Laura & Daughter's Case History

[laurabluize]

My name is Laura, 28 years old. My daughter 4 years old. This all started with me have a tooth extracted, and my daughter having a UTI. Never in my wildest dreams (nightmares) did I think this would happen. All at a time when we have no medical insurance, just to make matters worse. We both happen to be put on antibiotics at the same time. I had dental work and was given antibiotics. My daughter had a UTI and was also put on antibiotics. We both got so sick within the first couple days. This was about 7 weeks ago. It was awful. We had non stop diarrhea, and no appetite, and felt so weak. I started doing some research on the Internet to find out what could be going on. Right away when I read about C diff, I knew thats what we had. I had never heard of it before in my life. It scared me so I went to the ER when I couldn't take it anymore. They did some tests, and found a common parasite. I brought up the possibility that I might have C diff and the Dr just shrugged it off, She prescribed me Cipro. (now know, not a good med to be on with C diff)She said someone would call me if anything else showed up on my labs. All along I knew I had C diff. As I did my own research I kept reading that Flagel, and Vanco were the two antibiotics that were used for C diff. I also called my daughters pediatrician to tell her that my daughter was sick. She said to wait and see, that this is normal. So about 5 days into the Cipro( just getting worse) I went back to the ER and told them I still was feeling awful. The nurse brings me in the room and says "By the way, you have C diff" No one ever called me to let me know!!! I was so mad. The Dr says to stop the Cipro and start me on flagel for 10 days. I called my daughters pediatrician and told her that I tested positive for C diff, so she had me get a stool sample. As I already knew, it came back positive. She prescribed flagel for my daughter too. Days went by and I was just getting worse. Couldn't eat, sleep, felt so weak, had terrible cramps. My daughter wasn't so bad. Just a lot of diarrhea. I was so upset. I also have an 18 month old daughter, and I just couldn't take care of her. I was too weak. I knew very little about C Diff before I was diagnosed. I wanted to find out all there was to know about it. Then I started to read a lot on the internet and see how many people have the terrible THING. It shocked me. Most of what I read was very upsetting. So many people that never get better, some people dying. If I had known that C diff existed, I would NEVER NEVER have taken the antibiotics. I always knew antibiotics were not great to have, but never thought it could cause this. I'm sure a lot of people feel the same. Anyway, it's too late. So we continued on the flagel for the 10 days. The day after I stopped, I thought I was going to dye. I was so scared. I hadn't slept in over 24 hours. I was in the bathroom almost all the time. I went back to the ER, which was this past Saturday. The nurse started me on IV fluids, and got a stool sample. I already knew that I still had it. The Dr comes in and tells me that my stool tested positive for C diff. He prescribed me Vancomycin for 14 days. I already knew this was a very strong and expensive drug, and I told him that I don't have insurance right now. He was very nice, and called over the another hospital and had the pharmacist mix up a liquid form of it for $80 compared to about $700. He explained to me that it is very strong and will kill every good and bad bacteria in my body. The sound of that sounded so bad. I had no choice though. From the first dose I took, I felt so much worse. (didn't know I could feel any worse) I told my husband I couldn't go on like this. I pretty much locked myself in my bedroom and cried and continued to go through this torture. My poor kids didn't know what to think. I kept hearing my daughter saying " Is mommy going to get better" It broke my heart. So I got through those first two days somehow. I did start taking acidophilis, oil of oregano, and this other super supplement the day I stared on the Vanco. Today I woke up, looked at the clock, it said 8:30am and my first thought was, I slept all night!! I'm not running to the bathroom!!!! I felt normal!!!! I'm not sure if it's all due to the Vanco, or all the supplements also. Now I know that this could all change the minute I stop the vanco, so I don't feel like I'm cured at all. I am still so nervous. I am just going to try and stay positive and slowly start changing my diet and keeping my immune system in tip top shape. We will see what happens. As for my little girl, I called her pediatrician today to tell her that she still has diarrhea. I spoke to the phone nurse who spoke to an on call dr who said they can start her back on the flagel or get a stool sample. I am waiting for a call from her regular dr tomorrow. I want a stool sample done. I pray she is in the clear, but I don't know. So now I am a little confused as to if me and my daughter can keep spreading it to each other. We are continuously washing our hands. I disinfected my bathroom today. I know the spores can stay in the environment for a couple months, so how do you prevent yourself from getting reinfected? I also have read that many babies are carriers, so if you 18 month old is a carrier, will I always be at great risk? If anyone can give me some feedback on some of this, I would really appreciate it. Also, I would love to hear anything that anyone has to say. This is all pretty new to me. I am so glad I found this site. I wish you and your families all the best for all of you who are going through this too. Thanks for listening :)

Laura