Jen in WI Case History

[jeninwi]

First of all, thank you to all who run this site. It's been a blessing to me as I continue to struggle with Cdiff and no one really understands what's going on with me.

I'm a 32 y.o. female, otherwise basically healthy though have had some strange symptoms over the past 5 years or so including muscle twitches, body aches, insomnia.... Never got a real diagnosis but got started on meds to help with sleep and achiness and had been feeling pretty good lately up until this summer. I have a professional position in a nursing home with moderate patient contact (but no personal cares). Prior to becoming ill I had been taking Minocycline for acne but actually quit it almost a month before the Cdiff started.

My first symptoms were in June 2007, lots of mucousy stools for a couple weeks then finally really bad D with blood so went to my doctor's office. My regular doctor in Women's Health couldn't get me in so I saw one of her colleagues. Had to take the kit home for a sample and it was several days before I heard about the positive test. Dr. put me on Flagyl x 14 days. Missed some work due to illness but once they found out what was wrong I was told not to come back until I was symptom free and on antibiotics > 24 hours. One of my coworkers had C diff at the same time but she was much sicker than I, in bed for a week. Felt better quickly and didn't think too much about it until.....

Mid-July 2007 - Same symptoms as the first time. Saw my regular dr. this time. She seemed kind of baffled. Looked it up on her computer and saw that the "standard treatment" for 1st recurrence is the same as the first - so Flagyl again x 14 days. Gave the sample for a culture before I started the Flagyl. Work wanted to know for sure whether the test was positive or negative so after several calls the nurse finally called me back and told me it was negative. When I told work I got the distinct impression they thought I wasn't really sick then. But I was actually feeling so much worse than the first time. Very achy all over, especially my neck. Extremely tired. Nauseous and had trouble getting in enough fluid. Missed more work of course. My boss called me at home one of the days I called in to let me know that I should talk to my doctor about FMLA or my job could be in jeopardy due to my "probationary status" from my recent promotion. Thanks, that's supportive! Gradually felt better, back to normal again.

August 20, 2007 - Just returned from family vacation and had some loose stools, mucous, blood....same symptoms as last time. Couldn't miss work so went to walk-in where for the first time, the doctor really talked to me and tried to figure out the best course of action. (Coincidentally, the doctor I ended up with in walk-in is a family practitioner and the doctor for several of my aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. in their small town in MN. Weird! But maybe that's why he actually took the time with me....) He had me give a stool sample then and there, which was awesome as the last couple times I had to take the kit home (20 miles), do the thing, then return it (20 miles) usually the next day. Only I could hear him telling the nurses what he was doing and obviously they don't usually do that. The dr. had left my door open so I could see and hear them talking. Well anyway, the nurse had quite a reaction when she heard I probably had C diff. She made a horrified face, visibly shuddered, then saw me and looked embarassed. The dr. wrote me a script for Vanco and told me not to fill it until the test results came back. The next morning I called to find out the results and sure enough, positive!

So here's what I'm taking now.... Vancocin 125 mg 4x/day for a week, then 3x/day for a week, 2x/day for a week, 1x/day for a week, every other day for a week, then every 3rd day for 2 weeks, then stop.

Haven't missed any work this round but finally got my doctor "note" that the absences were all related so they can't count against me on my eval. However, each "note" is only good for 3 months and since this one was retroactive back to June, I have to ask my doctor for another one right away. What BS that is.

Today was my first day down to 3 pills. Not sure if it's a coincidence or not but the D is back today after being gone the last couple days. Feeling achy, especially my neck and legs. Throughout all this my legs have been really achy, especially at night. Trying to keep the fluids going but have to force myself to drink. Strangely, my appetite has been okay. Much better than with the Flagyl.

Yes, I've decided that Vanco is HEAVEN compared to Flagyl.

So here it is Labor Day weekend and I'm at home alone with my dog Ozzy because no one wants to be around dirty diseased me. At least that's how I'm feeling lately. It's strange how people react when they find out I have C diff. My mom thinks I'm being a hypochondriac, I think. Work friends are somewhat supportive, mostly because they're nurses and understand what it's all about. Non-nurses though and some friends I've told just seem kind of disgusted. I'm disgusted too but come on! I could use some support people! Anyway, thanks again to you on this website who do get it.