My Intestines Are High Maintenance.

Hey guys!

I’ve had a lot going on this last month or so… and I’ve been really reluctant to write about it here on the blog. But I think it’s effecting how much I’m able to share and it’s kind of leading me down a new path in terms of eating/food, blogging, fitness, and overall healthy living so it’s time to face the music and share.

The back story

I never had any sort of stomach issues growing up. In fact I was a really healthy kid up until I went to college. My first year at the University I developed a pretty serious virus that really effected my liver. I almost went into liver failure in the summer of 2006.

After that my immune system was very weak and I developed cold after sinus infection after flu after cold… it was endless. In this time I had moved home from school, finished all my GE at the local community college, played basketball (very well!! I could have kept playing) and started my new major courses at a new University close to my house in Santa Cruz.

I started classes in the Winter. I didn’t know at this time that I’m allergic to Acacia Trees, which my new campus was literally COVERED in!! Acacia tree allergies are pretty unique because wet weather really increases the allergens in the air. So when I started having symptoms (that were basically cold-like) I didn’t even think the two were related. I’d been so sick on and off I was tired of going to doctors so I figured I’d ride out my self-diagnosed cold and everything would be fine.

It was the wettest winter we’d had in quite a few years. I finally went to the doctor after being sick for about 2 months. I couldn’t hear at all out of my right ear, my sinuses were extremely inflamed, I couldn’t breathe without having a coughing fit and I felt like I had the flu. This started a 2 month stint of me going to my normal doctor and being told nothing was wrong with me. They did blood tests and chest x-rays but I didn’t have pneumonia or bronchitis. But I kept going back. They put me on a few low grade antibiotics and a round of steroids. But nothing helped. Finally they referred me to an ENT (ear nose throat doctor).

He determined that I had initially had a severe allergic reaction to the acacia trees that became a secondary ear & sinus infection. My sinuses were so inflamed that he thought I’d need sinus surgery to repair the damage shown in a sinus CT scan. He put me on one of the highest grade antibiotics for 14 days with a 4 day dose of steroids. I’d now been on medication almost non stop for 3 to 4 months.

The antibiotics worked and I was finally feeling better, although I didn’t lose my cough or regain my hearing for a few months.

What did it

Later that summer I was out running and an ankle injury I’d had in high school became inflamed. I had to have reconstructive ankle surgery to repair the damage I’d gotten playing basketball in high school. Right before I had surgery I had a bought of pretty severe intestine issues. My symptoms were present for 3 days. My mom and I thought I had E coli poisoning. We told my surgeon but he said it was nothing and put me on a round of post surgery antibiotics. This is very common since you are more prone to infection after.

24 hours after very invasive surgery I was living in the bathroom with extreme stomach cramps, diarrhea and intestine pain. I was told I had c diff which is when a bacteria that already lives in your intestines becomes overgrown and kills all the other intestinal bacteria. This happened because I had been on so many antibiotics before this.

After about 2 weeks of me frantically crutching to the bathroom while being high on double dose vicodin I was symptom free.

C Diff

Once a person has c diff symptoms they are always more prone to having it again, in fact it’s almost guaranteed that you will have it. I cannot go to a normal doctor anymore because I cant take antibiotics when I’m sick. Any antibiotic could bring back my symptoms. Since my stint with it in 2010 my digestive system has never been the same. My intestines literally shut off if I eat any dairy, we found this out after a food sensitivity blood test. And they still don’t function normally. I’m constantly dealing with intestine pain.

Now my intestines are very sensitive and after two years of dealing with pain and other yucky symptoms I’ve hit a wall. I can’t run any more because it inflames my already upset tummy. I can’t eat pizza any more because it’s covered in cheese.

IBS- irritable bowl syndrome

Now I’m classified as having IBS. In order for me to truly get my intestines in a happy place, where they function without pain, I have to embark down a new road in terms of food and fitness. I have to keep an extensive food/fitness journal starting NOW to try and figure out what really aggravates my digestive tract. Anything from a individual food, to a combination of foods, to the time I workout can effect my IBS.

It’s all pretty daunting.

I’ve gotten to the point where I’d rather not eat and feel hungry than put anything in my body. Which is uber not good! This is what is really lighting the fire under my bootay to figure out how to control my symptoms. My number 1 priority is to be healthy and not eating (whether it’s from fear or what ever is NOT GOOD!) I’m really cautious to try new things too. I never know what will set me off and what wont. I really like running but it’s not enjoyable anymore because it leaves my intestines miserable.

I think what is really hard to deal with is my frustration with doctors. Why couldn’t they listen to me when I told them I was sick? Why didn’t they give me more than 5 minutes and try to actually figure out what was wrong, rather than giving me steroids and antibiotics when they didn’t work the first time?

But I know you guys are great and will be with me through everything. I know IBS is really common amongst women so I’m sure some of you have some similar issues and probably some great advice.

Where the blog goes from here…

I guess this blog will become a food/fitness journal again. It’s a great way to get everything down so I can click back and see later.

I really hope as I start to get a handle on all this I can be more of the crazy-upbeat-does weird stuff blogger that I used to be and everyone seems to enjoy so much.

But it’s kinda hard when something like this is running around in the background.

All in all you guys are awesome and I really hope y’all will stick with me through all the food journaling…

Food is fun… right?!?!