Drained and losing weight

[jojokarak]

Hi hope your all well. Its just a query to see if anyone else has experienced what is going on with me at moment.

I have had diarrhoea now for 3 and a half weeks, at first I was obviously told to stop taking lactulose, to see if it would clear up, it didn't. I have had my bloods done and also given a sample to be tested but both have come back clear and free of any infections.

I am sick of living on a basic diet now I have no energy at all and my GP is stumped at what is going on, I have contacted my consultants Secretary to ask her to leave a message for him about what is happening and see if he has a solution ..... but still waiting.

Has anyone had diarrhoea for that length with no explanation???

[susieanna]

Yes, ive heard of this ; having diarrhoea like this; prolonged. Sorry, but i just don't know what the answer is.....is there any way you can alter you diet?

[jojokarak]

I have just been eating the basics what I was told too toast, potatoes, rice, bananas and avoided dairy and spicy foods but nothing working, hopefully if it's not uncommon it may ease off in time hopefully before they have to hospitalise me

[Bolly in reply to jojokarak]

Have you tried cutting out gluten? Do you have any other symptoms like pain or excess gas or cramps? Are you allowed to take immodium.

[jojokarak]

Always got excess gas lol and no pain or cramps and your not allowed Imodium with cirrhosis

[carmik in reply to jojokarak]

Hi

Just wondering what the cause of your cirrhosis is. Do you have any issues with your bile duct?

[Bolly]

Here's hoping the consultant has an answer.

[MisterX]

The obvious possibility is bug or diet. On the assumption a bug has been ruled out then diet would be a possibility. I'm not familiar with the basic diet you mention but the foods you mentioned all lack soluble fibre - which you need to slow things down.

[jojokarak]

Defo no bug... and my diet was healthy all freshly prepared and lots of water... and as you said what I am eating now is to slow things down and I think to give my bowels a well deserved break.

[MisterX in reply to jojokarak]

Hi,

That sounds good but something you said confused me, are you eating foods that contain soluble fibre as opposed to insoluble fibre? Soluble fibre is found in things like oatmeal,lentils, plants and fruits and with the addition of water forms a sort of slow moving sludge. Without it things can get rather "speedy"

[thewayforward]

Maybe you lack probiotics.I would try drinking home made kefir from raw goats milk (but no more than one day old).Start with quarter of a glass first day,then half a glass second day and full glass third day,and so on.It's also full of vitamins like C and B.

Alternatively you could try probiotics supplement.

[jojokarak]

Thanks and I have been on probiotics for quite a while I also eat live yoghurt, this is why it's confusing as to why its lasting so long.

[thewayforward in reply to jojokarak]

Yes it sounds very strange.Something else you can try - traditional Russian medicine for diarrhoea - dried blueberries.Dried,not fresh.You can put boiling water to make a kind of 'soup' and eat it and drink the liquid as well

[carmik in reply to jojokarak]

Probiotics are not allowed after transplant. My husband has always been careful but we have just been away and he didn't realise the yogart he was eating was live. Has had bad diahorrea so maybe the same could happen when your liver isn't functioning properly.

Hope you find the answer

[RodeoJoe]

Bolly had a point about gluten. I myself have/had liver disease and coeliac disease. I had bad stomached and felt ill for about a year before coeliac disease popped up in my bloods.

[jojokarak]

Bloods have been done and they were all clear, but I will try gluten free see if any improvements 😊

[scottyboy40]

Plenty of cereal, oats, raisins, nuts and berries. This was good for me

a couple of bowls every day. Good luck Jojo. Take care.

[Hidden]

Hi jojo

Diorhea I have had it for years. I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2005 (that was also when I was diagnosed with hep C) the drugs they gave me for the colitis mesasalzine were useless.. They gave me steroid suppositories which helped a little, there are better drugs available but they are hard on the liver. In 2013 as things were getting worse I had another colonoscopey the doctor doing the examination told me that the colitis had gone, and the diorhea must be due to the liver disease. The only thing I can find that gives me some relief from the symptoms is codine. Not a good long term strategy as it's addictive and may affect your ability to drive. I really don't know what is causing this all the doctors can say is it may be due to the liver disease, and once that is sorted the diorhea will probably go away on it's own.

[jojokarak in reply to Hidden]

Hi boab sorry to hear about your struggle with it all, I do suffer with IBS but I have always been constipated when I had a flare up, why I was on so much lactulose and also enemas twice a week that's why doctors are confused lol

[Hidden in reply to jojokarak]

Hi JoJo

Thanks for your concern it is appreciated. As an old hep C warriors one takes life as it comes. One thing I forgot to mention in my reply to you, is blood is there blood in your stools. Blood in the stool can be indicative of some serious problems such as cancer, chrones disease, and colitis. I'm sure you have discussed this with your medical team.

Take care😀

[jojokarak in reply to Hidden]

Oh I would of been at A&E if I had blood in stools has happened before 2 years ago and defo wouldn't leave till they sorted it.

[Bolly]

A further thought. As you are on the transplant assessment route I'm guessing you will need to be a healthy weight as part of the assessment. Have you thought of asking your GP for some of these nutritional drinks available on prescription - Fortisip springs to mind as one brand. They have all the calories, fibre and nutrients someone unable to eat a normal diet needs, and by using these for a short time you may be able to stop the diarrhoea, stabilise your weight and then work out what was causing it in the first place. Patients with Crohns or colitis undergoing flares get put on similar liquid nutrition to calm the gut until things settle again and they can go back to a 'normal' diet.

[thewayforward in reply to Bolly]

There is Fortijuice and you can buy it online,no prescription needed,from chemist.net.But expensive!

[jojokarak in reply to Bolly]

Not complaining about weight loss at moment I needed to lose some anyway lol but I am worried about vitamins and minerals so I will ask GP tomorrow as I have an appointment for more tests.. thank you

[scottyboy40 in reply to Bolly]

Fortisip is really good,it has helped me no end with my diet issues and nourishment. 2 a day does the trick for me but sometimes i do have trouble getting them from gp's.Also you need to drink plenty of fluids while taking them.

Good point Bolly, these are a great supplement.

Ask the dietician at your clinic,there should be one available a couple days a week Jojo.

[Bolly]

Dioralyte is a good way to replace electrolytes and minerals lost quickly through diarrhoea and you can buy it in sachets from a pharmacy. dioralyte.co.uk/ Supplements like Fortisip are not designed for weight loss, but what substituting them for food for a short time may do is calm your gut and stop the diarrhoea until such time as you can work out what caused it.

[jules45]

I have a very unpredictable gut. The last time I had severe diarrhoea was when my liver was failing in 2010 and I had C diff but you have ruled out a bug so I can only think that its hopefully a temporary blip. Fortisip do give your stomach a rest and give well needed nutrients. I have them on script for days when I have a bad stomach and can't face food but have to get something down me. Porridge usually binds me - I eat the special K original one you do in the microwave comes in sachets. It seems to stay in my stomach and Im not dashing to the loo straight after. You can make it with Rice or Soya milk if you wish if your dairy intolerant. Sorry can't be more of a help but best of luck.

Wishing you well

julie