I’m bloated enough to buy new pants yet losing weight, and I still can’t afford the endoscopy yet
Current status
Still struggling- Still struggling
- Somewhat resolved
- Mostly resolved
- Fully resolved
The story
My mother say that ever since I was a baby, my gut clearly had a hard time getting things moving. As a kid I had a lot of constipation issues and as a 30 years later, my gut issues prevail. Things came to their first head when I was in college. Mysteriously, I became so weak I could barely walk, my joints both weak and in pain (it felt as if my joints were made of a hunk of jello with wire tied tightly around it), I would fall asleep constantly, my skin hurt to the touch (of anything, including fabric), and I threw up every morning. I was tested for everything, from cancer to arthritis, and all came up clear. I was prescribed an Autoimmune Paleo Diet and while it was a profoundly difficult experience with lasting repercussion (ten years later I still do not enjoy food and I lost weight that I did not have to lose and it took nearly a decade of lifting heavy weights to gain back), it also changed my life. It cured my symptoms and I discovered a plethora of food sensitivities and unveiled a range of symptoms (like, vertigo from chickpeas and bleeding gums from almonds). I'd like to note that the majority of the sensitivities were from the food I was eating most often during that time period. Ten years later these food still give me problems. Ever since, I have good years and bad years, but this year has been a Very Bad Year. I am bloated to the point that I've had to go buy all new pants, yet I have lost 10 pounds, I am constantly nauseated and have air bubbles in my throat that my boyfriend can hear gurgling "constantly," in his words. My upper abdomen hurts and burns often, I am terribly gassy, I fluctuate between diarrhea and constipation, about once a week I get so cramped up I can't stand, the list goes on. I tried Low FODMAP and while that helped a lot, my symptoms quickly came back. My list of food sensitivities is growing at an alarming rate. My labs came back fine, I had several ultrasounds of my abdomen, and I have been prescribed a endoscopy that I can't afford. I am waiting until January, for my new FSA to kick in, to do the endoscopy, and in the mean time was today given a round of xifaxan. Additionally, I take Omeprazole which has been pretty life changing, reducing the nausea and cramping, though not eliminating it.
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Symptoms
Tests & diagnoses
Treatments
Each treatment this contributor tried, in the order that mattered, with their own reported result. The ones marked with a trophy are the treatments they credit as decisive.
Life changing; reduced nausea and cramping, though did not eliminate them.
Prescribed during college illness; contributor says it cured symptoms and revealed food sensitivities.
Helps when experiencing stomach cramps
Helps when experiencing nausea
Used over nearly a decade to regain weight lost during Autoimmune Paleo Diet period.
Tried for current bad year of symptoms; helped a lot, but symptoms quickly came back.
This is one person's reported experience aggregated by GutPattern, not clinical advice, a treatment protocol, or a diagnosis. What helped one contributor can do nothing — or harm — for someone with a different underlying cause. Sudden, severe, bloody, feverish, or worsening symptoms belong with medical care. Always discuss care decisions with a qualified clinician.
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