men conquering diarrhea page four
The tale of...Joe
This is an update to the tale in the suffering tales section. Having been suffering for so long, in May I went to get a second opinion in France. They did an ultrasound followed by a barium follow-through which showed major inflammation and blockage of my small intestine (jejunum).
The gastro thought that it was most likely a lymphoma (cancer). I panicked for about an hour after I found that out but eventually calmed down. I went back to my local gastro who finally started to get things moving.
Since the French gastro had suggested a CT scan and laporotomy I was sent to see a surgeon who was very reassuring. I got the CT scan done and they took me in for exploratory surgery. It took a fortnight to get the results back from the pathology lab, during which time they kept me in hospital to give me TPN (feeding through a vein).
The diagnosis came back as either sarcoidosis or a very weird Crohn's. They started me on steroids and immunosupressants, and I stayed on those for two months. In late June I had another barium follow through which showed no improvement so they decided to send me to the local university hospital.
The operation took four hours and three surgeons, during which time they removed three sections of bowel and balloon stretched some strictures. Once I'd got over the initial pain of someone cutting a big hole in my belly I felt a thousand times better.
By the time I was released a week later I was permanently starving (the steroids) and full of energy. I've since put back on 52lbs and apart from the side effects of the immuno-suppressants (joint pains) I'm feeling a lot better.
The final diagnosis is Crohn's which caused major irreversible damage to the parts of the intestine that they cut out. It's a pity they didn't catch it before I was seriously ill, instead of fobbing me off with excuses of 'It's IBS, there's no cure so live with it!'
The tale of...Michael
Not a story as such but a few thoughts that might be helpful! I have had digestion problems for 15 to 20 years now. Though not as severe as many of the stories here, I have loose and 'explosive' bowels as the norm...Usually it releases in the morning and then I am OK for the rest of the day. So not much embarrassment but I have had many health problems with malabsorption, depression, exhaustion etc! Things are getting better/clearer for me...Here are a few thoughts...
- I think some of the root is emotional! I have been doing colonics recently and have been experiencing deep (repressed?) emotions while having them. I wonder if some bowel problems are deeply repressed emotions (gut feelings)? Also using food as a pacifier - ie: eating too much, too little or inconsistently, or being addicted to the wrong foods for our systems.
- I have been researching Chinese and Oriental medicine. They believe that posture and breathing is of utmost importance. The breath acts like 'bellows' for the digestive fire. If the posture is inhibiting the breath, or the breath is not 'nourishing' the digestion and oxygen in the bowels - then you don't properly turn the food to 'ash' and move it cleanly out of your system.
- Also of note - in Chinese medicine the lungs are energetically linked to the large intestine. Also supposedly the earth has much less oxygen/carbon dioxide balance than 200 years ago. 200 years ago: Oxygen 38%; Carbon Dioxide 1%; today: Oxygen 19%, Carbon Dioxide 25%, from deforestation, burning fossil fuels etc. Source: Chi Gung by Daniel Reid.
- The stress of modern life (and chatter in our heads) keeping the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) active - and therefore inhibiting proper digestion (parasympathetic system).
- Much modern food is enzyme-less (body has to produce more of its own enzymes to digest - this stresses the body eventually). So I am trying to eat more fresh, whole foods and vegetables in smaller quantities and chew well! (Proper digestion starts with the saliva in the mouth - I even chew my vitamins and my juices.)
- Being more comfortable with 'germs'. Our systems need good bacteria - I think our modern society has a war going on with bacteria. There is chlorine in the tap water and I think in general we are too clean. I lived in Europe for a while and I noticed that people there were much more comfortable with their bodies - and 'dirtiness'. I think life in North America is too sterile and it is not good for our bowels.
So the areas I'm working on are:
- trying to express deep emotions through body work...Yoga and Chi Gung (Look into Chi Gung or Tai Chi if you have not yet - deep breathing and gentle movements enhancing and balancing bodies energy system)
- eating a regular and very simple diet - (using blood type and food combining guidelines - eat fruit on its own, starch only with vegetables and protein only with vegetables... within reason...)
- not eating if I am not hungry
- cleansing the bowel periodically with herbal cleanse and colonics/juicing (be careful with juice - no fiber! best to eat some whole apples with the juice or other whole fruit/vegetable with veg juice or mix some fiber from juicer back into juice)
- learning to meditate and calm my mind!
- deep belly breathing (singing is great) and better posture
- positive thoughts for my health/the future
- removing all stimulants (especially coffee and cigarettes
- active 'hard' work (sweating) if you have the energy is good for digestion - sometimes I have to literally drag myself out to do gardening but it seems to help (getting anger/aggression out too!)
- loving and feeling loved!
It's a tall order! But I am working on it! I thought I would share these ideas - many of them are common knowledge - but together they are what works for me. This is a great site...best wishes to all!
E-mail Michael: michaelhh[at]canada.com