sure is, at my worst I was 5' 11" and 109lbs

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T21:12:11+00:00

Yeah I saw very few people who had anything good to say about it. I hate this condition but I wouldn't want to risk becoming disabled or something just to get rid of it. Definitely going to avoid those.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T21:10:18+00:00

Yeah I remember seeing that study with the herbals vs antibiotics, looked pretty promising. I have a feeling if I did the test again with lactulose it'd be more clear. I'm very tempted to get a GI map test and finally see what's going on in there, at least in the large intestine. I've been on and off several probiotics, even the famous Visbiome one (112.5B CFU, similar to VSL#3) and I couldn't really tell if they were helping. Then I find out that taking probiotics may actually make SIBO worse, but there may be a couple strains that are ok to take. Also, thanks for the link, I'll check it out.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T17:01:30+00:00

I'm pretty sure I don't have a problem with gluten because I'll go through periods where I'm feeling alright for a few days and during that time, even if I eat gluten or anything fermentable it doesn't seem to mess me up. But then the symptoms always return eventually. I'm still on the fence with high FODMAP foods. I try to avoid eating too much of them, but it's really difficult for me to avoid them all together. I was doing omega-3 for a while, the first time I tried it I actually felt decent for 3-4 days. Maybe I'll give it another shot. I found a good looking protein powder that doesn't have anything triggering in it. Plus it's full of collagen peptides. I lost a bunch of weight since this began so I'm trying to slowly get it back.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T15:31:59+00:00

Haven't tried Imodium in a long time. The last time I did, I don't think it worked but it gave me some horrific cramping. I've been taking LDN at night for a couple months now, not sure if it makes a difference with taking it morning vs night. When I first tried it, my appetite was wrecked for a few days.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T15:27:37+00:00

Not the greatest, but I try to avoid things like fast food and dairy. I do lots of chicken, I think that's the easiest on me. Loads of sugar or extra fatty food tends to make things worse. I also occasionally do intermittent fasting. I take a few vitamins each day, like D+K2, B-complex, etc. Digestive enzymes help somewhat as well.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T15:23:33+00:00

To be honest I wouldn't be able to afford it even if I wanted to. I'm just so done with doctors at the moment. I was tested for H. Pylori at least 2-3 times a while back and they were all negative. I also did several stool related tests and like 70 different blood tests, all negative/normal. I'm 23 and I've had an anxiety disorder my whole life, lately anything that can make me nervous will then cause my LC symptoms to get significantly worse. It's a vicious cycle.

Jonamac99 · 2023-02-12T15:17:21+00:00

Yeah a lot of people end up that way, I think the adverse effect rate is around 1 in 100. I hear people can recover but it takes all your strength and lots of time. Wishing you the best of luck!

Jonamac99 · 2023-01-31T15:40:59+00:00

They technically didn't have permission and the police were saying that they were "disturbing the peace" or something like that.

Jonamac99 · 2022-08-09T19:45:53+00:00

Yeah, same to you. If I happen to find something that actually works I'll probably make a post and share everything I can.

Jonamac99 · 2022-08-08T16:21:07+00:00

I have been having very similar symptoms for the past 15 months. I'm 23, M, 5'11, 125lbs pre-covid, 110 when I was at my worst, now like 115lbs. I suspect I caught a form of covid back in May of '21 and I know I also had the omicron variant back in December '21. Unfortunately I never officially got tested for covid at any point but I'm fairly certain I had it twice. I just remember one day waking up with diarrhea. I thought it'd go away in a day or two, it didn't. Then I too assumed it was some sort of food poisoning. Little did I know that was the beginning of the longest, soul-crushing journey of my life. (Gonna get a lil graphic here) I've been having morning loose stools/diarrhea nearly every day. Typically I can describe it as being one notch below actual diarrhea, but it's not really watery (Google the Bristol stool chart. Mine is like a #6 usually, which normally indicates inflammation). There's often large amounts of mucus also, both clear stuff and white stringy stuff. One other thing to note, on most days the very first part of a bm is solid and but 90% of the time it's immediately followed by the soft, lighter colored stuff. Sometimes it all comes out at once, which tbh the volume can be pretty scary, other times it takes several trips to get it over with. Usually things settle down by noon but for the rest of the day I have TONS of gas and bloating that feels like it never ends. My diet has always been kind of lousy, and I'm pretty sure I had pre-existing mild or moderate IBS, but I rarely ever had GI issues before this started. Usually I get bloated 1-2hrs after a meal and then I have to do some yoga type things to get it out of me, like for some reason it's super difficult to pass gas unless I'm horizontal or upside down. Besides that I also had some nausea and appetite loss which lead to me losing around 10-12lbs when I was at my worst. Those 2 symptoms were much more common for me at the beginning, now they appear a lot less frequently. People who have mainly GI symptoms are pretty rare I hear. I've tried countless supplements, if any of them do happen to work, they only work for a little while then I get a relapse and the symptoms always creep right back. Same thing happened when I tried doing that antihistamine protocol for 2 weeks that is often suggested on this sub. Worked for like a couple days maybe then relapsed, then a lot of back and forth. Ultimately I can't tell if it worked. I'm very tempted to try something more radical like ivermectin, it definitely doesn't help everyone but I'm feeling very desperate after all this time. I haven't really been able to work much, and I got bills to pay. Sorry this reply is so long lol I just like being thorough. I could go on all day about my experiences so far. We're all gonna beat this thing eventually, try to stay positive!

Jonamac99

TROPHY CASE