I Think I Can Claim Cure Now

[Patient2apoint]

I owe this to all the good people who use this board and lend encouragement, information and support, and most of all good questins. Thanks for just being here and reaching out. Sorry I was not more help to anyone, but I was usually not in an upbeat mood (more on that below) most of the time i was suffering. I am better now! And it will take wild horses, or the threat of death, to get me to accept another antibiotic.

I am over it. The infection, anyway.

I took my last Vanco pill 6 months ago on May 13, 2012 after needing it almost continuously for 17 months. I ended after a 6 month very gradual taper from 1000mg daily to 125 every 3rd day. I had a total of 3 lengthy tapers of oral Vanco from April 2011 to May 2012 because I relapsed within 4 to 7 days after Vanco was stopped. I originally got ill after Clindamycin following a dental procedure in November 2010, had 2 courses of Flagyl before switching to Vanco and relapsed after each course for 3 months until the first high dose taper began in April 2011. Vanco stopped the worst "D" problems, but it never restored normalcy. Maybe normalcy as i knew it before cdiff will never return.

I never tried Dificid. Or transfer.

GI problems were varied and uncomfortable throughout treatment, as is regularly reported here. I found the illness completely debilitating and isolating even with Vanco, as I rarely felt confident things would stay under control. Sometimes they didn't, but there seemed to be a qualitative diference between C diff stuff and other stuff. IBS developed along the way. After ending Vanco in May, I was treated with Hyosciamine for IBS symptoms, and it helped. I have not needed any IBS meds for a few months now. But, two bad days in a row can return me to a funk.

Speaking of funk: depression can be a part of this infection and I encourage all to take it seriously and get it treated. Anxiety is said to be a major problem with cdiff, it was for me also, and I will say a low dose of Ativan really helped me, especially at night. There is no point at all in suffering with anxiety and depression resulting from cdiff and all the games it can lay with your head. Suffering from cdiff and its medications is bad enough.Try to feel as good as you can and get the help to do so.

Probiotics probably did not help me a lot, though I took massive quantities for the last 8 months, including for a while after stopping Vanco. I was reluctant to stop "just in case". I recently read somewhere that a fecal study showed under 20% of our intestinal flora is from lacto and bifido sources, so at best commercially available probiotics help around the margin. It seems taking them prior to and/or with a course of antibiotics may have a preventative effect. Canadian hospitals apparently use probiotics that way.

Were I to do one thing differently, I would have been more aggressive about seeking a microbiotic transfer--fecal transfer. that seems like the ticket to quicker, saner recovery.

To sum it up: there is light at the end of the tunnel with recurrent cdiff. I am very grateful to the people who posted their treatments and questions here. I used them to do more research and ask intellegent questions of my ID doc. She was impressed with some of the info I possessed (and claimed never to have checked out this board).

Thanks and good luck to all.
J-

[diane]

Glad you are finally cured!!! I had it for 3 years and it takes a toll on you mentally and physically. Keep your head up.. eventually your body will feel better :)

[Bobbie]

Glad you are well and that the site helped you. Please check in now and then to support others.

[jeannieology]

So happy for you. God bless and keep you well.

[getwellsoon]

My case sounds similar to yours. I am now 6 months post Vanco taper and 7 months post Dificid. I won't post in Success Stories for a while yet, I relapsed 4 months out last time so I'm gun shy. I'm so happy for you and hope you continue with good health. Thank you for coming back and posting your success. Carol