Happy birthday to me! <sobs>

[Kristin]

I'm a 28 year old female with a 3 month old and a wonderful husband. This is my 3rd time getting cdiff in the past few months...still haven't gotten my test results, they'll be here by tomorrow....but I already know the symptoms have been obvious. I find myself scrolling through fb now and getting jealous of everyone having fun and going on adventures and enjoying food. Oh how nice it would be to enjoy food again! And my birthday is in a week and we had to cancel our vacation this week. Talk about the pits! I want this horribly awful disease to be gone for good this time and plan on asking my doctor about FMT or going on dificid this time...although I am still breastfeeding and vanco is the only thing to take while breastfeeding. Considering stopping breastfeeding so I can get better. My poor body is being depleted. Any encouragement or advice is appreciated!

[Musings]

Am so sorry you had to cancel a vacation and will be in treatment for c.diff during your birthday. This illness has taken a lot of events away from us but remember that you are young, otherwise healthy, have a good support system in your husband, and you will eventually beat this and be able to enjoy food, go on adventures, and more.

If you haven't already would find a GI and/or ID doctor to consult with since you are on your third relapse. They will know more about c.diff than a PCP and hopefully can get you on a treatment that will work for you and avoid a fourth relapse.

~Lauren

[beth22]

Is Dificid contraindicated while breast feeding? I thought it also stayed only in the GI tract and was not systemic. I would check with a pharmacist about that and ask. They sometimes know all the contraindications better than doctors.

[Kristin]

Well I tested positive again. And I had to be the one to call for the results. And they wanted to prescribe me flagyl which I really know you can't take while breastfeeding and it's the worst on the market for cdiff AND vanco was what I was on the last 2 times. I had to tell this on call doc what to prescribe me. So inept! This is all very maddening. I have no more patience for inept doctors. She didn't even tell me our many mg she was prescribing or for how many days. I'm calling the only infectious disease doctor around now. You really are your best advocate.

[amyc]

You need to get your own doctor on the phone tomorrow and get Dificid. Also called fidaxomycin, if they prescribe it that way. Way too many young moms are getting this disease. I think you ladies need to start making some noise so hospitals will do a better job cleaning L&D units between patients. Since you aren't diagnosed until you get home your cases won't get reported to the health department.

[amyc]

If you have to stop breast feeding so you can take Dificid, I would do that. I breastfed one, couldn't do that with my second, and my bottle fed kid has fewer allergies and fewer health problems than the one who was exclusively breast fed.

[amg]

I remember OCmama mentioning something about breastfeeding with Dificid. Can't remember what she said, though.

Another option is to take the Dificid and continue to pump, though throw away, your milk. Then resume breastfeeding after you are done with the Dificid. Even if you are on a Dificid taper for a month, your baby will only be 4 months old when you can breastfeed again! You'd still have months and months of good breastfeeding time left!

In response to amyc - I breastfed both my kids for at least 2 years, haha (some of that was just at night before bed), and they both have allergies, though not severe. The main benefit for me was the bonding and how easy it was to keep them from crying. And neither of them ever used a pacifier. And neither of them have needed braces. I wonder if there's a correlation? Hmmm.

[cdiff454]

I would demand the dificid as well. The difference between first recovery (flagyl and Vanco) and then my recovery this year with only dificid has been night and day. It was almost a year after Vanco and I still wasn't normal, yet just a week after dificid I felt like my old self despite having worse symptoms than my first infection. It's much more expensive but totally worth it.

As for cancelling plans, the first time I got c diff I was in the ER and the next day I was scheduled to fly out to the Cascades to climb mount shuksan. I had trained for months and the ER doc was adamant that I not go. Naturally I didn't listen and ended up climbing it while on flagyl. I was slower than I might otherwise have been but didn't have any serious issues. Probably not a recommended approach for all but it ended up working ok for me.

[NanciT]

Sorry you are going through this. I also would check with your OB about Dificid. The 30 day taper has worked for many on this site.

Its difficult to cancel plans, I have cancelled many but need to look to the future when all is well. Hopefully this round will take care of it for you

Feel better soon

NanciT

[Kristin]

Thank you all for the replies. My OB is back in the office tomorrow so I'll be calling her about switching to dificid instead and to get a referral for an ID. Is it still wise at this point to see and ID? This is the 3rd time getting this and vanco has failed me twice so I think it's time to try another route. Has anyone on this site been cured off of vanco thrice times?? Should I suggest the dificid taper if my Ob doesn't know about it? I'm also willing to quit breastfeeding if it means I get healthy again. I need to be healthy for my baby. I think that's way more important. The last 3 months I have been sick...her whole life. Which is just awful. Also, diet suggestions as I'm on medicine again? I also have been taking garden of earth probiotics twice a day for 2 months. I don't think they're potent enough since I keep getting cdiff. Anyone have any suggestions for some strong probiotics?

[amg]

I think it's a great idea to have an ID doc on your case. Ours was indispensable. He was so accessible - even gave me his cell number so if relapses or other problems happened after hours, he could advise or call in a prescription ASAP. Remember, any doc who is following you should have an on-call service to help you after hours if you need. Even if your OB isn't familiar with a Dificid taper, she might decide to at least start you on a regular Dificid course, and then your ID may decide to lengthen the course into a taper.

Good luck and excellent job speaking up for yourself! Boo on Flagyl.

[mommyof2]

This is my first post--I think we're living parallel lives. I too have a 3 month old and a wonderful husband. I also have a 2 year old who can't stop saying "mommy sick, mommy go to doctor, mommy feel better." It breaks my heart. My daughter rolled over for the first time today but I was so sick with my first relapse that I couldn't even celebrate. I'm just starting Vanco now. I took the dreaded Flagyl and pumped and dumped for 10 days. C diff came back today, 5 days after ending the first round. I'm terrified about the hearing loss side effect of Vanco since I seem to be prone to side effects of meds. Good luck to you fellow mommy!

[Kristin]

I am so sorry to hear you are going through this dreaded disease as well! Especially with your sweet kiddos. I think this is especially rough on moms. There is so much guit associated with having to constantly run off to the bathroom and feeling like you aren't giving them enough attention or missing important things! Did you get cdiff from the hospital stay when you had your baby? That's where I got mine. I got readmitted to labor and delivery a few days after giving birth with a terrible uterine infection (I had a 39 hour labor and it was 19 hours between when my water broke and I had her. As well as 4.5 hours of pushing...lots of time for bacteria to get up there!) They gave me like 3 iv fluids of clindamycin and then a few weeks later got cdiff. I'm hoping the 3rd time getting it will be the last time. So you just started vanco? Is it working for you?

[OCmama]

Hi! I am so sorry you are still fighting this monster. You can 100% take Dificid while breastfeeding, my ID, pediatric ID and Pediatrition all approved. Dificid stays in the colon and will not be a problem. If you are up to it I would keep breastfeeding as it will strengthen your baby's immune system/microbiome.

[Kristin]

Thanks OCMama! I remember you telling me that on another one of my posts and that you kept breastfeeding throughout. Was dificid finally what cured you? How many times did you have to be on medicine?