My turn for the e.r.

[Marthe48]

I wasn't feeling good, started on the weekend. I thought I was getting a UTI, so I went to Physician's Care. They did urine test, no infection, so they recommended the e.r. for more testing. Turns out I have diverticulitis. They gave me IV with an antibiotic in and a prescription for antibiotics. It's mild, I went in early. I'm on a clear, soft, bland diet for a couple days. My sodium is low, and that makes me tired. So far this morning, I don't feel as achy.

I can take it easy, eat things I usually avoid, but I can't have potato chips!

[samplegirl]

1. I have advanced and it's

no fun. Drink the fiber daily.

[Marthe48]

8. My older sister has had several attacks

I thought I had dodged it. Sorry you have such an ailment to live with.

[Bluetus]

32. I lost 1/3 of my colon to that

It is no joke. 10 days in UCU, 6 months on ostomy. It took over 2 years to heal to the point of a mostly normal lifestyle. People usually don't think about gut health until they get to the crisis stage. There are many things that can go wrong; diverticulitis is just one. I believe one can put the odds in their favor by taking a little extra time to maintain regularity while their gut is healthy. Psyllium is your friend.

[OneBlueDotS-Carolina]

48. Same boat...

Close to the six month mark with an ostomy, will hopefully get reversed in January. Spent close to a month in the hospital with drains dealing with an infection caused by diverticulitis. It's been a fun ride.

[Bluetus]

60. Hang in there. If your surgeon is planning the take-down operation,

he/she is highly confident in its success. It was a marvel to me that after so many months of inactivity, the pieces could be joined again, and basically just start working again. As I say, it took me 2+ years to feel like I was on a normal pattern, and I still need to plan my calendar and diet around having a good morning, so to speak. But otherwise, this is very manageable.

I had been diagnosed with diverticulosis 15 years earlier. I wish I had been given more advice about ways to keep the gut as healthy as possible, but honestly, I'm not sure the medical world really knew so much at that time.

I very actively managed some combination of stool softener, prunes, and psyllium (nothing stronger) to make sure that things kept moving daily because it takes a long time for the colon to really be "itself" again. I erred on the side of softness, which can be a bit inconvenient, but I wanted to give the gut its best chance to really heal naturally.

You will be good. Don't be afraid of this. And actively manage it. I have not required any extra medicines or medical procedures, other than colonoscopy to make sure everything is as the surgeon expected. I am sure we are both thankful for the state of medicine today that allows us to carry on after this.

[SheltieLover]

2. Healing vibes on the way to you, Marthe.

Omg! No potato chips? 😱 even baked ones?

So sorry you are going through this.

[Marthe48]

5. I was thinking salt

I don't think I could trust myself to just lick them!

Thanks

[SheltieLover]

12. Is it the salt or grease that's problematic?

I prefer the low salt kind...

But I can see using them as salt licks, too.

I hope you're feeling much better!

[MiHale]

3. Take it easy, Marthe...

No potato chips! That would put my dear wife in a snack panic. Three different kinds of chips are in the pantry at this time.

[Marthe48]

7. I avoid salt

but I was surprised I had done so well!

[MiHale]

20. Sodium and salt are not the same...

With high blood pressure and heart disease I too must watch my daily salt intake, although since I’m also on two different kinds of water medications and must keep up being hydrated, the balancing act is hard.

The water pills decrease my sodium levels…I have to keep that up without overdoing any salt products, getting sodium through natural means. My cardiologist explained it to me along with simple suggestions.

Since I’m the primary cook in the house it makes it much easier. Should add we eat very little ultra processed food and don’t go out to eat very often.

Couple articles to further confuse the subject…


https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/salt-and-sodium/

https://www.henryford.com/blog/2016/03/salt-vs-sodium-whats-the-difference

[Delphinus]

38. Thank you for sharing this

I had no idea they were not the same.

[Marthe48]

41. We're in the same boat

I take bp meds, and at least one is a water pill. The e.r. dr. told me last night that low sodium can cause the tired feeling. Learn something new every day

[bucolic_frolic]

4. Wow, get well soon.

I equate diverticulitis more with flares of acute local pain than UTI.

[Marthe48]

6. I was achy

It stayed general, thought it was my back. When the ice or heat didn't work, I thought it might be a UTI. I've had those, but this is a first.

Thank you

[underpants]

9. Good you got right in it. Hope you feel better soon. ❤️

[LuckyCharms]

10. Feel better Marthe!

I'm really sorry!

I've had it 4 times. The last 2 times I was hospitalized with severe cases.

