posted
My problems are: gas, bloating, overfull feeling, gerd, and irritated stomach, which exhausts me during the day and wakes or prevents me from going to sleep.
I have a small hiatal hernia. Had a colonoscopy and endoscoppy of my stomach 11/08, which showed no problems. I have had milder stomach problems the past 15 years since I became lactose intolerant.
In the past week it is better with: Previcid, 30 mg., Elavil, 1/2 10 mg. tablet (only at night), eating only small amounts of food at a time about 4 x/day, and mostly quinoa flake cereal, very small amounts of lean meat, fish or chicken, bananas, and Ezekial or splelt ancient grain bread.
I eat no milk products as I am lactose intolerant. For the past year I have been on a mostly raw vegan diet, which recently seems to have made it worse.
I am worried that abx and/or herb protocol will destroy my stomach.
I am thinking I should try to heal my stomach somehow first, for a few months, before I go back to treatment. Took Doxy 1/09-2/09.
Thanks for your comments.
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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After a 3 week hiking trip through the northeast I came down with lower GI problems. The Dr thought it was due to giardia though I did not drink any bad water. Treatment with flagyl then another abx would make the sx go away, but once it was stopped, it would come back.
A colonoscopy naturally showed nothing so the dx was IBS. I was given the standard tx of metamucil and bentyl which didn't really work. Whole wheat and other grains made the sx worse which is contradictory with IBS. The sx got mostly better over time.
To explain these sudden symptoms I thought that maybe I was lactose intolerant, or had a wheat allergy. Neither turned out to be the case.
6 months later I suddenly had GERD and esophageal erosion. The endoscopy showed the erosion, but no bacteria (this was in '96 and no one was looking for lyme and cos).
TX of prevacid has kept it in check all these years.
I now believe I was reinfected during that hiking trip since it was in a lyme endemic area and the coincidental sudden occurrence of the tx. My LLMD suspects bart since that's known to cause GI problems (though it seems that I don't have bart).
Since I've been on abx for over a year, the lower Gi problems have completely gone away (though I still stay away from whole wheat).
My brother's first sx of his rapid downward slide to complete debilitation, was severe "IBS" that was not explained nor treatable with the standard tx. This was followed by many other mystery sx.
Eventually he was dx with lyme. 2 years of abx later, his GI problems are gone along with most all the other sx (though the GERD remains).
Draw your own conclusions to this story.
I take Prevacid every day. If I go for more than a day or so without it, my esophagus hurts. The 5 abx I take cause no stomach problems. For ME, that is.
Good luck
James
Posts: 872 | From New York City | Registered: Jun 2008
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glm1111
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
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posted
Could be parasites/worms. Do a search here under parasites and Lyme and symptoms.
-------------------- PARASITES/WORMS ARE NOW RECOGNIZED AS THE NUMBER 1 CO-INFECTION IN LYME DISEASE BY ILADS* Posts: 6418 | From philadelphia pa | Registered: Jul 2008
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beths
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Member # 18864
posted
I found that taking digestive enzymes really helped.
Posts: 1276 | From maryland | Registered: Jan 2009
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posted
James, I am really glad to hear that you and your brother no longer have lower GI problems. It sounds like the abx did cure it. It is so strange that Gerd remains.
Did you take previcid along with abx while you were first being treated for lyme, or do you think the abx got rid of it? and do you have an idea which abx, if so? Could you tell me what meds you were - and are - taking?
I tried digestive enzymes and they did not seem to help. Humaworm caused problems so I had to stop taking it.
I would like to know if anyone else has had success with abx or herbal/supplement treatment.
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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posted
sorry about the double post!!! I have been trying to delete the 2nd one but can't figure out how. Any suggestions?
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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feelfit
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posted
click on the pencil and paper at the top of your post, when it brings you to your post click delete Posts: 3975 | From usa | Registered: Aug 2007
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feelfit
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posted
Oh and I have GERD really bad off and on. It mimics heart attack pressure in my upper chest accompanied by severe belching. The pressure is so bad and it is gas/air. I have to flop around to relieve it. When I am episodic I cannot sleep and have to keep flipping to move air and belch.
I take nexium and after a few weeks it helps.
I have hiatial hernia too. Like you, digestive enzymes, gas-x, charcoal seem to do little.
I have heard that Bart causes the Gastro issues too.
Posts: 3975 | From usa | Registered: Aug 2007
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quote:I am really glad to hear that you and your brother no longer have lower GI problems. It sounds like the abx did cure it. It is so strange that Gerd remains.
Yeah, I don't really get it. I wonder if one becomes addicted to Prevacid because when I forget to take it or try to go off, the pain starts again in a day or two.
But the abx really settled down the lower GI to just about back to normal.
Usually taking abx CAUSES lower GI problems, not make them better.
quote: Did you take previcid along with abx while you were first being treated for lyme, or do you think the abx got rid of it?
I'm not sure what you mean. Yes I took the Prevacid with the abx. But did the abx get rid of what?
quote: and do you have an idea which abx, if so? Could you tell me what meds you were - and are - taking?
What aren't I taking? Omnicef, azithromycin, Tindamax, Mepron, Liraim, artemisinin.
