So as many of you may know I have some pretty weird GI issues. First I was vomitting everything I ate, then it was diarrhea... Through all of this I have lost 30 pounds in a 4.5 month time frame.
NOW it seems since my doc has changed my meds a bit I don't vomit or have diarrhea like I used to but now I just plain can't eat..... I am never hungry, and when I force food then I feel awful the rest of the day.
I don;t know if I am having digestion issues or if its meds or the LYme or what... But I AM able to drink, so I was wondering if anyone had advice on what I can maybe drink that will help me like food would.
I will say I have become VERY weak, almost as if I had anorexia. I am skin and bones, have no muscle strength and even my brain feels weak...
I'm disoriented, depressed etc.... I need to get myself healthy with or with out food and my docs are no help... Any advice would be appreciated.
Oh and my LLMD does not allow multi vitamins, so I am not taking anything like that either.... Needless to say I am at a loss right now and feel like I need some guidance or advice.
Thanks!
Posted by seekhelp (Member # 15067) on :
Does not allow multivitamins? WTH?
Posted by DeafFromLyme (Member # 18795) on :
Yup... Says it feeds the bacteria. Honest. He tells all his patients this....
There are many on this board who see him and know what I mean. Weird huh?
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
If it feeds it then it uses it up. Seems like it makes sense that your body needs to replace it. Don't get that!
I know what you mean about not being able to eat. I have lost a good bit of weight since becoming ill. I can eat, but I get naseous after. So I eat knowing that later I will feel awful.
Maybe you could try to drink ensure or something like that. Or eat small amounts several times a day. You have to get some nutrients from somewhere.
Posted by wendihk (Member # 20554) on :
Have you had your gallbladder checked?
Also, you might want to get tested for gastorparesis.
Posted by Jill E. (Member # 9121) on :
Protein shakes have been a lifesaver for me - even if you just sip them through the day.
I use organic, unsweetened soy milk or sometimes almond milk, whey protein powder, some berries, etc. and put in blender.
Do you think you could sip something like that?
Jill
Posted by DeafFromLyme (Member # 18795) on :
Yes it is the B vitamin that he says feeds it and he says C vit weakens my meds.... So just avoid all together...
I have tried ensure and even pedia sure and they are so gross to me so I don;t think I can handle those.
As far as other weird issues aside from Lyme, I do have an ulcer, but all the "other things" I have we attribute to Lyme....
I should clarify that I get in supper every day. Albeit a small one, I do manage that because I take my meds at night and has to be with food. Its weird because it seems like i have a quick period of time everyday at the same time that I feel I can eat and feel a bit human...
Then goes back to crap again. So everyday between 3-5 pm I feel OK so I hurry up and eat... Does that seem weird to anyone? Everyday same time? Is this possibly a mental thing?Meaning more that, I have it in my head that I feel good only during those times or could it really be that I DO only feel good during those times???
I give up! I don't know anymore. I can't take living like this though it sucks!
Posted by glm1111 (Member # 16556) on :
Erika,
Have you spoken to your LLMD about treating you for parasites/worms? Check out symptom list at
I could not eat solid food for months. I lived on smoothies - whey protein, water, frozen fruit (berries are low sugar, also liked pineapple).
I made "fudge" that settled well. It was made from almond butter, ground cacao beans, coconut oil, vanilla, and agave syrup.
I drank a latte every day made from whole milk (grande = 240 cal).
I also would eat a bowl of frozen raspberries with fresh whipped cream (just whipping cream, whipped .... it's not sweet).
My husband would make me eat dinner in addition to all that .... I would feel sick the rest of the day.
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
For some reason, I could also tolerate eggs and Van's gluten free waffles. I would toast the waffle and throw a fried egg on top instead of syrup. It's better than it sounds .... some of my kids would even eat it by choice, LOL.
Posted by Aniek (Member # 5374) on :
I don't know your story, so I don't know what you have been tested for. Have you been tested for Celiac's disease? If not, get tested immediately. Anybody with drastic weight loss should get tested.
You should also be tested for food allergies and sensitivities. Ask your doctor about the ELISA/ACT test. It has nothing to do with the Lyme Elisa test, they test for food sensitivities and discovered foods I would never have discovered on my own - like xanthum gum and lemon.
I would also recommend buying a "cookbook" for smoothies, or just searching online for smoothie recipes. If you can handle dairy, then yogurt smoothies can add calories, and put in some protein powder.
But long term, you really need to find the cause and get to eat solid foods.
Posted by ticked-offinNc (Member # 15420) on :
Dear Erika, I feel the same way. I would rather drink then eat solids/muscle wasting?Just dont want to eat.
But even before, when I did want to eat, still couldnt gain weight.
Six recommended whey protein shakes, so I got Jarrows unflavored. New LLMD recommended adding 1TBS of glutamine to the whey shake, do this 4 times a day to prevent muscle wasting. I can get 3 in a day.One with plain yougurt and organic berries with a splah of plain keifer.
I also mix both with cold juice, half juice, half water.
Try small frequent meals, eat something every couple of hours Nuts, bites of chicken, celery with peanut butter, etc.
Are you having any trouble swallowing?
They are still trying to figure me out, endoscopy was fine.Had Thyroid panel done? Can you do any exercise to prevent muscle loss?
I am sorry you have to deal with this too. I hope it helps.x0x0x
Posted by JKMMC09 (Member # 15795) on :
Not sure if you've seen a GI or Motility specialist yet... my daughter had the same issues-- she went from a healthy 120 lbs to 87 lbs in about 6 months, she was hospitalized and put on TPN (IV Nutrition)... it turned out that her issue was severe Gastroparesis-- stomach paralysis. She basically would vomit whatever she ate, sometimes up to 30+ times a day. She's now on enteral (tube) feeding via a J-tube and doing much better. She can also drink small amounts and her GI gave me a few recipes for high-calorie drinks to make her.