It will be alright, Marthe. If your case is mild, you should start feeling better really soon.

I'll be thinking of you today.

[MLAA]

11. Sending healing vibes and so happy you got to the cause of the problem. ❤️

[bamagal62]

13. I hope you feel better

Soon! I’ve had 3 attacks in the past. I now no longer eat beef, pork, or lamb. I only eat cheese occasionally.
After stopping beef, etc., I have not had a full blown attack. (Avoid foods that stay in your colon for a long time. Foods that are hard to digest.)
I’ve had “almost” attacks after eating corn and also pistachios. If you even feel a bit of that pain beginning to start, go immediately to a liquid diet and sometimes you can stop it from progressing. My doc says, stomach pain plus fever means I go to the ER. So, when the pain starts, monitor that temperature.
If you want to ask me any questions, feel free to message me.

[marble falls]

30. Deciding to stop beef was the hard part. Almost quiting (beef maybe once a month) was easy ...

... no more beef hangovers.

[Marthe48]

42. I rarely eat beef or pork

Chicken and fish more often. I used to eat beef often, but over the last few years, avoided it. All the memes and jokes about cheese during the holiday is true around here. Both of my daughters are vegetarians and one is a renal dietitian, so I have plenty of help from them to point me to healthy eating.

[bamagal62]

43. That's great!

You are fortunate to have them!

[Niagara]

14. Sending healing vibes, Marthe48

[quaint]

15. Hoping you bounce back quickly and pain disappears instantly.

[wolfie001]

16. Glad you're feeling a bit better

Take care and Happy and Healthy New Year!

[area51]

17. I hope you feel better soon, Marthe48.

[nuxvomica]

18. You might find a particular food was the cause

And you can simply avoid that food in the future. I had diverticulitis earlier this year and it was within a couple of weeks after adding ground flax seeds to my post-workout smoothie. Ground flax seeds are like little razors so it seemed a likely suspect.

[bamagal62]

44. Apparently quinoa is the same.

[twodogsbarking]

19. Watch your mental health. Your gut has a brain too. My gut issues led to depression.

This past eight months has been better than for years. Pooping blood sucks. Take care. Study up. Old beliefs may not be what is believed today.

[Diamond_Dog]

21. Sorry to hear this,Marthe!

Please take care and follow doctors’ orders (which I know you’ll do).

Now you have an excuse not to entertain for New Year’s!

Hope you are back to 100% very soon!

[Emile]

22. Marthe, imo sounds like you need more fiber in

your diet. I buy Equate fiber at Walmart, and sprinkle it on my salads. If I'm not having a salad, I mix a few teaspoons in cold water and drink it down.

Anyways, I hope you are feeling better soon.

[Marthe48]

54. I've rarely had a day

That things didn't work out. When I'm over this, I'll look into fiber. I hear ads for some of the products that explain other reasons to use it.

[beaglelover]

59. I highly recommend sugar free Metamucil powder. I put a splenda in it and drink a glass full followed by

another glass of water before I go to bed every night. Works great to keep me regular and have not had another attack of diverticulitis since my first one in February 2001.

[lonely bird]

23. No Wavy Lays?

That would suck.

Do what you need to do.

Good luck.

[mwmisses4289]

24. 🫂

[Silver Gaia]

25. They say I have diverticulosis,

which is the little pouches that form on the colon. They can get inflamed and cause diverticulitis. They thought my abdominal pain was diverticulitis, but the bland diet didn't help, and to me, where I felt the pain was not consistent with diverticulitis.

One of the CT scans showed fibroids in my uterus, and that is where I hurt. I finally got a doctor to LISTEN TO ME, and he sent me to a gynecologist. In the meantime, I ended up in ER again where they ran tons of tests and did all sorts of examinations. As it turned out, I needed a hysterectomy ASAP. And I am now doing chemo.

So, I'm just saying be careful and stick up for yourself if you ever feel the diagnosis is off. They aren't infallible. As it is, my correct diagnosis was delayed by a few weeks, but if I hadn't been insistent that I still didn't feel well and thought it was not diverticulitis, it could have been a lot worse.

I don't say this because I think you've been misdiagnosed. Your story just sparked this reaction from me, so I shared my cautionary tale.

And BTW, from the research I did, the main reason potato chips are forbidden during a diverticulitis flare-up is because they are rough with sharp edges. The little pieces we usually swallow can easily get lodged in the diverticula (pouches) and cause inflammation. If we chewed them to mush, we could probably get away with eating a few chips, but who wants to do that? Yuck. So they tell us not to eat them. Anything you eat during diverticulitis must either be smooth to begin with, or chewed until it's smooth. Maybe others here will have additional or different advice, but that's what I was told.

