[powertool4]

hi i am new here. I have been living in hell for the past 7 months. I cannot take this anymore. I'm a 22 year old male. I was 5'10" 165lbs of lean muscle, 8% body fat, and very athletic but about 7 months ago, my digestion one day went crazy on me, and ever since then i have dropped 35, maybe 37 pounds now. It's funny because all of last year i had BM that were relieving every single day nearly on the dot at around 11am. Smell, consistency, size, girth, etc. was really good. Then 7 months ago, the dentist gave me two antibiotics. One, amoxicillin, and two, clyndamycin (spelling?). The amoxcillin was tolerated fine in terms of gastrointestinal, but the clyndamycin caused CRAZY diarrhea. I was amoxicillin for 2 days, and clyndamycin for only 1 day. I did not finish either of them and only went 1/2 way through because of a serious side effect that landed me in the hospital. And on top of that, i did not have the dental "infection" they were given to me for, so the dentist said to stop it. Well, 3-4 weeks after that incident, INSANE intestinal trapped gas actually awoke me in the middle of the night that gave me not only rib pain, back pain, but prostate and rectal pain, felt like i had to pee and poo at the same time, and i had no way of getting it out of me. i was absolutely miserable. It caused urinary incontinence (i guess from pressing on the bladder or something) where i would have trouble holding in my urine and it would leak out. It truly sucked. Now, the urinary issues are gone but the bloating and trapped gas is still here after 7 months. If i eat anything it causes me to fill up with gas and UNRELEASABLE gas at that. It's one thing to have gas that you can fart out, but when it stays in your body and just fills you up like a balloon, it is absolutely horrid. I'm bloated 24/7, even if i have relief from a BM. if not, then it is absolute hell. I got stool test that showed low levels of bifido bacteria and high count of klebsiella pneumoniae but it was done by an integrative MD. I haven't seen a gastroenterologist yet for this condition and was wondering what my options were. I know if its diagnosed as SIBO, i will be given antibiotics but what's to guarantee that it won't just come back?? After all, its the antibiotics that caused this mess in the first place!Any help appreciated.

 

[faze action]

Powertool, I just sent you a message. Prior antibiotic use can be a cause of SIBO... you may want to give probiotics a try, since the ABs likely upset your internal flora to the point where you are having these symptoms. Unfortunately, bloating is a very common symptom of SIBO, and it's not an easy symptom to treat (at least in my experience). You definitely should see a GI doc if you haven't yet, but maybe try the probiotics in the meantime.

 

[Kathleen M.]

Sometimes they treat with something to help keep things moving through the small intestine more effeciently, but often it is just wait the weeks or months to see if it comes back.If you can't clear the small intestine properly and nothing can be done to fix that the bacteria eventually get going again. Antibiotics did not permanently change your motility through the small bowel, but sometimes damage to the enteric nervous system from the infection and your immune response to it can. Especially if it was a GI infection, which doesn't seem to be the case, but some people do get reactions when they recolonize the colon with different bacteria than they had before antibiotics.If you don't ever fart any gas out, it may not be insane amounts of gas. If your colon is tender for any reason (or other abdominal parts) the stomach wall will relax so as to not put pressure on them and that distends the belly.You can have abdominal pain and abnormal responses to normal gas volume or even abnormal gas volume and have a totally normal small intestine. You do not need SIBO for any of these symptoms, it can be purely IBS or other functional bowel problems or issues with colon bacteria living in just the colon.

 

[powertool4]

