Off Pepto.....prayers please!!

tlras · Post by **tlras** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 9:59 am

Hi everyone,

Well my 12 weeks on Pepto is officially over as of today. Boohoo. I ended up doing 12 weeks cause I used the last 4 weeks to wean off. I took 8 pills a day the first week and found it difficult to go to the bathroom so my 8 week treatment has been 7 pills a day and it has been absolutely wonderful. I then weaned down to 6, 4 then 2 and last night I took one. I don't really know why I took one instead of none last night except that maybe I'm having a hard time letting go. Because it could mean I'll be letting go of feeling so good and being able to do whatever I want without worry. I also have a very sweet tooth and I will miss my little Pepto sweet chewables...lol! I've had one norm a day and sometimes it's every other day. Once I weaned down to 2 pills, I went every other day which I found odd as I expected to go a little more. I was very surprised at how well I did with Pepto as it does have Saccharin and Mannitol in it.

I've been on this board since August so I totally know that I could relapse tomorrow or in a few months. I do hope the Pepto has helped me heal. I've now been GF since July 1 and DF since Aug. 24. Two month's ago I eliminated some soy. Honestly don't think I eat any now but can't be for sure. I will be testing eggs soon. During the week of Thanksgiving, I had a day of on and off stomach discomfort which I chalked up to too much sugar from the GF/DF pumpkin bars I ate. I've also had the occasional mild bloating and mild nausea but has only happened a few times. One time was the other night when I woke up feeling barely nauseous with a slight warm feeling. I forced myself to relax and it went away. This used to happen to me a lot but always contributed it to a high sugar intake. I really have to remind myself that staying low sugar will definitely help me but I'm definitely overdoing the carbs. Eating just a veggie and meat just doesn't fill me up. I've been loading up on Jasmine rice which I find so much tastier than the Instant plain rice I was eating. I do still eat some GF bread and pasta which I'm going to try to cut down on that.

I do have some stress coming my way but trying really hard to control it. I always have been a nervous person and I usually go to bed a little nervous and wake up that way. I've found some breathing and stretching techniques that I do before getting up that relaxes me. I'm like a few others on the board whereas if I get nervous or stressed the D will come. So it's not always what I'm eating.

I'm also concerned that my anti-gliadin IgG antibodies are still in my system as of the end of October. Don't know if this will cause my D to come back or not. For those Celiacs on the forum....do you know how long it takes to get those IgG antibodies down? My IgA is normal.

Anyway, I'm trying to be hopeful that I don't have to give up any more foods and that the Pepto has sped up the healing process for me. I always have Imodium to go back to if need be and that's what my doctor recommended. I suppose I could take Pepto every now and then but not every day.

I've learned so much from this forum and I can't thank everyone enough for enlightening me on so many things!

Terri

tlras · Post by **tlras** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 10:02 am

Oh and I gained 5 lbs back! And some energy!

Terri

Post by **tex** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 11:42 am

Terri wrote:do you know how long it takes to get those IgG antibodies down?

While it typically takes a couple of years for the IgA levels to return to normal in stool samples, depending on how high your levels were to begin with, blood levels of IgA/IgG usually return to "normal" within a few months or less. Healing of the small intestine typically takes from 2 to 5 years, except that young people (under the age of 18) heal much faster.

Congrats on the weight and energy gains.

Tex

Kari · Post by **Kari** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 12:08 pm

That's great news Terri - thanks for the update. I love hearing how other PP deal with this pesky disease, as well as how well they do with their personal treatment method.

that your success continues!!!

Love,
Kari

olivermb · Post by **olivermb** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 12:49 pm

Really pulling for you Terri! It sounds like you've done a whole lot of healing, so I'm hoping you have a great time making the transition to no pepto. I'm optimistic! Fingers crossed for you!

Mary

Leah · Post by **Leah** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 12:59 pm

Congrats Terri! I will be sending good thoughts your way. This is an important time to stick to your diet.
Keep us posted.
Leah

brandy · Post by **brandy** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 4:02 pm

Hi Terri,

Great news! Suggest try to stick to your standard food regimen for the next 10-12 weeks. I've been off of Ento since mid January but I still carry 3-4 peptos in my purse and probably have 4 peptos a week. I find it helps plus like you said who doesn't like the taste! Brandy

fatbuster205 · Post by **fatbuster205** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 4:22 pm

Hi Terri,
Prayers winging their way to you as I type!
Anne

Denise · Post by **Denise** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 7:14 pm

Good Luck Terri,

I did the pepto treatment for 12 weeks and it did not help me. I found this forum when I was on entorcort before I knew about dietary changes!

tlras · Post by **tlras** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 7:49 pm

Thank you all so much! Keeping my fingers crossed as well.

@Denise.....I remember reading about someone who had done it for 12 weeks and it didn't work....guess that was you. Were you the one who also did Entocort for a while and went off and a few month's later the D came back?

Did the Pepto give you Norms the whole 12 weeks? I'm sure hoping my diet changes have helped a lot. We shall see.

Terri[/quote]

tlras · Post by **tlras** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 7:52 pm

Brandy....lol....I miss my sweet pepto already! Will take yours and Leah's advice and stick to the same foods for now. Same ole, same ole.

Terri

Denise · Post by **Denise** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 8:04 pm

Hi Terri,

I did pepto for 12 weeks then entocort for 10 months. I found this website and went GF/DF while on entocort and found remission after 5 months. I had complete remission for 4 months without drugs and now back on entocort. I was eating eggs that was high on the enterolab results and stopped about about a month ago. Still on entocort now but it never brought me to normal movements just to 2-3 a day versus 15 plus. It is an ugly disease as I explain to close friends I would not wish this on my worse enemy!

I pray you can will have remission with the pepto!

GOOD LUCK!!!!!

tlras · Post by **tlras** » Mon Dec 10, 2012 9:54 pm

Denise....I pray that your elimination of eggs will get you back into remission again. Just a reminder that I really need to have tests done by Enterolabs. Maybe with my Christmas money. I was having WD 6 to 8 times on my really bad days but usual was 2-4 times. If you've read Tex's book, it says something about people who suffer with MC usually find out it's a lot worse than what they expected. The information I got from the Internet and my GI doctor made light of it....turns out it's much nastier than what anyone could believe.

Thanks for the prayers. Praying for you too!

Terri