I am sorry you have this, and wish you a speedy recovery!

[marble falls]

29. What I've learned about doctors: male doctors tell me, and female doctors listen. I found out that ...

... I prefer women doctors. Only took me 60 years to figure that out.

[Silver Gaia]

31. I tend to agree! I also prefer women doctors.

In this case, however, it was a young male doctor who, surprisingly, listened to me. (He was not a young white male, though.) I now have a great team of women doctors and nurses caring for me, though!

[marble falls]

34. I had to go VA when my 'Cadillac' insurance got canceled. I love my women doctors. They investigate and do ...

... not grab a prescription pad right off the bat. I've found that younger male doctors are getting better, and that immigrant doctors are very good.

My two Muslim women doctors, and woman surgeon saved my life on my first cancer. When my white male brigadier general urologist kept going to the same bag of tricks that he finally realized wasn't working, he passed me on (because i felt he didn't want me to ruin his record by dying) to a Chinese doctor (who the general ran off VA later), he got me to an Indian surgeon who was at a civilian hospital who fixed it PDQ. Six years cancer free.

[Silver Gaia]

49. What a great, inspiring story!

Thank you so much for sharing. I'm glad you are still cancer-free!

[Marthe48]

52. Makes me happy to hear the happy ending

Everyone who treated me yesterday was a woman, except 1 orderly and the squad team. They were very attentive.

[Marthe48]

45. I could rule out lady parts, appendicitis and gall bladder

Sometimes I wonder how many more parts I can live without I rarely eat potato chips. They were the only salty crunchy food I could think of

Sorry you've had such an awful journey.

[Silver Gaia]

50. Thanks.

I hope you heal from diverticulitis quickly and easily!

[bamagal62]

47. It's so interesting about your experience.

I knew I had fibroids and thought my pain was from
That. Went to my OBGYN and she said it wasn’t that. But she did say, “pain on your lower left usually involves the colon”. A day or so later after ending up in the ER, a CT scan confirmed diverticulitis. Funny, that the pain of both is similar!!!
Over the next 2 years, before figuring out my diet, I had attacks in both the descending colon and the transverse colon. I have definitely increased my fiber intake! That pain and the ER visits are not fun.
There is a book called Diverticulitis pain free foods that has some good recipes for phasing in a fiber rich diet after being on a liquid diet. And, you are soooo correct. Chewing is key!!! (I am a former kindergarten teacher. So, I used to eat meals extremely fast. I had to learn to slow down and help my digestive system.)

[Silver Gaia]

51. Yes, the pain was similar, but

my pain was all the way across my lower abdomen, from hip to hip, and more on the right than the left. That, and the fact that the diet didn't help, are what made me decide it wasn't diverticulitis.

[True Dough]

26. It's Tuesday

You have five more days until your memes and pics are due on Sunday. Build up your strength. We're all counting on you, Marthe!

No pressure. None at all!



Take care.

[Marthe48]

46. Trust me

That pleasant task is at the top of my list!

[marble falls]

27. This getting old is high maintenence and requires a lot of monitoring, doesn't it?

[BumRushDaShow]

28. Oh no! Glad it got caught early and you are getting it treated

One of my BILs has had that and it seems that it never seemed to completely go away but would flare up.

Wishing you a speedy recovery!!

[HeartsCanHope]

33. So sorry, Marthe 48.

Sending healing vibes and hope you feel better very soon.

[LoisB]

35. Bummer. I am glad you went in right away. Hope you are back 100% very soon.

[AllaN01Bear]

36. ""

get better soon. i am going to see a health professional tomrrow and may ask them that.

[crud]

58. I just talked with my Dr. on the phone

about my concerns...did you know that pepto bysmal makes your poop black? Recommended more fiber and lots of water! Hello daily meta mucil.

[Clouds Passing]

37. Get well soon, Marthe48 💚 Feeling sick is no fun

[KS Toronado]

39. You got me wondering about my own salt levels Marthe

[Be The Light]

40. I have chronically low sodium

I have to take 1000mg of salt everyday.

[nocoincidences]

53. So sorry you're feeling bad too.

It's the season for the Punies to be going around.

My Patient First visit revealed that Va. Beach is over-run with flu cases. So any other thing you go in for will put you in direct contact with a flu heavy environment. I've had my flu shot, but not the COVID booster.

[Laffy Kat]

56. Please take care, Dear Marthe.

No potato chips for you!

[JoseBalow]

57. Get well soon