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OK - I have already alluded to this but last night I slept 14 hours! Yesterday I napped for about 4 hours. I am sleeping 10-12 hours at night as well! Please reassure me that this is "normal" because I am feeling panicky about it which I know sounds crazy but I am so tired! I have over the last 8 months been exercising by walking 4-6 miles most days. I just went to post a letter and walked 5 minutes and it was a real struggle. I guess I just feel really frustrated because I really do not understand what is going on with me at the moment. I have more questions than answers but I don't know where to begin. I have to have a blood test to check my thyroid function (?) today. And I have pain again - not as intense as it was but still pain. I am almost afraid to eat because I don't know what my gut is going to do with it! Sorry to rant but I guess I'm just a little fed up and the normal rational me has gone AWOL leaving a gibbering idiot in her place!
Hi,
Fatigue and lack of stamina are very common. My exercise routine pretty much went away for six months, and now, over a year later, I still can't walk as far/as fast as I used to.
I had a bad stretch last fall that resulted in being diagnosed with a vitamin B-12 deficiency that was bad enough to warrant injections, which I'm still getting. You might want to be tested for that.
I agree you need a full blood work up, when I was found to have L.C. and they found I had an underactive thyroid, easily sorted, a lot of folk with this condition have thyroid problems too, you must stop beating yourself up, we all have to rant at times, in my household my tiredness was refereded to as "sleeping sickness"!!!!! normally I am a light sleeper but when I was very ill I could almost sleep the clock round, if I were you I shouldnt worry about excercise for now, pick it up again when you feel better, Beni
Suze and Beni are quite correct, of course. Fatigue is as common with MC as flowers in spring. Trying to heal massive inflammation takes a tremendous amount of energy and it tends to require all the resources that our body can muster, especially when the inflammation is being generated faster than it can be dealt with by the immune system. That's why it often creates a state of almost constant exhaustion -- we don't have many resources left, because the MC tries to hog all of our energy.
Be sure that you're getting plenty of protein in your diet, because larger than normal amounts of protein are very beneficial for enhancing the healing process. Of course, you will need to remove the source of that inflammation from your diet, in order to make any significant headway on healing.
Tex
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.
Fatbuster,
That is a lot of sleep. I agree that a blood work-up should be requested, one that includes a Complete Blood Count, liver function screen (Chem panel), thyroid screen, maybe an ANA (general autoimmunity screen), and SED rate (screen for inflammation). If those are normal, and the extreme fatigue continues, and you are on a gluten free diet, you might want to get checked for Epstein Barr antibodies (the cause of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). You may also want to have your vitamin D level checked. It's very important for immune function and battling MC, and may be very low at your latitude.
Another thought...I don't know how bad your D is at the moment, but simple dehydration can be enough to cause major fatigue and weakness. Are you getting electrolytes somehow? Do you feel thirsty all the time and unable to stay hydrated? You may want to eat bananas and try adding extra sea salt to your foods to try and keep your fluids up. Or find a natural electrolyte replacement drink (something less sugary than Gatorade).
I have been put on laxatives to clear the blockage so I have a lot of D and I am drinking tons of water but I will add some electrolytes in. I haven't done anything re diet as yet as I am struggling to eat generally at the moment. I will need to figure out some workable diet but I know nothing about food intolerance so I need to research it a bit! I guess I'm just feeling like I have been through the mill this week! When I went for my blood test today it took 5 attempts to get blood - I resemble a pin cushion!
Since you are struggling to eat generally, it might be a good idea to have food that you don't have to think about. A lot of us do well with chicken soup--chicken broth, chicken, some well-cooked carrots, maybe some rice or potato. Perhaps some applesauce. If you stick with something like this every time you eat, you will probably feel better. The higher protein and the salt in the broth will be helpful.
I think one of the first things many of us discard fairly quickly is the idea of different foods for different meals. It may seem weird at first to eat chicken soup for breakfast, but you'll get used to it.
Marliss Bombardier
Dum spiro, spero -- While I breathe, I hope
Psoriasis - the dark ages
Hashimoto's Thyroiditis - Dec 2001
Collagenous Colitis - Sept 2010
Granuloma Annulare - June 2011
The best place to research food sensitivities is right here! Most people are sensitive to gluten, and others are sensitive to different degrees to the usual allergens, and then there are a whole bunch of other sensitivities.
As for fatigue. We have all been through it. I haven't kicked it yet, though there are days when I seem to have more energy for a couple of hours. When your system starts to heal and you absorb more nutrients your energy will start to return and you will need less sleep.
