C-Diff, FMT, and Colitis

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 4:29 pm

I caught Cdiff exactly a year ago this week. I had a FMT more then a month ago by a specialist in Providence RI. A biopsy was done during the procedure and she said they found LC. She said the majority of my symptoms are probably because the LC but we have to wait and see if the C-diff is gone to prove that. I see her again 12/23. I saw my regular gastro this evening. **Let me just say that he is a good doctor, has helped many like me with cdiff, and he was picked as one of few best gastro`s for CT Magazine this year. I like him alot and he has helped where other gastro`s have fallen short. I say this cause I wont dump him to find someone else. :)**

First, the office in RI never faxed him my results so he was blind to anything. (i asked them twice to send it). He said that you cannot diagnose MC while in active C-diff. When in active cdiff, you suffer greatly from colitis because of it. You have to wait till the Cdiff is gone, go in, and take a biopsy when you are clean. He showed me my last 2 biopsies with him and the lab looked for MC and the results were negative. He is having me do a full blood work up tomorrow and I picked up supplies at the lab to do another poop sample. It is like playing the lottery. I hope to goodness it is negative for cdiff.

Anyone have any insight? Is she right? Is he right? Are they both? I know i am suffering, that is for sure. I am also confused. If either Doctor says the letters IBS, I will lose it.

Thank you for my mini rant. I was ready to hear the Eat Fish talk but instead was told Well, we have to wait and see.

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 4:35 pm

Heidi
what symptoms are you currently having?

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 4:54 pm

Loose stools at least 3-4 times a day. It mostly happens from a reaction to something I eat. I am working the list of foods to see what works and what doesnt. Cramping and gotta go gotta go. I have been able to make it without accidents. There are times when I am on there forever. And still have to go afterward. There is no blood or black. I am nauseated 1st thing every morning and that sets off my day of eating or not. I could be in the middle of eating and have to go.
Wheat, soy, dairy, and almond are all definite no nos for me.

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 4:56 pm

I feel different then I did with the cdiff. Pain and nausea are different. Gastro said I look better. Before I was always pale and looked sick. I lost another 8lbs since I saw him 2 months ago.

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 4:59 pm

what supplements are you currently taking?

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 5:07 pm

I just received the Mag flakes in the mail but before that I was taking 500mg at bedtime. <--I know flakes are better. Otherwise I take B-12 5000mcg under the tongue (taking that last 4 months), D3 10k iu 1x a day, and PB8 probiotic. I have also learned that I should be taking vitamin k2 with the D3, but I have not started that yet.

Yup..cramps in lower colon...ahhh

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 5:35 pm

ok
mag flakes ie are you taking them orally?? - if so maybe the oral magnesium is causing/contributing to the gut issues - I would swap across to using topical/transdermal application. and the other key thing is to spread the magnesium intake (either orally or topically or both) through the day...
if you are taking all the mag at once you may not be absorbing the full 500mg.

Yes K2 and Vit A are important for optimising Vit D3 (things like sweet potato are good source of Vit A)

my other thought is the B12 - is it 'Active' B12 or normal B12?

the other possibility is histamine/mast cell issues. This is related to deficiency in B6 and magnesium etc - quite a few of us have resolved these issues once B6 deficiency is resolved. Using the active form of B6 which is P5P is a much better option.

in line with histamine/mast cell issues is looking at if there are any non food triggers that are contributing to the issue. this could be dust, mold, chemicals, etc. either at home or workplace??

also - it might be worth checking if your GI can request mast cell testing of your existing biopsy slides

there is quite a bit of info about mast cells/histamine in its own section - have a read and see if you think this applies to you.

hope this helps.

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 5:48 pm

I have not used the flakes yet and I will be using them on my skin. I am allergic to dust and pollen per a allergy testing done two years ago. (the scratch test). I use the now brand Ultra B-12 5000mcg.
I was researching MCAD over two years ago because I just couldnt be that unlucky with all the sickness I was acquiring. That all was side tracked when I had skull surgery. So it looks like it is full circle.

