from anti-depressants to Pepto Bismol
#220567 - 10/20/05 05:06 PM
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jen1013
Reged: 05/06/05
Posts: 1322
Loc: the wabe
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OK, if anyone remembers ... my symptoms have been so unfailingly bad I decided to go to a different GI and get a second opinion. He wanted to do a second colonoscopy but kept telling me I was depressed. After the colonoscopy he said that nothing was wrong and that I just needed to get on anti-depressants and I would probably be fine.
Soooo, I got a copy of the letter that the GI sent to my doctor. Guess what? There is NO mention of depression whatsoever! NO mention of going on anti-depressants! He says that based on my symptoms that I have post-infectious IBS and that he recommends taking Pepto Bismol every day.
WTF?????? What happened to my depression??????
So here is what's interesting. He mentions the results of my biopsies. They were normal except one that had "mild focal neutrophil infiltrate." Since I haven't gone to any doctors since my colonoscopy, the only reason why it would seem he'd change his mind would be the biopsies. So was it this one mildly abnormal biopsy that changed his mind? I don't even understand the medical term -- does this maybe mean there was a little bit of inflammation and it looked like it was left-over from a GI infection? I know I should call the office and ask, but I am still too mad about it.
And does Pepto Bismol really do any good for this? He said to take it 1-2 times a day for 3-4 months. I know, I know, I'll do a search for it. I do know that Pepto does ZERO for my D, so if it's supposed to help something, it's not gonna help that!
Ohhhh, I just love doctors...
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jen
"It's one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle -- to get one's head cut off." -- LC
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Mild focal neutrophil infiltrate means that one of the pieces of tissues they biopsed had a small localized penetration of white blood cells. So yeah, basically possibly small infection? But obviously not much to worry about since the original doc did nothing.
I can't stand Peptobismol, since I was given it as a kid anytime my stomach hurt, and (TMI alert) after having to clean some up after my youngest brother couldn't keep it down. Try some Immodium for your D instead, just be careful to not make yourself C in the process. Are you on an SFS? The diet's what helped me get rid of most of the D, the SFS is really what's helped me stabilize.
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Melissa
Friendship is thicker than blood. ~Rent
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I take Pepto Bismol at least once a week in the morning and took it daily when things were really unstable. It does help calm things down for me, so I can make it to work.
I had my follow-up appt. with my GI doc the other day. He didn't have a problem me taking it. (I started taking it on my own before I even found this site & the diet.) Anyhoo, he confirmed my suspicion that I have post-infectious IBS.
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Try Immodium instead. Pepto justs turns my stomach! 
I have post-infectious IBS too and my biopsies had a similar thing! 
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I had to take so much Pepto that my tongue turned black and even then I'm not sure that the Pepto helped -- or that I just ran out of poop to expel (sorry for the gross image).
Now if I start to feel an attack soming on I take one Immodium AD. That usually takes care of it. I never take more than one at a time because I don't want to end up constipated. Even if I am in the midst of an attack I take one at a time. It works so much better.
I also agree about the fiber. Best thing for real stability.
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I guess I'm just weird then!  The taste of Pepto just doesn't bother me.
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Don't you love that black-tongue effect? That's why I quit Pepto.
Kate.
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but black colored stool! I nearly drove myself to the emergency once until I found information that said it causes black color in your stool too. Yuck! I will admit though it does help me for some general stomach discomfort (non-IBS) at times.
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Before I knew I had IBS, we went on a family vacation to Orlando. Our children were the age that they enjoyed the rides -- and we went to Sea World... that kind of thing... in September! It was sooooo hot. We ate so much fast food. Can you picture what kind of shape I was in? I ate pepto like it was water... I think it was only the second morning I woke up to brush my teeth and my tongue was black... I had been sicker than sick... I thought I was dying of something strange... We were at the point of possibly going to the hospital over Pepto tongue... when I remembered reading something about it before.... "oh yeah... I think it might have been on the package" I felt like such a dork!
You should have seen me trying to scrub it off my tongue!!
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I was really worried about the black "tar" in the toilet and my paved tongue and thought I was dying or really in trouble.
It takes a lot of baking soda to lose the black tonque effect.
Kate, IBS-D.
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I have been taking tons of Imodium on a daily basis, ever since I first got really sick (July 2004). Early on I did use Pepto a couple times, but it never helped a speck. I was just wondering if it was supposed to do anything from the post-infectious standpoint, or if it was supposed to help curtail the D.
For the first time, though, I have to wonder -- if this is post-infectious, then what was the infection? I mean, if I got this sick AFTER the initial infection, shouldn't I have been deadly ill with the hypothetical initial infection?
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jen
"It's one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle -- to get one's head cut off." -- LC
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The Pepto just helped curtail the D in my case. I've never had the impression it helped with the post-infectious IBS.
I'm probably not telling you anything you don't know, but the way it was explained to me, after food poisoning of the sort that brought on my post-infectious IBS, it can take a looong time for all the good flora to be back in the GI system. I wasn't deadly ill after my food poisoning, but I do remember feeling just awful for several days after.
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I think I would definitely talk to the GI or his nurse about the miscommunication. He said there was nothing wrong and then sends the other doc some info on the biopsy with a problem?? He should have discussed this with you, too. I hate docs that are incompetent.
Another thing you could do is talk to your regular doc and tell him the miscommunication problem and maybe he would contact the GI for you and find out what's going on.
In any case, I think you need to get this straightened out or you will never be able to rest.
Pepto only helps me with nausea, I really don't know why he told you to take that.
If you truly feel that you are depressed your regular doc should be able to prescribe something to help you.
Good luck
Barbie
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I am probably not being too clear here. I guess what I was getting at is post-infectious means that I had an infection in the first place, right? Well, I started to gradually have stomach problems -- mostly just some unpleasant gurgling and D-ish moments after eating fast food. And then one day my digestive system just seemed to pretty much give up and I was having D all the time. That's where I've been for over the last year. There was never any point where I got sick. I mean, like you mentioned having food poisoning -- I NEVER had anything like that.
Anyway, I guess it doesn't really matter. Just wondering if I did have an infection bad enough to launch me on this why I wouldn't have noticed. You know?
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jen
"It's one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle -- to get one's head cut off." -- LC
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You may benefit from probiotics. They help the healthy bacteria form in your gut. Have you ever given them a try? Also -- I may have missed it in another post -- but are you on any fiber?
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