Faze, I have tried probiotics and all kinds. At first it helped but most eventually caused me to be constipated and the response i got from the company was that it was too strong. I have a feeling though that i do better on bifido than lacto bacteria, especially since my stool test showed high lacto and low bifido, and i just respond way better to higher bifido count. I might try align as it is only bifidus infantis strain and see how that helps me. kathleen, thanks for the response. I'm not sure about that in my particular case only because my digestion, BM, motility, etc. was perfectly fine before the antibiotic treatment. It was a few weeks after the antibiotics where it was SUDDEN and brought on out of nowhere and never went away, which i can assume i ate something (i had some herbs) and caused bad bacteria to flourish. I didn't know that antibiotics shoud be taken with florastor or yogurt or something, and on top of that i just researched and found that clyndamycin is a known antibiotic that kills intestinal bacteria (particularly anaerobes..AKA bifido strains) and causes cases of antibiotic induced c. diff! had i known that, i would have not taken it! I was so busy the past 7 months trying to address my other health issues that came on at the same time (anxiety, neurological etc.) and finally got a diagnosis as b12 deficiency. So now i am able to kind of separate the issues and focus on the bloating. Now that i think about it, I haven't even seen a regular MD for the bloating yet, or a GI. I am going to make an apt with a GI and see if he'll diagnose it as SIBO. at least then i can have a diagnosis and im not aimlessly trying to cure it by taking random herbs and concoctions.

 

[Kathleen M.]

SIBO is NOT bad bacteria. It is totally normal bacteria in the wrong place.That being said even all in the colon different species of totally normal bacteria sometimes suit a person better than a different set of totally normal bacteria.If you are having lots of watery diarrhea and/or bloody stools that usually is more "bad bacteria" like C. diff. Doesn't sound lik you have a C. diff overgrowth from the antibiotics you took. I don't think those are typically causing SIBO, they cause enough havoc in the colon.

 

[powertool4]

SIBO is NOT bad bacteria. It is totally normal bacteria in the wrong place.That being said even all in the colon different species of totally normal bacteria sometimes suit a person better than a different set of totally normal bacteria.If you are having lots of watery diarrhea and/or bloody stools that usually is more "bad bacteria" like C. diff. Doesn't sound lik you have a C. diff overgrowth from the antibiotics you took. I don't think those are typically causing SIBO, they cause enough havoc in the colon.

Normal bacteria in the wrong place? Hm, i'm confused. do you mean like bifidobacteria growing in the small intestine.. or lactobacillus leaking out into the colon, etc.? I had no idea. I always thought it meant you have an overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria. My stool test showed high levels of klebsiella so i figured that's what it was. And c. diff, you are right about that. No diarrhea here other than the crazy diarrhea i experienced when i was on clindamycin. So would you say that SIBO is an imbalance of the naturally occuring bacteria then? For example, i was told that you can even have an lactobacillus overgrowth, where it causes acid reflux etc. Women can get this in their vagina and it's called OV i believe, kind of the opposite of a yeast infection. And usually treatment is to raise the pH to keep the lacto in check.

 

[faze action]

SIBO is basically an overgrowth of "normal" bacteria in the small intestine... much higher numbers of bacteria normally reside in the colon than in the sm. intestine. If the migrating motor complex fails to "sweep out" the excess bacteria from the small intestine (as it normally would), then an overgrowth occurs. Many things can cause or predispose a person to SIBO, including: diabetes, prior GI surgery, prior antibiotic use, diverticuli, neurologic or muscular disease (something that would alter normal motility), celiac disease, pacreatitis, scleroderma, past case of food poisoning, hypochloridia, and possibly GERD. A low level viral infection that knocks down a person's immune system could also potentially be a cause... there are many things that can cause SIBO, unfortunately.

 

[powertool4]

SIBO is basically an overgrowth of "normal" bacteria in the small intestine... much higher numbers of bacteria normally reside in the colon than in the sm. intestine. If the migrating motor complex fails to "sweep out" the excess bacteria from the small intestine (as it normally would), then an overgrowth occurs. Many things can cause or predispose a person to SIBO, including: diabetes, prior GI surgery, prior antibiotic use, diverticuli, neurologic or muscular disease (something that would alter normal motility), celiac disease, pacreatitis, scleroderma, past case of food poisoning, hypochloridia, and possibly GERD. A low level viral infection that knocks down a person's immune system could also potentially be a cause... there are many things that can cause SIBO, unfortunately.

Ohh okay that makes sense. Got it. So is there such a thing as a bacterial overgrowth of the colon? Like CIBO or something? or is that not possible.?

 

[Kathleen M.]

