Links I found interesting

Some articles I have found interesting:
Is stress damaging your gut?

And videos:
SIBO patient follow up with Dr. Ruscio - it's all well and good IF and only IF you are symptom free (for the most part anyway).  There are those of us (me) whose numbers are really low but still have symptoms.  Frustrating to say the least, especially when those last few numbers don't want to budge.

Recipes I'm contemplating:
keto peanut butter fudge bars by RuledMe - I have a hard time getting enough fat without consuming dairy or intact nuts (can't chew them well enough), coconut or chocolate.  So many fat bombs are chocolate and I already eat too much of it!  In this recipe I will sub ghee for butter and coconut milk fat for heavy cream.

This podcast was quite interesting:
High Intensity Health with Dr. Russell Jaffe - they touch on SIBO at around 48ish minutes and what he has to say pretty interesting.  Not sure he understands how recalcitrant SIBO can be for some of us!

Resolor

I've been itchy.  Not the typical middle of the belly itch that indicates I've eaten something reactive but along my sides.  Resolor has lactose in it so my guess was that was the culprit so I bought some lactase enzymes to see if it helped.  I'm still taking 0.25mg (or 1/4 of a tablet).  Turns out the culprit may be H. Pylori.  That is why my stomach has felt so weird and that is likely why I have been itchy again.  Which leads me to - what in my last protocol got the H.Pylori into such a tizzy when it really didn't give me much of an inclination that it there before???  

Doing research over the weekend in prep for the meeting with the ND medical director of my nutrition program.  But also seriously contemplating filling out the form to see if Dr. Ruscio will accept me.  The SIBO, thyroid, adrenal and now H.Pylori mess is getting to be too overwhelming and I'm a questioner so I have a hard time trusting that providers have knowledge of it all.  I know Dr. Ruscio does because he talks about all these things in his podcasts and he was at the SIBO Symposium.

Hello H. Pylori

Ya unwelcome intruder. Not sure what this means in terms of treatment. I know conventional is a couple of different antibiotics and Prilosec which sounds terrible with the SIBO I have left!  The array 10 showed I am reacting to mastic gum so that's out. Will meet via phone with the medical director of my nutrition program on Monday to see what she recommends.  The hits just keep on coming!  Ha!

Free to watch until Wednesday

The Sacred Science

I like stuff like this, maybe you will too.  Made me think about the book The Loving Diet (nope don't have it yet but it's on the short list).  

That said, my weight is creeping back up about 1/2 lb a day without be enjoying those extra calories, and my belly is getting bigger, up almost an inch in the last 3-4 days.  Discouraging to say the least.  May need to start digging deeper.

Doing the 5 spot will provide a physical clue, maybe I need to start exploring the mental/emotional ones too!

uBiome sale!

http://ubiome.com/pages/buynow

All test kits 50% off until Halloween!  I got the 5 spot.  Always had sinus and gum issues, what kind of bacteria lurk there???  I get to find out in 4-6 weeks!

They emailed me this link/code http://ubiome.refr.cc/2KJD2L4 for 10% off.  Is it really on top of the 50% off?  I don't know but you can try!  

Update - you will not get an extra 10% off on top of the 50% off.  But if you miss the sale then at least you still get 10%!

Results finally - Breath Test #8

Results from May 2015. Breath test number 7.

Results from this month after gacking down guar gum with my herbal kill supplements.  

Not really what I was expecting given that my C and bloating have pretty much resolved. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it.  And it's not negative (like it says) because any methane at or above 3 is positive and really you shouldn't have any methane at all. And if there were no methanogens to eat the hydrogen gas, the hydrogen numbers would be higher. That said, I'm not having any real SIBO symptoms, maybe a little mild bloating throughout the day but not enough to change what I wear (I'm really self conscious when I have a gut and great at hiding it).  I am having D which is a super nice change.  Those with C understand :)

AND notice the date tested is 10/17, a full 10 days ago.  I sent an email questioning why I didn't get the results sooner, especially since I called on the 21st and was told they weren't ready.  Their response:

Hi Shari,

Our turn around time for sending results to the ordering provider for tests taken with kits at home is no later than 2 weeks from the date the completed kit is received in the lab. After samples are tested, they also must be interpreted and the results finalized before we release the results. This depends on how many other kits we received ahead of your kit.

We also do not release results directly to patients unless/until we receive a signed release of information form.

For SIBO tests taken here at the clinic, the turn around time for results is faster, either same day or next day.

Let us know if you have any other questions.

