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Healing the Gut in September

28K views 590 replies 44 participants last post by  Panserbjorne 
#1 ·
Hi mamas..........
Happy September 1st! We have a new month and thread. Will this one make 50 pages?
 
#478 ·
Yeast feeds on carbs. I know, I've had it for years. It's very very difficult to deal with, and in fact, I'm starting to wonder if maybe fighting it is actually making me sicker, since I've had a lot of hair and skin problems since doing SCD, and since my mood problems are seemingly worse too. I was a vegetarian for many years, and I think it only compounded my problems, especially since I used to eat a lot of sweets. After all, cake and ice cream and cookies and tortilla chips are vegetarian, right? Now, I'm trying to starve it out, and I look terrible -- dark circles under my eyes, dull hair, aging skin. Sorry to be such a downer, but today I just am sick of this battle. I do know of people who fought it off sucessfully, but not without major drugs. Which I don't want to do. Any better news from others?
 
#479 ·
I'm trying to figure out what vitamins and minerals I need to suppliment with. In trying to find out food sensitivies in DS I have cut out everything and added back in vit c, CLO, umm I cannot even remember what others I am taking because I have serious brain fog. I feel depleted.

Where can I read about what my body needs? What I mean is there someplace I can read 'i have this symptom and so probably need this mineral.' Or 'I eat ___ and don't eat ___ and need to take____." Does that make sense? Or do I go and get a high quality multi mineral, multi vitamin? The AK I went to was not much help in the suppliments department.
 
#480 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Pookietooth View Post
Yeast feeds on carbs. I know, I've had it for years. It's very very difficult to deal with, and in fact, I'm starting to wonder if maybe fighting it is actually making me sicker, since I've had a lot of hair and skin problems since doing SCD, and since my mood problems are seemingly worse too. I was a vegetarian for many years, and I think it only compounded my problems, especially since I used to eat a lot of sweets. After all, cake and ice cream and cookies and tortilla chips are vegetarian, right? Now, I'm trying to starve it out, and I look terrible -- dark circles under my eyes, dull hair, aging skin. Sorry to be such a downer, but today I just am sick of this battle. I do know of people who fought it off sucessfully, but not without major drugs. Which I don't want to do. Any better news from others?
I'm right there with you. How long have you been doing SCD? I'm giving it another try, but we may end up with meds at some point. I'm sorry you're feeling so down.
 
#481 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by haleyelianasmom View Post
I'm new to the "Healing the Gut" scene, but I think I may need it. Any insight would be helpful. These threads are so huge, they're hard to read through to get good information, but I'm trying.

I think I have a yeast overgrowth. I've never had any yeast infections other than one on my breast about 8 or 9 months ago and I ended up having to go on diflucan to clear it up. Now I'm having a lot of the same body symptoms (no pain while nursing, but headaches, craving sugar, etc). I don't know if this is related, but I've had a lot of abdominal bloating and occasional pain (a couple weeks ago, I had pelvic/abdominal pain so bad it got me out of bed an into the bath. Reminded me of labor pains, but I'm not pregnant). Oh yeah, and I had my appendix out a few yer ago, too, after multiple painful bouts of appendicitis. So is this the thread for me?

I know the yeast diets call for not many carbs, but I'm a strict vegetarian and eat a lot of whole grains and beans and nuts and fruit.
The pains sound like IBS. I know it can be very painful! Sounds like you're not digesting something properly.

After doing the SCD my IBS is completely gone. Sorry I can't help you much w/the yeast thing, but if you look at the information on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, that'll help the IBS.
 
#482 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Pookietooth View Post
Yeast feeds on carbs. I know, I've had it for years. It's very very difficult to deal with, and in fact, I'm starting to wonder if maybe fighting it is actually making me sicker, since I've had a lot of hair and skin problems since doing SCD, and since my mood problems are seemingly worse too. I was a vegetarian for many years, and I think it only compounded my problems, especially since I used to eat a lot of sweets. After all, cake and ice cream and cookies and tortilla chips are vegetarian, right? Now, I'm trying to starve it out, and I look terrible -- dark circles under my eyes, dull hair, aging skin. Sorry to be such a downer, but today I just am sick of this battle. I do know of people who fought it off sucessfully, but not without major drugs. Which I don't want to do. Any better news from others?
s
 
#483 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Nolansmum View Post
I'm trying to figure out what vitamins and minerals I need to suppliment with. In trying to find out food sensitivies in DS I have cut out everything and added back in vit c, CLO, umm I cannot even remember what others I am taking because I have serious brain fog. I feel depleted.

Where can I read about what my body needs? What I mean is there someplace I can read 'i have this symptom and so probably need this mineral.' Or 'I eat ___ and don't eat ___ and need to take____." Does that make sense? Or do I go and get a high quality multi mineral, multi vitamin? The AK I went to was not much help in the suppliments department.
I got a lot of information from the Nutrition 101 thread. I think you've been over there (?) If not, lmk and I'll post the link.
 