There are things like C. diff where you have an overgrowth of a bacteria you normally keep at very low levels if you do happen to have it.But the colon is basically supposed to be chock full of billions and zillions of bacteria.Now these bacteria do interact some with the host and sometimes we do better (but it can be individual, not humans as a whole) with certain sets of them or not, but usually your ecological niche in the colon is usually pretty topped up in normal conditions so it is hard to get too many.

 

[powertool4]

There are things like C. diff where you have an overgrowth of a bacteria you normally keep at very low levels if you do happen to have it.But the colon is basically supposed to be chock full of billions and zillions of bacteria.Now these bacteria do interact some with the host and sometimes we do better (but it can be individual, not humans as a whole) with certain sets of them or not, but usually your ecological niche in the colon is usually pretty topped up in normal conditions so it is hard to get too many.

Oh right right. The antibiotics that are given to treat SIBO, they are to just kill bacteria period I presume? Just regardless of what kind, if there's an overgrowth, you kill it with the antibiotics and then repopulate again with probiotics? Also, what is this forum's general "consensus" on parasites causing IBS, SIBO and all the other stuff. I saw some pages where they mention parasites that are small like b hominis or something can cause IBS? Or naturopaths and other alternative medicine suggests that nearly everyone has parasites so you should do a parasite cleanse using herbs like wormwood, etc at least once a year. Not sure what to think about that.

 

[powertool4]

When you get diagnosed with SIBO, do they tell you exactly which bacteria has overgrown and/or where in your intestines?? That way you can find the best antibiotics by doing a sensitivity test to the strain right? Or do they just nuke the entire intestine and hope the good guys survive and it doesn't occur again?

 

[Kathleen M.]

If they take a sample they may know at least some species (but not all of them can be cultured in a lab) but if they do a breath test there is no way to identify the specific bacteria.The bacteria in SIBO are the normal colon bacteria. The antibiotics used tend to be ones that kill off normal colon bacteria. (so the good guys)They usually don't try to specify which section of the small intestine is the problem, but I think it is usually the same and I don't think it would matter exactly where.

 

[powertool4]

If they take a sample they may know at least some species (but not all of them can be cultured in a lab) but if they do a breath test there is no way to identify the specific bacteria.The bacteria in SIBO are the normal colon bacteria. The antibiotics used tend to be ones that kill off normal colon bacteria. (so the good guys)They usually don't try to specify which section of the small intestine is the problem, but I think it is usually the same and I don't think it would matter exactly where.

Okay so i need some help here..

I got a SIBO test on wednesday and thought i was going to die from the bloating in the small intestine i could feel, hear and pretty much be in torment from after drinking that lactulose. and yet, the test results were normal. The GI told me that just because it's normal that it doesn't mean i dont have something bacterial going on in the gut, and that the SIBO test is really very primitive compared to how complex the intestinal structure is. He sid the only way to know for sure is to treat it, with antibiotics or probiotics, or both. Diet, etc. He was the best doctor i have ever met. He said i don't have IBS because i dont have the 2 criteria that they test for which is purely based on symptoms, and one of them was something to do with regularity or change in bowel movement. I don't have a change in my BM since i was healthy or unhealthy. One relieving movement in the morning everyday. If i dont have it, it's a shocker. The only time i get constipated is when i take some probiotics and lot of them just cause me to be backed up and i have no idea why. So it's not IBS, i got blood tested for celiacs and antibodies came out negative and i also dont eat dairy or gluten at the time being so it's not that. I dont have blood or iron anemia or stomach pain. The only pain i have is from the gas taht bloats me up with very light gas (such as hydrogen or something) and hurts my ribs and random parts in my abdomen. I dont understand this. There are only 2 options left from what i can observe. bacterial issues or parasites. RIGHT?? am i mistaken or not seeing something here? I am possibly thinking that i have a lactobacillus overgrowth (d-lactate producers) which is linked to chronic fatigue syndrome. does anyone know anything about that?SIGH

 

[Kathleen M.]