If you try chicken soup and rice and you DON'T improve remember that there are people here who can eat neither, myself among them. Try something else. Try turkey soup (delicious made from bones), ground turkey, mashed potatoes. I can't eat that either. If you can't, move on and try something else. Broth made from beef bones, with mashed potatoes.
You will find foods that help you. Eat those ONLY until the D stops, and then add in one food at a time. Test that for a couple of days, and move on.
My D WAS a fatbuster at first, but not anymore! I have put back all I had lost )-;
Thanks everyone - it is great to know that you all understand! I ventured out this evening to a choir practice and I feel better for making the effort and interacting with some friends. Luckily there are loos in the church!! I must confess I have been reading a lot of this site and am overwhelmed by how much information there is. I have to admit the idea of radically changing my diet scares me but I also know that I cannot carry on with my current regime as it is not making me any better. I guess I just have to get my head around it. I will definitely do the chicken soup thing - I do feel that I am lacking nutrients! Thanks again everyone - I really am grateful!
Marliss wrote:I think one of the first things many of us discard fairly quickly is the idea of different foods for different meals. It may seem weird at first to eat chicken soup for breakfast, but you'll get used to it.
When I was reacting, I spent many days eating chicken for every meal (and if I needed a snack between meals -- it was also chicken soup).
Tex
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.
One other blood test I didn't see mentioned here was the one for C Reactive Protein, which is a barometer for overall stress that your body is in. It's not something they automatically order and it is ESSENTIAL, IMO, that you get a reading on this. You can research it online so that you understand why it's important.
Resolved MC symptoms successfully w/L-Glutamine, Probiotics and Vitamins, GF since 8/'09. DX w/MC 10/'09.
Ok Guys! Too many abbreviations that I have no clue about! But over the last couple of hours (10pm and on) I suddenly feel a lot better! And I hope this is permanent as far as this episode! Having only found this site, what 2 days ago?, my head is fried! But again I am feeling so much better in the last couple of hours? Given I don't know the specifics other than I have MC does this happen? i.e. a week of treatment and then a SUDDEN regaining of energy? Or am I going to wake up tomorrow to the same crashing fatigue?
By the way my name is Anne!
We're all different, and we've used different medicines and alternative methods and we've had good and bad experiences and reality is that few of us have ALL the same intolerances, but we DO all have some intolerances that when we've eliminated them have made a huge difference and Gluten is #1. We're all still subject to flares that are related to stress or antibiotics or whatever..... and most of us had been sick for years before we ended up here on PP.
So, love your sudden regaining of energy, but know that if and when this passes - and I am willing to bet it will - that you are on a learning curve that can take awhile. It can be overwhelming to learn the best ways to treat this, but it's a large group and we care.
Enjoy your good day, you'll get used to the abbreviations - took me awhile too.
Connie
Resolved MC symptoms successfully w/L-Glutamine, Probiotics and Vitamins, GF since 8/'09. DX w/MC 10/'09.
I was diagnosed with LC in June, 2010. I found this forum last November. The symptoms I had (other than extreme D) were the extreme fatigue and low stamina. I have been on a GF/DF/SF diet since sometime in December.
I struggled to get through each day, but after a couple of months with the changes in my diet, I have begun to regain my strength. It started with maybe a few hours a day, and some days back to none. But now I am walking again every day on my lunch break after eating, and then again in the evenings after dinner. I feel like I am beginning to get my life back! AND so can you.
It can take time to wrap your head around all of this, but I (like many here) are proof that it can be done. Starting with simple foods like Lesley and Tex have mentioned are the best.
Keep coming back and reading, and in time it will all begin to make sense.
This is the best site - so many people willing to share their experiences (good and bad), and the support is priceless. We all understand.
Paula
Paula
"You'll never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have."
"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass... It's learning to dance in the rain."
I have over the last 8 months been exercising by walking 4-6 miles most days. I just went to post a letter and walked 5 minutes and it was a real struggle. 
I guess I just feel really frustrated because I really do not understand what is going on with me at the moment. I have more questions than answers but I don't know where to begin. I have to have a blood test to check my thyroid function (?) today. And I have pain again - not as intense as it was but still pain. I am almost afraid to eat because I don't know what my gut is going to do with it! 
Sorry to rant but I guess I'm just a little fed up and the normal rational me has gone AWOL leaving a gibbering idiot in her place!
I must confess I have been reading a lot of this site and am overwhelmed by how much information there is. I have to admit the idea of radically changing my diet scares me but I also know that I cannot carry on with my current regime as it is not making me any better. I guess I just have to get my head around it. I will definitely do the chicken soup thing - I do feel that I am lacking nutrients! Thanks again everyone - I really am grateful!
