Visit the Microscopic Colitis Foundation Website
Hi everyone. I have been lurking around for around 10 months same amount of time that I was diagnosed with M.C. I am a 42 year old male. This has been the most frustrating time of my life. I can't get this thing under control. It has gotten better but not completely gone. I have been eliminating different foods and meds. And adding a pro biotics ( sustenex ) every night but it seems I still have to take imodium one a week. I have the obvious bouts of D. But I also have constant muscle and joint pain and fibromalacia. What is driving me crazy is the way the d happens I'll wake up ok nice solid poop and then my next trip to the bathroom will be D same the next day is this normal for m.c.?
Sorry for the rant just feeling frustrated today
God bless u
Laz
Hello everyone
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Hi Laz,
Welcome to the board. Yep, that's a fairly common pattern for bowel movements. Of course, for most of us, even the first one may be D, or even dirty water. As our gut begins to heal a bit, though, many of us experience the pattern that you described, with deteriorating stool quality, with succeeding trips to the bathroom, as the day unfolds. That's a good sign, though, because it means that you're getting closer to success.
The key to remission by diet alone, of course, is that we must eliminate every food-sensitivity from our diet, (at the same time). If we overlook one, we will have the symptoms that you are experiencing. The most common meds that trigger MC are NSAIDs, PPIs, SSRIs, statins, and bisphosphonates, though not everyone is affected by any or all of them, of course. We're all different, in the things that affect us, and the way that we respond to meds used in treatment. If the only med that you're using to treat the MC is Imodium, you're making good progress. It takes a while for the diet to work, because it takes a long time for the gut to heal, especially if the damage has been accumulating for a few years.
If you don't mind listing them, which foods are you currently avoiding?
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.
Tex (Wayne)
Welcome to the board. Yep, that's a fairly common pattern for bowel movements. Of course, for most of us, even the first one may be D, or even dirty water. As our gut begins to heal a bit, though, many of us experience the pattern that you described, with deteriorating stool quality, with succeeding trips to the bathroom, as the day unfolds. That's a good sign, though, because it means that you're getting closer to success.
The key to remission by diet alone, of course, is that we must eliminate every food-sensitivity from our diet, (at the same time). If we overlook one, we will have the symptoms that you are experiencing. The most common meds that trigger MC are NSAIDs, PPIs, SSRIs, statins, and bisphosphonates, though not everyone is affected by any or all of them, of course. We're all different, in the things that affect us, and the way that we respond to meds used in treatment. If the only med that you're using to treat the MC is Imodium, you're making good progress. It takes a while for the diet to work, because it takes a long time for the gut to heal, especially if the damage has been accumulating for a few years.
If you don't mind listing them, which foods are you currently avoiding?
Again, welcome aboard, and please feel free to ask anything.
Tex (Wayne)
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
I have been avoiding everything except meet and chicken neither fried with only a little sea salt and garlic but this diet is getting old. I am reading the book the gut reaction and I am going to get on the diet in the book. Gluten is a no no even though my gi said I had no allergies to it but it deffenetly has a negative reaction on me. dairy products kill me and sugary stuff like donuts and stuff are also bad for me. My gp. prescribed lexapro Because he thought it was all depression and anxiety but besides the fact that having m.c. Is a little nerve racking I don't suffer from depression. The lexapro was also causing D. So I got rid of that also. I used to pop aspirin all the time so that has stopped. What I think caused my M.C. Is exsecive use of antibiotics that I was on in July last year. It started after i started the antibiotics (cipro, doxy, alean, zpack, and a couple others that I can't remember)
Laz,
Hang in there - seems to me your thinking is good. Aspirin, antidepressants like Lexapro, and antibiotics can all be triggers for MC (I am pretty sure doxycycline was in the mix of things that set my MC in motion).
Also, added oil (like frying), gluten, dairy, and sugars are all things people have reported being problematic, especially when symptoms are happening big-time... so I guess I'm saying, your reasoning is better than your GI doc's (and that's not unusual around here, either).
I hear you loud and clear - depression doesn't give you MC, but MC can sure be a bummer. And the underlying causes can also affect mood and mental health. Getting your diet straightened out is the right priority, though I'm not familiar with that book.
Many of us are seeking or maintaining remission from symptoms with diet alone, and many are using a combo of diet and drugs. If your dietary efforts aren't giving you relief, it can be faster with medication. I've been lucky to make progress without, but many here will tell you that the right prescription can give you your life back. (Sounds like you might need to have that conversation with a different doctor, but your GP or PCP might turn out to be more helpful than the GI.)
Keep us posted,
Sara
Hang in there - seems to me your thinking is good. Aspirin, antidepressants like Lexapro, and antibiotics can all be triggers for MC (I am pretty sure doxycycline was in the mix of things that set my MC in motion).
Also, added oil (like frying), gluten, dairy, and sugars are all things people have reported being problematic, especially when symptoms are happening big-time... so I guess I'm saying, your reasoning is better than your GI doc's (and that's not unusual around here, either).
I hear you loud and clear - depression doesn't give you MC, but MC can sure be a bummer. And the underlying causes can also affect mood and mental health. Getting your diet straightened out is the right priority, though I'm not familiar with that book.
Many of us are seeking or maintaining remission from symptoms with diet alone, and many are using a combo of diet and drugs. If your dietary efforts aren't giving you relief, it can be faster with medication. I've been lucky to make progress without, but many here will tell you that the right prescription can give you your life back. (Sounds like you might need to have that conversation with a different doctor, but your GP or PCP might turn out to be more helpful than the GI.)
Keep us posted,
Sara