If you can find a Motility specialist in your area, definitely think about making an appt asap!
God bless!
Posted by Parisa (Member # 10526) on :
Is your LLMD treating you for babesia? My husband had muscle wasting and poor appetite with babesia.
Posted by AliG (Member # 9734) on :
I've always gotten like that about food during Babesia flares.
I had done the Jarrow whey shakes. The company that makes Spiruteen makes a whey version. Their chocolate's not that bad.
I used to have to make them on the thin side.
Ensure/Pediasure/Boost, all of those supermarket nutritional drinks were either too thick, sweet, or just plain gross. Ensure used to make me gag and want to vomit.
You should try to get in some good probiotics with a whey shake. If you get one that's unsweetened, you can use a little bit of honey if you like.
Perhaps you could try taking a proteolytic enzyme along with whatever you're eating to aid digestion.
Gastroparesis is also a problem some face with Lyme. I'm not certain, but I would believe that you would have abnormal bowel function with that too.
You may want to try eating a half of a large papaya through the course of the day and then having some linguine with a lot of garlic saut�ed in some olive oil for your evening meal.
That used to take me out of commission for a day, but then I'd feel much better for several days afterward. I'm not really sure why.
Dr. Zhang's Allicin would probably do just as well as the Linguine w/garlic & oil. You can take chlorophyll with it if you don't want to stink up your entire house.
Sorry you're going through this. Posted by Jin (Member # 11735) on :
Dear Erika, I second the Celiac testing, as well as the gallbladder. I have dealt with both. Slight improvement has been obtained with okra pepsin, bile salts, and drinking and eating beet juice and beets. However, nausea is still a major issue. In your case, the ulcer is a very good possible instigating factor for symptoms.
Is it a peptic ulcer? Those are caused by h. pylori, also a spirochete bacterium. Eradication can only be done doing three antibiotics at once, plus Prevacid. I took Amoxy, Flagyl, and Pink Bismuth. Broccoli sprouts have sulfurophane, which also destroys this nasty bug.
One ounce a day is the dosage. Another helpful supplement is mastic gum. This was used thousands of years ago by the ancient Greeks. Do you have burning in your stomach? That would indicate the ulcer is to blame.
Sincerely, Jin
Posted by Shosty (Member # 12232) on :
Our daughter was in a condition very much like yours (and the gastroparesis issue, as well as the celiac issue, were both explored, the latter w/endoscopy).
I will just tell you what healed her.
1) getting off antibiotics 2) identifying food allergens through an elimination diet with rechallenge of each food individually (she had been self-treating by eating ice cream, as someone suggested here, and it turned out that she was allergic to dairy!) 3)Gastrocrom solution mixed with water four times/day for maybe 6 months 4)Fluconazole for yeast for 6 months (nystatin also), and for her it was a high dose of 400mg
Basically, the antibiotics themselves induced her problems, by causing a leaky gut, which then causes inflammation and reactions to food molecules that "leak"
She did not, afterall, have any gastroparesis, which became clear as she healed. And she did not have celiac, but did have gluten problems.
If you consider this a Lyme symptom, and continue with meds, it is always possible that you are making things worse, not better. But then again, it is different for everyone.
Posted by pryorka (Member # 13649) on :
I agree with shosty mostly. The meds you were on before most likely messed up your digestive tract based on the sequence of events you told. Try doing the things shosty said but you may or may not need the fluconazole, not sure that yeast is the problem. But some other stuff to help heal your digestive tract would be IGg from xymogen it's pharmaceutical grade and increases the immune system of your gut. Then use intestimax which provides the essentials your gut needs to heal. And then it would be a great help if you could get on ketotofin which is an antihistamine that calms down inflammation in the gut so it will heal. Your doctor may be willing to prescribe it if you explain what you want to try.
Once your gut heals you won't feel bad everytime you eat and you'll actually feel hungry more often. It will take at least a month of doing all this before you'll be feeling a good bit better.
Posted by DeafFromLyme (Member # 18795) on :
Thanks to everyone for your advice, I am going to print it all and see what I can do and find....
Grandmother no to all of your questions, I don;t have any of that, just a yucky tummy!
Thanks to all!
Posted by steve1906 (Member # 16206) on :
Hi Erika,
Are you still seeing Dr. D?
I can't take any vitamins also per/Doctor
I was having some stomach and diarrhea problems also for a month or two. I stopped all my meds two weeks ago on my own!
I'm so tried of taking all these meds and to tell you the truth I don't feel any different when I don't take them.
I hope you're feeling a little better
keep in touch, Roy from Boston Posted by Gabrielle (Member # 5329) on :
It could well be that your problem is caused by your medicaments. When your doc changed the meds a bit - your problems got a lot better. You take your meds at night and shortly before supper you feel better.
It could be that the negative effect of the meds is fading after one day. Did you try to stop the meds for 2-3 days and see what happens?
Gabrielle
Posted by AliG (Member # 9734) on :
Just another consideration....
Are you making sure that you take any medications with a full glass of water and being certain not to recline more than 45 degrees for an hour afterward?
Sometimes meds dissolving in the esophagus can cause esophageal irritation, which can cause you to feel that way.
Posted by WildCondor (Member # 434) on :
Have you tried ginger tea? stimulates appetite and gets rid of nausea. How about peppermint? COuld be a medication causing this. Get checked for h.pylori, and get a stool test for c.difficile while your at it. I'd get a full GI workup to make sure your ok. Good luck.
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