It's that time again.
I noticed recently that I've been having more frequent and stinkier gas from foods that normally don't bother me. I've been a bit lax about it, because it didn't bother me on our trip at the end of January, but since I got home, it has become an issue again. I've been pretty careful (hardly perfect) about eating things that bother me from time to time (milk and wheat, for the most part), but the dose:volume/stench ratio was getting out of hand. Annoyingly, for the last week, have been particularly peeved to find that I was getting cramps from gas at the end of my daily bike ride, which would then last most of the evening - no matter what I ate up until that point.
I have a deal with both my PCP and Rabkin (PCP requires me to get a written prescription from Rabkin that she administers) about using Flagyl - no more than one course/three months (obviously, open to being revisited if things become unmanageable). Last year, I was doing a course pretty much every three months. So I called the pharmacy yesterday, hoping it had been three months since my last course.
To my surprise, when I asked the pharmacist when the last time I did a course, I was told it had been in September. So, actually, it's been five months this time - perhaps things are getting better instead of worse?
CAVEATS for the newbies: Flagyl can make your farts not smell, and your poops smell less foul, pretty much after the first dose or two. Because of this, some DSers have been known to "abuse" it - taking it in order to splurge on carbs. Besides the obvious risk of having less reason to avoid weight-affecting carbs, misusing the first line of defense against C. diff (and there are only a couple of back-up antibiotics) is NOT a good idea. Use of subtherapeutic dosage amounts or regimens is an EXCELLENT way to breed antibiotic resistant C. diff in your gut. And it can interact badly with alcohol and/or SSRIs - I am UBER cautious about drinking while taking it.
I didn't use Flagyl for the first several years - it was only about 4 years ago that I started having to do a course from time to time. I have heard from other longer-outs that they also have had more problems over time, but I was wondering how universal this is.
So for the vets (at least 3 years out) - I'd like to know if you use Flagyl (metronidazole) and if so, how you use it. How much do you take? How often? Are you using it according to a doctor's prescription, or buying FishZole on the internet or at a pet store?
My prescription is 500 mg x 3/day x 10 days. However, I will probably only take it twice a day, as I find that effective, and I keep a store of the other 1/3 of the prescription on hand for "emergencies" - which I've never had, though I feel more secure knowing I could take it for a plane flight or major meeting if I was worried about having a difficult time (wait - I took some on an international flight in 2010, because I didn't want to be worried about farting or stinky poop on a 15 hour flight). Also, most of the time, I work from home, so I don't have to be as "careful" as I used to be, and I'm much more casual about it at home (my husband doesn't seem to mind). But when I start offending myself, I know there is a problem brewing in my guts.
Further:
IMHO, a round of Flagyl is in order when reasonable modification of diet does not prevent gas and discomfort, and/or when the gas interferes significantly with your life - when you find yourself uncomfortably distracted during a meeting at work; when you can't enjoy going places where you can't quickly get away to fart; that kind of thing.
Usually, controlling my carbs controls my gas - right now, I'm getting gassy from things that don't usually bother me, like a cheese omelet or cornmeal. And my poops are too firm despite eating a good amount of fat.
Yesterday, I was at an all day conference, and besides having to get up early to finish my pooping "off schedule" (since I work at home, I usually go about 3 times over the course of the morning), and being super careful about my eating, I ended up with painful gas and having to step out of the course to go poop twice in the afternoon. Unacceptable. And there is no possibility of "letting one slip" under pressure these days either - the odor is significantly worse than normal and sphincter control and vigilance is not optional. Very uncomfortable.
I noticed recently that I've been having more frequent and stinkier gas from foods that normally don't bother me. I've been a bit lax about it, because it didn't bother me on our trip at the end of January, but since I got home, it has become an issue again. I've been pretty careful (hardly perfect) about eating things that bother me from time to time (milk and wheat, for the most part), but the dose:volume/stench ratio was getting out of hand. Annoyingly, for the last week, have been particularly peeved to find that I was getting cramps from gas at the end of my daily bike ride, which would then last most of the evening - no matter what I ate up until that point.
I have a deal with both my PCP and Rabkin (PCP requires me to get a written prescription from Rabkin that she administers) about using Flagyl - no more than one course/three months (obviously, open to being revisited if things become unmanageable). Last year, I was doing a course pretty much every three months. So I called the pharmacy yesterday, hoping it had been three months since my last course.
To my surprise, when I asked the pharmacist when the last time I did a course, I was told it had been in September. So, actually, it's been five months this time - perhaps things are getting better instead of worse?
CAVEATS for the newbies: Flagyl can make your farts not smell, and your poops smell less foul, pretty much after the first dose or two. Because of this, some DSers have been known to "abuse" it - taking it in order to splurge on carbs. Besides the obvious risk of having less reason to avoid weight-affecting carbs, misusing the first line of defense against C. diff (and there are only a couple of back-up antibiotics) is NOT a good idea. Use of subtherapeutic dosage amounts or regimens is an EXCELLENT way to breed antibiotic resistant C. diff in your gut. And it can interact badly with alcohol and/or SSRIs - I am UBER cautious about drinking while taking it.
I didn't use Flagyl for the first several years - it was only about 4 years ago that I started having to do a course from time to time. I have heard from other longer-outs that they also have had more problems over time, but I was wondering how universal this is.
So for the vets (at least 3 years out) - I'd like to know if you use Flagyl (metronidazole) and if so, how you use it. How much do you take? How often? Are you using it according to a doctor's prescription, or buying FishZole on the internet or at a pet store?
My prescription is 500 mg x 3/day x 10 days. However, I will probably only take it twice a day, as I find that effective, and I keep a store of the other 1/3 of the prescription on hand for "emergencies" - which I've never had, though I feel more secure knowing I could take it for a plane flight or major meeting if I was worried about having a difficult time (wait - I took some on an international flight in 2010, because I didn't want to be worried about farting or stinky poop on a 15 hour flight). Also, most of the time, I work from home, so I don't have to be as "careful" as I used to be, and I'm much more casual about it at home (my husband doesn't seem to mind). But when I start offending myself, I know there is a problem brewing in my guts.
Further:
IMHO, a round of Flagyl is in order when reasonable modification of diet does not prevent gas and discomfort, and/or when the gas interferes significantly with your life - when you find yourself uncomfortably distracted during a meeting at work; when you can't enjoy going places where you can't quickly get away to fart; that kind of thing.
Usually, controlling my carbs controls my gas - right now, I'm getting gassy from things that don't usually bother me, like a cheese omelet or cornmeal. And my poops are too firm despite eating a good amount of fat.
Yesterday, I was at an all day conference, and besides having to get up early to finish my pooping "off schedule" (since I work at home, I usually go about 3 times over the course of the morning), and being super careful about my eating, I ended up with painful gas and having to step out of the course to go poop twice in the afternoon. Unacceptable. And there is no possibility of "letting one slip" under pressure these days either - the odor is significantly worse than normal and sphincter control and vigilance is not optional. Very uncomfortable.