Best,

Audra
--
Audra Lee, M.S.
NCNM SIBO Lab
P 503-552-1931
F 503-444-6709

My response was along the lines of "the numbers are the numbers", it's not like they add any sort of interpretation or add a narrative or really anything.  I also may have said I recommend to others in the SIBO community that they find another lab with a reasonable turnaround time :)

Okay, enough ranting!!  

I'm good where I am so I'm just going to sit on it for awhile, continue with the MegaSpore and hope that the hype is right and it does contain the number one strain used in Europe to treat SIBO.  Although I've never seen anyone from Europe actually talk about MegaSpore or using probiotics in the forums (I guess if their SIBO is gone they wouldn't need to be there too!).  I'll stick with low FODMAPs for at least 6 weeks and decide what to do then.  Until then I'll focus on getting my adrenals and thyroid noodled out.  My worry is until this infecton is gone nothing else will heal.  Guess time will tell!

And I've bounced back

Not sure what the bloat was about those couple of days but it had me a bit worried.  Back on track now.  Finally down a few pounds but man I feel empty and hungry a lot.  And trust me I eat a lot of food and a ton of fat.  It just seems like it moseys on through my digestive tract instead of sitting like an undigested brick which is what I am way more accustomed to.

Super anxious to get my breath test results.  How much do you want to bet the test sheet will say the results were read days ago.  Need to let it go.  It's out of my control and I wouldn't change anything right this minute regardless.  

And I have some bigger fish to fry at the moment.  My midterm practical is two very short days away and they haven't sent me my mock client information to review.  Gaaaaa!  

Off to take a Yin yoga class from my very favorite teacher.  A round trip commute of over 2 hours for an hour long class but it will be so worth it and I'll get errands done along the way.

Mother F'ing Bloat

I ate one tiny baked good with almond flour, coconut flour, eggs, and maple syrup with dinner last night.  I ended up bloating, not horribly, just about an inch.  From which ingredient I don't know.  I'm not supposed to eat eggs, it wasn't high in FODMAPs.

Today I ate lunch in a rush and bloated, again an inch.  Not bad but I am disappointed.  I'm trying to keep an open mind and not take it as a bad sign.  If my test comes back clean only to have me relapse before I even get the results I will be incredibly pissed.

Things have been..... um..... incomplete since I took out the bile and added in the Resolor.  I added back in a little bit of bile with breakfast and it was very effective.  It only takes a tiny bit now to get things moving.  Contemplating increasing the Resolor back up to 0.5mg. I just don't want to force my body off it's normal schedule.

The Digestion Sessions Coming Soon (again)!

November 1-8, all 25 talks will be free.

http://digestionsessions.com/

Resolor - Day 2

Ahhhh, much better!  I took 1/4 of a 1mg tablet an hour before bed last night.  My stomach did some mild gurgling and contracting but no mad dash for the bathroom.  I feel like it moved things along as they would more normally transition.  No headaches, no hunger.  I wouldn't say my morning trip to the bathroom was normal but much closer than the night before last!!

It's weird to not be taking a bunch of stuff to keep my bowels moving.  I have taken magnesium every night for as long as I can remember at least until I added in the ox bile.  If you're bound up, look into it.
Article on WiseGeeks, not sure how accurate but I like the explanations
An article from Livestrong

Having some excellent discussions regarding SIBO, Intestinal Permeability and testing with the mentor group for the nutrition certification course I am taking.  It's so much fun to bounce around ideas.  Their current standard is to recognize that while someone likely has SIBO you should test for IP instead and treat that first.  My belief is it should be the other way around. Who cares if you have IP if you have SIBO.  The IP will resolve once SIBO goes away and you can't repair IP until SIBO is gone.  It scares me a little that I think talking about all this is so much fun.  I also got a package during lunch and was sad to discover it was Amazon and not my DUTCH test.  There is seriously something wrong with me!

Resolor - Day One

At the SIBO Symposium Dr. Seibecker said, take someone with constipation and give them diarrhea and they won't mind much.  Take someone with diarrhea and give them constipation and they will NOT be happy.

I took Resolor for the first time last night at bedtime.  I cut a 1mg pill in half.  About an hour later my gut started contracting, not painful but noticeable from my stomach all the way down. I was out of bed and in the bathroom expelling everything and I mean EVERYTHING shortly after. To the point of almost being nauseous.  This was exactly what was going through my head. Ha ha!