The Omnicef is the main one that fights lyme and I assume that's the one that helped the most, but i don't know for sure.
Posts: 872 | From New York City | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
I had all those stomach problems for years before I found out I had lyme and bartonella. My diet was limited as much as yours has been. Two weeks after starting abx and pancreatic enzymes, I could eat anything!!! It was a miracle. I have found out over the last few months, if I go off the abx even for a few days, the stomach symptoms return. My LLND and I know they're working on the Bart.
Posts: 123 | From Montana | Registered: May 2009
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Amanda
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14107
posted
Actually, those were the first symptoms I had (have lyme and Babs). Although I still have a lot of arthritis problems, no GI problems whatsoever. It took about 4 months of orals to get rid of all GI issues.
-------------------- "few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example" - Mark Twain Posts: 1008 | From US | Registered: Dec 2007
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Pinelady
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posted
Twinkle what did you take to prevent yeast?
-------------------- Suspected Lyme 07 Test neg One band migrating in IgG region unable to identify.Igenex Jan.09IFA titer 1:40 IND IgM neg pos 31 +++ 34 IND 39 IND 41 IND 83-93 + DX:Neuroborreliosis Posts: 5850 | From Kentucky | Registered: Dec 2008
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posted
feelfit, Thanks for the help on the double post!
Sorry about your digestive problems. No fun at all. Have you tried 4 tiny meals a day, drinking water or tea in between, and only eating food you can tolerate? That plus the Previcid is helping me a LOT.
I don't want to stay on Previcid the rest of my life and am wondering if there is a way to cure Gerd, esophagus erosion, and sore stomach with things like aloe vera, the right (for me) digestive enzymes, strict diet, or other supplements like Keebler suggests, such as slippery elm, marshmallow root, etc.
I find when I eat ground beef or sausage, too much fat from meat, or raw veggies (without eating special kinds of bread or toast with the veggies,) I have, within 10 min., gas and bloating, even taking Previcid every day.
If I start to get an over-full feeling, I stop eating right away. (I try to stop before I get that feeling.) Dinner is my smallest meal. If I am still hungry after dinner, I have a piece of toast with almond butter and a tiny bit of jelly, which is a good snack anytime. Cantalope, apples, bananas, and ripe papaya are OK also. (I eat other foods too.) the bread I eat is either Ezekial, spelt ancient grain, or the frozen yeast-free cardboard (oh sorry, I meant bread!)
But if I go off the diet, even with Previcid, the symptoms come right back. This has helped me the past 10 days, so I am going to keep it up. I guess a liquid juice fast helps too. The veggie juice fast is what I did the first day, after my stomach got so bad for 3 days and I was so debilitated I could hardly function.
I have been on a mostly yeast-preventing diet, but I cannot tolerate Nystatin or any other yeast killers I have tried. I don't seem to have any yeast symptoms.
It seems that what many are saying that the antibiotics which go after Lyme and Bartonella clear up the lower GI problems. That is great to hear! I hope others will add their thoughts.
James, I meant, did the abx alone get rid of the the lower GI problems? But I think you answered that.
That's quite a list of abx! I don't think lyme and cos have a chance! I would guess this would be helping you a lot. It is so encouraging to hear; I have been dreading going back on abx, because I think Doxy made my GI worse after 2 months. But I may try omnicef to start. Do you know what, or what combo, you are taking for Bartonella? Anything for Babs, etc,?
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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-------------------- PARASITES/WORMS ARE NOW RECOGNIZED AS THE NUMBER 1 CO-INFECTION IN LYME DISEASE BY ILADS* Posts: 6418 | From philadelphia pa | Registered: Jul 2008
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posted
Gael, I haven't called humaworm, but mean to. I think they can give you a combo that leaves out one or more of the most likely irritants. Seems like going after parasites is a good idea. Thanks for the web site - I will check it out.
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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quote:James, I meant, did the abx alone get rid of the the lower GI problems? But I think you answered that.
That's quite a list of abx! I don't think lyme and cos have a chance! I would guess this would be helping you a lot. It is so encouraging to hear; I have been dreading going back on abx, because I think Doxy made my GI worse after 2 months. But I may try omnicef to start. Do you know what, or what combo, you are taking for Bartonella? Anything for Babs, etc,?
My brother is on doxy and his GI problems got better than in many years. Even before he got lyme.
I'm not being treated specifically for bart. For babs I'm on Mepron, Azithromycin, Lariam, and artemisinin. Tindamax and Omnicef for lyme.
I seem to be very, very lucky in that I've had no problems with the abx combo. For some reason I can tolerate them. I had some herxes at first, but I haven't in over a year.
Last week I was took 2 ticks off me in one night. I hope that they didn't give me something new, like Bart, or Myco, etc.
posted
That was so funny - I laughed out loud. Alan and Gary.....I was thinking hmmmm, sounds familiar,,, but I didn't catch on until you mentioned the last names. Great protocol for Gary and Alan too. How appropriate and hilarious. Maybe you should send them the last part of this thread!
Thanks for the info. Seems like all the meds you are on should take care of just about any infection.
Posts: 97 | From Great Lakes state | Registered: Jul 2008
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