Here we go!! 24 hours out!!

[ashtontw]

Never thought I'd be posting in this section, but here I am...and I'm 24 hours out from my FMT with Dr. Joseph in Port Charlotte...holy crap! It feels surreal. I have been begging for this since my second relapse. Took six months to find a GI that would refer me out for one after four relapses.

Here's my prep schedule:
2 Dulcolax at 10:00am (just took)
2 Dulcolax at 2:00pm
Drink a 10oz bottle of Magnesium Citrate at 4:00pm

And I'm allowed to have:
Lemon-lime/Orange Jello
Lemon-lime/Orange Gatorade
Lemon-lime/Orange Italian Ice
Low sodium chicken broth

Until midnight. After midnight - no "food" or drinks whatsoever. I don't know what time my procedure is, they are supposed to call me before 6:00pm to let me know.

I'd be lying if I said I'm not scared! I have such high hopes of this being my cure. But I've failed every other treatment so many times, it's like I'm afraid to have high hopes for a cure at the same time. I was told 90-95% cure rate with FMT, and 5-10% chance of needing two FMT's. Does that sound right to anyone?

Any tips, tricks, things I should know...are much appreciated! And I'd just appreciate the company today in general! Thanks guys!

[roy]

If they are using " holy crap " you will be cured.
If you wake up with a halo be carefully it don't slip down.
MANY posters choked to death on a slippy halo.

[beth22]

When I took magnesium citrate, it kept on working and working and I was not able to hold the FMT in. Ask your doctor if you should take Imodium the morning of your procedure. I did that with my first FMT and it worked.

[ashtontw]

Roy - Well that would be a hell of a way to go after making it this far!! Haha!

Beth - Thank you so much for mentioning that. I actually read through a lot of the threads in here earlier and saw that. I emailed my nurse and she said that they will be giving me immodium before and after the procedure, and not to take it because they will be giving it to me at the hospital.

I finished up the Mag. Citrate at 4 and still haven't really been going like crazy. Gone maybe 4 times total since I started the Dulcolax at 10am. Probably speaking too soon, but I really hope it all clears me out enough for the procedure. Definitely starting to have some serious cramping.

What about sanitation at home?? I'm afraid there are some spores hiding somewhere that may reinfect me. Has anyone ever run into that after FMT? I plan on putting my bedding in the wash first thing in the morning before I leave for the hospital and bleaching the entire bathroom head to toe and letting it sit while I'm gone.

Tell you what - I sure am hungry!!!!

[NanciT]

Wishing you the BEST!!!

Keep us updated!!

NanciT

[ashtontw]

Thank you Nanci! I'll post an update after I get home tomorrow. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight - eek!

[georgina]

Before getting the FMT you should do a deep cleaning in your bathroom with bleach.
Try to think positive , don't think about failure , think that is going to be the cure, be optimistic. As you probably read on old posts ,FMT is not a magical cure so do expect to have rough days ahead , everything will get better in time. Ask your doctor about diet after FMT and fiber supplement to help feed your new bacteria.

:)) Roy , you are so funny!

[ashtontw]

Thanks Georgina! I'm definitely gonna bleach my bathroom down before I go. And wash my bedding. I always pour straight bleach into the toilet bowl every BM I have and spray and wipe down the entire toilet and flush with the lid closed. Probably over kill, but my father and brother share the bathroom with me. Been harder today while on prep...lol! Figured I'll bleach it literally right before I leave because I know I'll be back and forth until then.

I will definitely ask about the fiber. I wanna do whatever I can do help this be as successful as possible!

[Lisa33]

Hope the procedure went well and you are now on your road to recovery c-diff FREE!!!

[NikaNik]

Best of luck to you! Wishing you the best and that you will be c diff free after this, for always!

[Bobbie]

Do disinfect your bathroom. Ask about eating fiber to feed the new good bacteria after the procedure. Also ask about using Imodium.

Best of luck. Fingers crossed for you. Believe FMTS have approx. a 94 per cent success rate,Good odds!

[ashtontw]

Hey everyone!
Thank you so much for the well wishes and support!!

I believe I had a successful procedure! The nurses and the doc were great. Dr. Joseph in Port Charlotte, FL - I'd recommend him in a heartbeat. His nurse, Christine, is so sweet and thorough and left no question unanswered.

I was so afraid of being put under. When the anesthesiologist came in and hooked up the meds, I said "I'm scared." She said "You're in good hands" and held my hand until I went out - which was within 2 seconds.

They did give me Imodium before my procedure. I was able to hold in my transfer for the entire 2 hours afterwards without any issue, and I still haven't had to go. I was terrified that my prep didn't clean me out enough as I wasn't going "clear." But Dr. Joseph said everything was perfect, and he didn't even need to irrigate me. When they took me to recovery, he went out to speak with my mom and said he felt very confident about me and that he'd give it a 99% cure rate for me because I'm very young and otherwise healthy. I sure hope he is right!

I know I need to have my wisdom teeth out ASAP, I'm having some incredibly bad jaw pain. I know they can even get infected when impacted. And I have a cyst where the tooth is impacted on the side that is causing pain. My oral surgeon didn't wanna do anything until my C. Diff was cleared. I mentioned this to Dr. Joseph and Christine, and was told to wait at least two weeks and one month if possible before considering any type of antibiotic and to try and stick with low offenders if I do need one. Christine told me they had a patient that had to get a surgery at the two week mark and took antibiotics and did just fine. So maybe if I do need an antibiotic for the wisdom teeth, this "reset" of my GI will keep me safe.

Dr. Joseph is all for taking probiotics and told me to continue back on them tomorrow - Florastor 2x day and my Garden of Life "Colon Care" 1x day. I'm gonna beef these good bacteria up, especially if I'm anticipating another surgery here shortly!

I was told I can eat whatever I want and can tolerate, but I am interested in beefing up the fiber to help the new bacteria. What are the best foods to eat??

[beth22]

Glad your procedure went well and hopefully you will be rid of the c difficile for good now. As far as taking antibiotics for wisdom teeth, usually they are not needed unless you have an infection. My daughter had her wisdom teeth out without them. There is a rinse you can use called Peridex that is antiseptic, so that might be something to ask your dentist about. My husband used that after an extraction and he also did not need to take antibiotics, despite the fact that he had some kind of abscess. The doctor simply cleaned it out and then he used the Peridex rinse.

[ashtontw]

Thank you Beth!

The oral surgeon wants me to get tested to see if I'm allergic to penicillin, he said he thinks that's a lower offending antibiotic. He wants me to have one for backup incase I need it but understands that I don't want to take one. The antiseptic mouth wash makes sense, though! Were any of the wisdom teeth impacted? I only have 3. My top upper is erupted and bottom 2 impacted. Bottom left causing bad pain and they saw a cyst on the x-ray by it. Can't just be done with C Diff and move on with life, right?? Lol...ugh!

[beth22]

All four wisdom teeth were impacted, but she did not need antibiotics - just pain meds for the lower teeth. The upper ones were done later and those were not as bad, although they too, were impacted.