Explain the difference between SIBO,IBS and C DIFF symtoms?

[ginabc]

I never had *D more that 10 times a day at its worst. I still have nausea every day and some pain discomfort in my insides and the feeling of being bruised.
About once a week I get a real bad day with nausea, going more frequent, loose, fatigued,pain in my side and just not being able to function.
I am not eating anything bad. I am on the VANCO taper. Then I get good days where I almost forgot I am recoverying from C DIFF.
I am scared I may be relapsing but know that I am not doing any tests because I am still on VANCO and need to let the taper run its course.
Could this be SIBO or IBS?
Help me understand what is happening to me. Please.
I take 4 Florastor per day and 4 Florajen-3 per day. On 2 VANCO per day until next week then down to 1 and so on..............

[beth22]

Two vanco per day does not usually cause a relapse, but it is possible. I used to get D*, cramping and a lot of gas from probiotics. Florastor used to give me the worst gas of all - felt like a balloon! The others caused problems with frequency, and D*, etc. I can only take small amounts of probiotics. You may want to try and see if that is the problem. It does take a long time for your system to adjust. I did not do well when I took vanco, but the lower doses were better. You may also have developed food intolerances. I found that I became lactose intolerant. When I stopped eating yogurt, my symptoms improved. On the days that you feel better, try to think what you ate the day before and the same on the bad days. Maybe you will figure out if it is a particular food.

[Mommy23]

Beth and I share similar experiences, the vanco never made me feel good at all. The entire time I had D every single day. I continually told my doctors that it was not working. They even tested me while on and it was negative, but I knew I wasn't getting any better.

So, the lingering effects of cdiff can be very hard to differ between that and IBS. I still have D every day, but things have changed to some degree. I no longer have cdiff as I've been tested multiple times. Cdiff did a nasty number to me and I know that my road ahead will be long. I don't say any of this to scare you, but your gut has taken a beating and you will probably have good and bad days on and off the vanco.

You may want to consider cutting back on a few probiotics, they can cause some of the issues you describe.

[pwood62]

Everything Beth and Mommy123 say is exactly what I go through as well. I tested positive for SIBO but was treated for it with Flagyl. I can't tell if I have IBS, SIBO, or just normal recovering process. This weekend was very bad for me, although I feel somewhat better today. The gas pains and crawling were the worst its ever been. I thought I was going to scream at one point the crawling feeling was so bad. I am embarassed to say I actually shed a few tears this weekend. Feeling bad once a week does not sound that bad to me, although it probaby is h@ll for you on that day. I have had a really bad week physically so I am probably not the best person for advice except to say I feel your pain almost every day. I go to a new GI on Wednesday for some answers. My former GI gave up on me and I am furious with him about this. I think he really did a disservice towards me. He hinted that I was mental after he made thousands of dollars off me but that is a different rant. I am sorry that you are so confused and I wish I had some answers for both of us. All I can say is what I say to myself which is we will get better and this is not going to kill us. Also exercise helps me immensly when I feel bad. It helps my anxiety and something about moving around eases my symptoms. Hang in there! Feel free to PM me sometimes just talking about it helps am I right?

[ginabc]

Thanks for everyones posts. I am sitting here with the heating pad in my pants!
I am not eating much today no hunger. That feeling and pain in my sides justs sucks!
This is when I fantasize about doing the NG TUBE thing and ENEMA thing because I just want this over. I want to wake up and be back to my life.
I try to not think about it but with the pain and discomfort it is difficult.
I can say that the smell and color differences are gone and going 2-4 times per day. When I wipe still yellow though.
Anything over the counter helped anyone with the pain and general discomfort? Pepto maybe? I have the prescription for Bentyl but am afraid of taking it. It says may caused blurred vision. I only hate the feeling of being out of it.
I have lowered the amount of probiotics for now and forced myself to eat a little today.
Thank you everyone.

[Bobbie]

A heating pad works well - and no side effects.

See FAQ-Digestive Compplaints.

[beth22]

A couple of other posters a while back said that salmon oil capsules (enterric coated) helped them a lot with the discomfort and soreness. Those are OTC and a lot of people take them for other reasons, but they have anti-inflammatory properties. Of course, check with the doctor, but it seems to work for them. Pepto helps me with gas and queasiness. I take a little with lunch and dinner.