At the end I was starving, not sure my body was done digesting my dinner :) and a bit head-achy, which is understandable since it was almost instantaneous dehydration. I had measured my belly at bedtime so measured again and I was down more that 1/2 inch. Wowsa!  I know there are people who take a ton (more than 2mg) without any relief and I think this shows either the power of methane gas and it's ability to paralyze the gut or ICC damage from food poisoning.

For now I'm taking Ox Bile completely out.  I was taking around 250mg with meals.  Tonight I will cut one of the Resolor caps into quarters so I am taking 0.25mg.  I'll eat dinner earlier and take it an hour before bedtime to see if that makes a difference.  Fingers crossed!

Pardon my venting....

Right on the breath test box it says something like results must be taken within 2 weeks of testing.  That will be 2 days from now.  So I called NCNM, squeaky wheel gets the grease and all. They called me back and said the results will be sent to my provider around the 27th.  I said, he marked the form so results would come directly to me.  Oh yes he did, he replied, so you will need to fill out a Release of Information.  A Release of Information to get my OWN results????  Are you kidding me.  And then he said something about an additional 7 day waiting period that may be waived but it was hard to follow.  I said on the box it says that the sample must be tested within 14 days.  Oh, it will be, he said but they need time (7 days apparently) to get the numbers on a piece of paper and faxed out.  That's such bullshit!!  If you have had the breath test done in person you know that the sample goes in the machine and at the end the results are spit out.  There's no lengthy analysis that happens.  No off to the radiologist for interpretation.  It's not frigging rocket science.  

Mark my words this is the LAST time I will be using the lab at NCNM.  For those of you who need a breath test your provider can get them elsewhere for the same price or cheaper with a 1-2 day turnaround. This is another option for your provider to use.  And if you don't have a provider you can order your own test from Australia, although it's an additional $30 for shipping and I can't imagine the turnaround is quick given the time it takes to get a package mailed internationally, but I'd be money it's still quicker than NCNM!!!  You can also get them from directlabs.com but it's $289 (ouch!).

Things to consider.

10-reasons-your-sibo-is-not-healing

I'm also hearing amazing things about her book.

Still twiddling my thumbs, waiting on results.  Meanwhile my gut feels weird a lot of the time, empty to the point of maybe being a bit raw.

I take my H. Pylori test tomorrow and hopefully my DUTCH test comes in the mail tomorrow so I can take that also.  I need some answers!

WTF?

I've spent my morning running back and forth to the bathroom.  This NEVER happens. Would be nice to have my breath test results!  Are all the methanogens gone and now I just have a bit of hydrogen left swinging me more to the D side of things?  I've changed nothing the past couple of days, not a thing.  I did find a Nutricology Ox Bile that is 125mg.  Will be good to reduce my dose.  I have been taking 500mg at meals and that seems almost too much. Keeps things moving but almost too good.

Needless to say I have things planned today!  I can't be running to the toilet all day!  Arg.

Oh and my weight's going back up even though I haven't changed diet or exercise.  Weird. It's all about the bugs!

Waiting on results....

It's been a week since my last antimicrobials and will be a week tomorrow since my breath test.  Since then I've just been sticking to a strict low FODMAP, mostly AIP diet.  The AIP part is only because so many of those foods showed up on my Array 10.

My belly still seems pretty big.  Inflammation?  Bloat?  I don't know but it seems to be slowly getting smaller.  My weight is slowly coming down.  My BM's have been spot on which is amazing since I'm not taking Magnesium at bedtime.

So what am I doing these days?

• Glutamine 2-3 times a day
• Zinc L-Carnosine 2-3 times a day
• Iberogast before meals
• Ox Bile with meals
• OrthoBiotic with breakfast
• Primal Defense between breakfast and lunch
• MegaSpore Biotic with lunch
• LDN at bedtime (will be switching to Resolor in a few days)

While waiting for the DUTCH test to arrive I have slowly (purposely) run out of all the adrenal support I was taking.  The only thing I am taking is Gaia Adrenal Health, it doesn't have additional DHEA or pregnenolone or adrenal gland, it's just herbs and I actually feel better.  It's also just so nice to be taking less supplements.

Other news...... we got a new car and a rooster.  The car is a used Toyota Highlander Hybrid, great gas mileage and will be good for camping.  Car shopping sucks and it's nice to have it done with.  The rooster was offered up on our neighborhood buy nothing fb group.  I was planning on eating him (she knew that when she gave it to me), but he's so pretty and funny and isn't crowing, so he's sticking around. Roosters are not allowed in the city, as long as he keeps his beak shut he's good :)  

A Good Article from Chris Kresser

http://chriskresser.com/why-diet-alone-is-not-enough-to-treat-sibo/

I think we do need to take out the most problematic foods to make life more liveable when discovering SIBO and possible triggers, but to be so restrictive as to remove them all could just possibly make the bacteria go dormant, which means lots more treatment with little success.  I personally would have much rather kept my diet the same if it meant that the killing would be easier, quicker and less expensive!