There are other functional bowel diseases. It isn't IBS or organic disease with nothing in between.Chronic functional abdominal pain might fit if you have all the discomfort and pain of IBS but normal stool consistency and frequency. That pain is treated the same way as IBS pain.Could also maybe fit functional bloating.

 

[powertool4]

There are other functional bowel diseases. It isn't IBS or organic disease with nothing in between.Chronic functional abdominal pain might fit if you have all the discomfort and pain of IBS but normal stool consistency and frequency. That pain is treated the same way as IBS pain.Could also maybe fit functional bloating.

Yeah i thought about that and my Gi certainly did mention taht it could be my body's functional ability to pass gas but based on the fact that a) i never had problems and passing stool that was like 3 inches in girth and 1 feet in length, with relief once a day on the DOT at 11am for the past year and never trouble passing gas B. this problem happened suddenly out of the blue one day following severe diarrhea from clindamycin (my Gi said its the leading antibiotics that causes clostridium overgrowth) and loose stool for 2 months. and has never been the same since c.) i respond to probiotics but have mixed results. a good probiotic will reduce the gas and let me pass my own gas. i can feel it traveling through the bowels. this, what i have right now is just a bunch of trapped gas that doesn't seem to move.. d. i get REALLY just out of it mentally, depressed, anxious, feeling weird and brain fog, head fog, ightheadedness about an hour after a meal that lasts for a few hours. I was told this could be toxins produced by a bacteria. certainly not ruling out the possiblity of functional problems but i dont know... seems bacterial. i am going to give florastor and culturelle a shot and see if that helps at all. this is getting ridiculous.

 

[Chris87]

dude im in the same boat as you... for the past 8 months been really bloated.. i see ur post is a year old.. did u get over it? it sounds like sibo. did antibiotis help?chris

hi i am new here. I have been living in hell for the past 7 months. I cannot take this anymore. I'm a 22 year old male. I was 5'10" 165lbs of lean muscle, 8% body fat, and very athletic but about 7 months ago, my digestion one day went crazy on me, and ever since then i have dropped 35, maybe 37 pounds now. It's funny because all of last year i had BM that were relieving every single day nearly on the dot at around 11am. Smell, consistency, size, girth, etc. was really good. Then 7 months ago, the dentist gave me two antibiotics. One, amoxicillin, and two, clyndamycin (spelling?). The amoxcillin was tolerated fine in terms of gastrointestinal, but the clyndamycin caused CRAZY diarrhea. I was amoxicillin for 2 days, and clyndamycin for only 1 day. I did not finish either of them and only went 1/2 way through because of a serious side effect that landed me in the hospital. And on top of that, i did not have the dental "infection" they were given to me for, so the dentist said to stop it. Well, 3-4 weeks after that incident, INSANE intestinal trapped gas actually awoke me in the middle of the night that gave me not only rib pain, back pain, but prostate and rectal pain, felt like i had to pee and poo at the same time, and i had no way of getting it out of me. i was absolutely miserable. It caused urinary incontinence (i guess from pressing on the bladder or something) where i would have trouble holding in my urine and it would leak out. It truly sucked. Now, the urinary issues are gone but the bloating and trapped gas is still here after 7 months. If i eat anything it causes me to fill up with gas and UNRELEASABLE gas at that. It's one thing to have gas that you can fart out, but when it stays in your body and just fills you up like a balloon, it is absolutely horrid. I'm bloated 24/7, even if i have relief from a BM. if not, then it is absolute hell. I got stool test that showed low levels of bifido bacteria and high count of klebsiella pneumoniae but it was done by an integrative MD. I haven't seen a gastroenterologist yet for this condition and was wondering what my options were. I know if its diagnosed as SIBO, i will be given antibiotics but what's to guarantee that it won't just come back?? After all, its the antibiotics that caused this mess in the first place!Any help appreciated.

