I’m like a toddler, when I’m silent, you know something is up. I’ve been having a gastro flare since March 28th, and it is relentless. I have trouble eating; when I do eat, it hurts more immediately, and the pain is so bad I can’t sleep through the night. Not having solid sleep is wreaking more havoc on my mental health.
I’ve had many gastro flares since I first became septic, but this one is the worst. I couldn’t get in to see my Doctor for a couple of weeks, so I ended up in the emergency room for 12 hours. I was diagnosed with a partial bowel obstruction again. Lucky for me, no surgery, and I got some morphine.
So, what causes this pain that lasts forever? My somewhat educated guess is adhesions from surgeries, GERD, and gastroparesis. It is believed by some gastroenterologists that the vagus nerve was damaged by sepsis and/or the open surgery to clean up my abdominal cavity after my ruptured appendix caused peritonitis. Food enters my body and stays there as long as humanly possible, causing me great discomfort.
Let the Healing Begin
When this happens the best thing for me is to go on bowel rest. If you can’t see through it, you can’t eat it. I did this for a week. Then I started adding in soft, low fiber foods. Fiber is the enemy on a good day but especially when my digestive tract is inflamed.
When you’re eating so little, staying hydrated is the key. It keeps you satiated, but it’s also important to keep your electrolytes balanced. I love MIO vs Gatorade simply due to the packaging. I would drink 8 Gatorades in a day vs 1 MIO, so there’s less to recycle.
Here are my go-to items:
I love bananas and mashed potatoes when I’m ready to introduce soft foods. Eat many little meals until you feel you can handle more solid foods. Here are some other ideas:
Motion is Lotion
It sounds counterintuitive when you’re curled up in the fetal position, but you gotta move! Even if you’re hunched over in pain, do a few laps around your home. Gastroparesis literally causes your intestines to be paralyzed. Movement stimulates the peristalsis that moves food through your digestive tract. If I didn’t move, my partial bowel obstruction could become a complete bowel obstruction which is an emergency!
I found the heat from the shower very soothing, I used heat wraps and a muscle stimulator. My husband bought this for abs of steel, but I found it helpful to shock my intestines back to life.
Dealing With the Pain
I’ve been in daily pain since 2011, so I’m used to dissociating when I have to. I get lost in my crap TV or playing my games. I have pain meds, but they actually slow down the intestines even more.
So, being desperate, I reached for my therapeutic cannabis oil. It helped me eat, reduced the nausea, and let me sleep in longer intervals. Please check with your Doctor if cannabis is a good fit for you before consuming.
I also mentioned GERD was an issue. I have boring pain just below my sternum. I learned from the ER to take a pink lady or GI cocktail. I mix 30 ml of Gaviscon with 30 ml of viscous lidocaine. I call it my Baja Rosa shooter. Does anyone remember these from the 90s,? Sometimes it alleviates the pain momentarily, but again, check with your GP. It’s hard to distinguish between gastro pain and a heart attack so use with caution.
Gaviscon also makes tablets. They’re like Tums but taste better and have a foaming action that I really like. Try them!
Prevention
Who knew poop could be deadly? I’ve got so many tricks in my arsenal (see what I did there) to keep things moving. I take Restorolax every morning. It adds water to your colon so you can have an easier bowel movement. During the time frame of a blockage, I take a second dose at night. I used to take Metamucil, but the psyllium husk, the active ingredient, was too fibrous and caused me blockages. However, it may be beneficial to you.
Some people like stool softeners that you can take orally. I found that once a blockage starts, it’s really hard to eliminate from the top. You can try glycerin suppositories, but those take time to work. I like the immediate relief of fleet enemas. I buy so many that I wonder if my pharmacy is curious about my lifestyle. lol
I know I said it’s hard to eliminate blockages from up top, but when it’s really bad I take lactulose. This adds water to your digestive tract and adds pressure from above to move things down.
It’s very important to consult your Doctor before going this route. Lactulose can be bad for diabetics and is contraindicated if you have a complete bowel obstruction.
I’ve lost track of how many gastro flares I’ve had. I’m just thankful that I have not and do not need a colostomy bag. If and when I do watch out for my sequined line of bag covers.