Great Post for those with SIBO

I wish I was this good with my thoughts and words!

http://sibowithhope.com/2015/10/08/words-of-wisdom-for-sibo-newbies/

Diatomaceous Earth

Yes I did!  I bought some diatomaceous earth and drank 1/4 tsp in water today.  It made me feel kind of weird.  It's supposed to help your body detox, kills parasites (not that any could survive in my body after all the protocols I've done) and has minerals in it.  I won't be doing it daily but I'm going to try to do it a few times a week.  On other days I may drink bentonite clay.  Just playing around to see if I feel any different if I use some detoxing products.  They are supposed to be really great for die off symptoms (and have been recommended by my various ND's) but since I've never experienced die off I've never used them.  Will be interesting to see if they have an impact on how I feel, will help reduce my inflamed gut and get rid of the extra freaking 7 lbs I'm lugging around.

My Resolor arrived today.  I must admit, I'm a little scared.  It's supposed to be some pretty potent stuff.  I think I will wait until Monday to start it.  Perhaps swtich the Motilpro to mid-morning with my Primal Defense and do Resolor at night instead.  I think adding it in to everything I'm already doing would be recipe for disaster since I seem to be in a really good place right now.

My bad is almost 100%, my massage and chiro appt tomorrow should get me the rest of the way there.  I pulled out my Becoming a Supple Leopard book and my The Role Model book to work on stretching out my hip flexors and rolled my belly.  It helped so much.  Tomorrow should get me the rest of the way there!  Yay!

No more guar!

I've only got one or so more days of my kill supplements so I am stopping the guar gum and will just take the supplements with my meals.  Tomorrow will be my last day of Allicin, Oregano and Biocidin.  I ran out of Olivirex a day or two ago.  I have two more days of Berberine. Will do the follow up breath test on Friday or Saturday.  Then wait on pins and needles for who know how long for the results. That's always the worst part.  Although it will be easier this time because I am need a break from all the killing. Really the worst part is going back to being super strict with diet which means cutting back on avocados :( and no more sweet potatoes (the ferment potential is just too high) and NO MORE FRENCH FRIES or potatoes or leftover potato skins no matter how much I want them.

Have I told you how much I like Ox Bile.  Ha ha.  It makes things so smooth and easy.  Why didn't any of my NDs tell me about this little trick???  Since bile activates Rifaximin I wonder if it be beneficial to take it during treatment??  Dr. Pimental says that once Rifaximin goes into the large intestine there is no more bile so the Rifaximin crystalizes and passes right through without disturbing the large intestine flora.  Wonder if taking excess bile would keep the Rifaximin active throughout the colon??  That would be bad...  Hmmmm.  

I have yoga teacher training for the next 5 weekends and I just put my back out last weekend.  Thanks to my chiro it's healing quickly this time.  Her orders, no sitting. I've been doing way too much sitting (and reading in bed) and not enough yoga and walking which I used to do daily.  I call it taking a break, but I'm really just getting out of shape obviously since I can't bend over to pick up my hat without throwing my back out.  Standing is not comfortable and the first time I walked I thought I was going to have to call someone for a ride home but everything loosened up halfway through the walk and I'm been improving ever since.  My massage therapist had Monday and Tuesday off this week so I can't see him until Thursday.  Ah well, gives me a chance to resolve some of the resulting muscle spasms a bit before he digs into them.  And my husband loves me so much that he has sympathy muscle spasms in his back.  Good times!  LOL!  Seriously, I'm not complaining at all, we have a lovely easy life 99% of the time.  It's hiccups like this that remind you to get off your ass and take care of yourself.

Off to tackle laundry mountain!

I may be overdoing it!

I have been drinking guar gum with my morning and afternoon kill supplements.  I just can't do it after dinner so I've been making sure to include some starchy carbs with dinner.  All good but then the starchy carbs evolved into rice, refried beans, sweet potatoes, avocado, plantain chips, oh my... and up goes the bloat and up goes the weight.  I definitely need to get myself under control. LOL!  Especially since I'm nearing the end of my supplements.  It's one thing to feed the little bastards to keep them active, it's another thing to provide them with an endless smorgasboard!