I just want a definite yes you have MC, this is what you have to do, and move on. Thank you

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 6:05 pm

the hard part about confirming MC is that if the biopsies were not taken from the right part of the bowel.

from my time here in the past 7 years, if you have MC as a defined diagnosis is not essential. You are having digestion issues, there is inflammation. the treatment approaches (diet, lifestyle and supplements) suggested here work for all IBD's.

and it is very likely that your MC may have been in remission at the time of the biopsies - but you could still be having mast cell issues even though the MC is not active in biospies taken. (I had this exact scenario in my last colposcopy done in 2011)
and given known allergies I would encourage you to look at this area more closely as it could be the root cause of your current digestion symptoms.

the now foods B12 is a good mix of B12 items

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 6:10 pm

Bingo! I was reading here about mast cells. About two weeks ago, I made the stupid mistake of eating one slice of pizza. My nose started to run, my mouth had mucous, I was itchy and bloated. I learned my lesson big time. This evening, I taste tested a compliant (so I thought) home made chicken soup. I ate maybe 3 tablespoons tops. I have been on the toilet since then and won't be eating dinner.

Those are masty like for sure. I can ask the gastro in Providence about my slides and if that is possible. I am considered part of a research study for the cdiff so they may not be allowed to do that.

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 6:13 pm

Thank you for that. My local gastro was saying it is sometimes hard to differentiate between MC, cdiff Colitis, and even UC. So I will send a sample in tomorrow morning and find out in the afternoon if I am still positive.

And I will start the research again on mast cell.

heidiiiii5 · Post by **heidiiiii5** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 8:08 pm

I just read the list of histamine rich foods. I am really feeling discouraged. If I eliminate all the foods on that list, all the foods from the AIP list, and since my diabetes is bad...I have to eliminate the carbs not listed in the other two lists.
That is not a lot of food. Where will I get my fats from? I think I will hide under my blanket for awhile.
I have a business card to a naturopath. Maybe they can also help.

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 8:15 pm

safe fats are available via animal protein sources, coconut oil etc.

also keep in mind that it is about 'balance' - all things in moderation, don't have too many high histamine foods in the same meal / same day, keep the serving size moderate etc.

prior to fixing my magnesium and B6 deficiency, I would have to avoid high histamine foods, now that I have fixed the deficiencies and having magnesium and B6 daily, I no longer react.

when I was really sick, my histamine reactions were so bad I could not walk into a house with a cat without reacting. Now I can pat cats, let them sit on my lap etc, and there I no reaction.

Also when we are dealing with these types of issues - don't get stressed trying to do everything 'perfectly' - our main is to avoid as many triggers as possible, manage the contact/amount of contact with the ones that we cant avoid, and support the body through the process.

Post by **tex** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 9:55 pm

Heidi,

I also have histamine issues (MCAD), so I've learned to watch how I handle high histamine foods. We can't avoid all histamines or even all high-histamine foods. As Gabes mentioned, we just have to limit the worst offenders so that our total histamine intake/load on any given day is not more than our system can tolerate.

Fortunately there are ways (tricks) we can use to "manipulate" (for want of a better word) high histamine foods. Foods listed as "high histamine" are not always high-histamine. But they can be. The trick is to eat them before they develop a high histamine content, and/or prevent them from developing a high histamine content.

Histamine levels for any food increase over time (unless they are frozen below zero degrees Fahrenheit). But some foods are notorious for developing high histamine levels relatively quickly. For example, fresh (or fresh frozen) chicken or fish are not high histamine foods. But if they sit in the refrigerator (IOW, if they're stored at normal refrigeration temperatures) for a day or two, they soon become high histamine foods. And that also applies after they're cooked.

The solution:

1. Buy them fresh or frozen and either freeze them until you're ready to cook them, or cook them immediately
2. After cooking, promptly freeze any leftovers (in serving size containers)
3. Fast thaw, reheat, and eat, as desired

Bananas are considered to be a high histamine food. But until they become ripe, they are not a high histamine food. As soon as they begin to ripen, their histamine content quickly rises so that after they have been ripe for a day or two, they become high histamine foods. This applies to virtually any fruit. I eat a banana virtually every day, but when I buy bananas, I don't buy ripe bananas. I buy bananas that are almost ripe and when I get them home I immediately peel them and store them in ziploc bags in the freezer. When I want a snack, I take one out, let it begin to thaw for maybe a minute, and then slather some cashew butter or almond butter on it, and enjoy a great snack.

But fermented/smoked/dried foods are always high histamine foods when purchased.

By avoiding eating moderate to large amounts of the worst offenders, we can tolerate more of the moderate and low histamine level foods.

So it's a manageable issue, after all.

Tex

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Mon Dec 12, 2016 10:14 pm

Here are some articles that will reiterate the points I made about B6 and magnesium

http://alisonvickery.com.au/why-your-vi ... important/

https://www.samanthagilbert.com/histami ... imbalance/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6445415