 

[KarenMcP]

hi i am new here. I have been living in hell for the past 7 months. I cannot take this anymore. I'm a 22 year old male. I was 5'10" 165lbs of lean muscle, 8% body fat, and very athletic but about 7 months ago, my digestion one day went crazy on me, and ever since then i have dropped 35, maybe 37 pounds now. It's funny because all of last year i had BM that were relieving every single day nearly on the dot at around 11am. Smell, consistency, size, girth, etc. was really good. Then 7 months ago, the dentist gave me two antibiotics. One, amoxicillin, and two, clyndamycin (spelling?). The amoxcillin was tolerated fine in terms of gastrointestinal, but the clyndamycin caused CRAZY diarrhea. I was amoxicillin for 2 days, and clyndamycin for only 1 day. I did not finish either of them and only went 1/2 way through because of a serious side effect that landed me in the hospital. And on top of that, i did not have the dental "infection" they were given to me for, so the dentist said to stop it. Well, 3-4 weeks after that incident, INSANE intestinal trapped gas actually awoke me in the middle of the night that gave me not only rib pain, back pain, but prostate and rectal pain, felt like i had to pee and poo at the same time, and i had no way of getting it out of me. i was absolutely miserable. It caused urinary incontinence (i guess from pressing on the bladder or something) where i would have trouble holding in my urine and it would leak out. It truly sucked. Now, the urinary issues are gone but the bloating and trapped gas is still here after 7 months. If i eat anything it causes me to fill up with gas and UNRELEASABLE gas at that. It's one thing to have gas that you can fart out, but when it stays in your body and just fills you up like a balloon, it is absolutely horrid. I'm bloated 24/7, even if i have relief from a BM. if not, then it is absolute hell. I got stool test that showed low levels of bifido bacteria and high count of klebsiella pneumoniae but it was done by an integrative MD. I haven't seen a gastroenterologist yet for this condition and was wondering what my options were. I know if its diagnosed as SIBO, i will be given antibiotics but what's to guarantee that it won't just come back?? After all, its the antibiotics that caused this mess in the first place!Any help appreciated.

Your description of symptoms and the sequence is the almost exactly what I've gone through. Except for the prostate pain - I haven't had that! lolI didn't pass any gas for 2 months. Things seemed to settle down a little bit but in the last 5 days or so symptoms are ramping up again and it's stressing me quite a lot. I am also supposed to start a new contract tomorrow and am wondering if that stress is contributing.Did you ever find a resolution? Is there anything that helped with your symptoms? I've been trying GasX as it's supposed to lessen the tension on the surface of the gas bubbles to make them easier to pass but it doesn't seem to be helping a lot.Hope you're doing well now

 

[cduval04]

add one more to that list.....I just simply don't fart anymore...I used to fart all the time!!..dr oz says the average human farts 14 times a day...ha! I wish..unless I do all 14 while I am asleep...I maybe MAYBE fart once a day chances are less than that....I am bloated no matter what I eat, how much I poo, how much anti gas meds I take...air throughout my colon has landed me in the hospital twice...and then it just happens all over again....what is it that causes this gas that does not come out?????????

 

[Chris87]

anyone know if Augmentin Duo (amoxicillin and clavulanic acid) is effective against SIBO???

 

[FONDUE]

First off I sympathize with you and ..this too shall pass! .First off get a plan lined with with a speicialized Nautrapathic doctor everyone can't take antibiotics there are alternatives to me I want what is typcially natural because it agrees with my body ...but I had SIBO for 15 months if was a hell...I decided to for the easiest fastest and effective If I had to give up food and just drink packets for a one year so be it!! If your diagnosed with SIBO depending on if you have hydrogen or methane some people have both methane and hydrogen then they will need stronger and will take antibiotics longer. I went to ND and they set me up with garlic, neem, oregano, and berberince, along with Interfase kills bioflims I also take chinese herb

Listen for what it is worth if you want fastest cure and result hands down is the ELEMENTAL DIET some doctors are in the know and they will recommend this if your not so thin that it can cause other issue, Elemental diet starves the bacteria and nails them.

! tried many things finally I started Rifaximin and just t finished Rifaximin () insurance it was only 50.00 ) along with parasite cleanser the Green walnut hull extract , wormwood and cloves found it on Amazon I'm thinking about going on the Elemental diet for 10 days right afterwards to be on the safeside! .