#484 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Pookietooth View Post
Yeast feeds on carbs. I know, I've had it for years. It's very very difficult to deal with, and in fact, I'm starting to wonder if maybe fighting it is actually making me sicker, since I've had a lot of hair and skin problems since doing SCD, and since my mood problems are seemingly worse too. I was a vegetarian for many years, and I think it only compounded my problems, especially since I used to eat a lot of sweets. After all, cake and ice cream and cookies and tortilla chips are vegetarian, right? Now, I'm trying to starve it out, and I look terrible -- dark circles under my eyes, dull hair, aging skin. Sorry to be such a downer, but today I just am sick of this battle. I do know of people who fought it off sucessfully, but not without major drugs. Which I don't want to do. Any better news from others?
I so completely hear you. I too have gotten worse as ive progressed through this, and I havent encountered someone whose successfully dealt with it. Im tired and sad too.
 
#487 ·
Thanks. I was really feeling pretty hopeless about it. Today I'm a bit better, just hoping that staying on SCD, with a few grain cheats with enzymes, will be enough eventually. I want to be healthy!
 
#488 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Chinese Pistache View Post
Sigh. I'm just feeling like there is no end to this yeast, food allergy stuff through diet alone. Every "success" story I've read, including Bee's, suggests that there isn't ever a cure, just simply maintenance. And I can't see eating such a limited diet for the rest of my life (or dd's for that matter). My other kids and dh don't have any issues with these foods and it's such an enormous hassle to prepare foods they'll all eat. I used to enjoying cooking. . .and we used to do so much "from scratch" cooking, including grinding our own wheat or spelt, but now we don't. And without dairy, we're limited even further. I just wish I knew there was an "end," you know?

That's kind of the impression I've been getting too--nobody really permanently cures candida, they just keep it sort of under control by following special diets. Maybe my expectations are too high--I'm kind of thinking now that I'll be satisfied if I can get DD "fixed" and fix my low blood sugar issues, which is a non-issue on the candida diet. Then I can probably do pretty well on an NT diet with not too many grains and lots of lacto ferments
 
#489 ·
Could DD's dairy intolerance make her constipated? Today she pooped after not pooping for 3 days (which has happened before and she didn't act constipated). She was obviously very uncomfortable while she was pooping--she wouldn't even hold onto a toy and she kept pooping in spurts. Poor baby, I felt so bad for her. Toward the end she was only getting little squirts of poop out and I kept thinking of the autistic kids who have diarrhea all the time because they are so constipated they can't get anything else out. I hope that's not what's happening with DD.

Anyhow, I cheated on Saturday evening and had some ice cream along with some fettucine w/tomato sauce. The last time DD pooped before today was Saturday morning...is it possible that she was reacting to the dairy I ate? I thought her dairy intolerance was going away or gone... Or maybe she reacted to the sugar I ate? Any other thoughts on what could have made her constipated? She hasn't had any solids for 10 days or so, and I'm still giving her baby probiotics 2-3 times a day.
 
#490 ·
to everybody who's discouraged...I kept getting discouraged, too, even though I know this diet is helping...I just don't want to be on it forever! Plus I'm not really sure it's helping DD like it's helping me. I started her on vitamin C today, and I'm going to start giving her CO and bone broths, too.
 
#491 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by caedmyn View Post
Could DD's dairy intolerance make her constipated? Today she pooped after not pooping for 3 days (which has happened before and she didn't act constipated). She was obviously very uncomfortable while she was pooping--she wouldn't even hold onto a toy and she kept pooping in spurts. Poor baby, I felt so bad for her. Toward the end she was only getting little squirts of poop out and I kept thinking of the autistic kids who have diarrhea all the time because they are so constipated they can't get anything else out. I hope that's not what's happening with DD.

Anyhow, I cheated on Saturday evening and had some ice cream along with some fettucine w/tomato sauce. The last time DD pooped before today was Saturday morning...is it possible that she was reacting to the dairy I ate? I thought her dairy intolerance was going away or gone... Or maybe she reacted to the sugar I ate? Any other thoughts on what could have made her constipated? She hasn't had any solids for 10 days or so, and I'm still giving her baby probiotics 2-3 times a day.
Yes, it's probably the dairy. DD1 reacts like this to any dairy (and did when she was ebf too.)
 
#492 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Annikate View Post
Yes, it's probably the dairy. DD1 reacts like this to any dairy (and did when she was ebf too.)
Sigh. No more ice cream for me...I wonder why she just started reacting like this? I almost prefer the bloody poop that used to be her reaction to dairy--at least that didn't seem to bother her.
 
#493 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by caedmyn View Post
Sigh. No more ice cream for me...I wonder why she just started reacting like this? I almost prefer the bloody poop that used to be her reaction to dairy--at least that didn't seem to bother her.
Poor baby. Constipation in little ones is awful. The first time dd had her bout of severe constipation I swear it was like she was giving birth. Sweating, moaning, the whole bit.

L. reuteri has helped her soooo much. We haven't even had any *slight* constipation since using that.

I really really really want some ice cream too. (Was just lamenting about it to dh today.
) but I think dairy makes dd2's cradle cap come back. Does this make sense to anyone? (The only dairy I do is cheese and yogurt of course.) DD does not eat cheese but got some in some scrambled eggs a few weeks ago and I *think* that's what caused it though I can't be sure.
 
#494 ·
I have been following this thread for several months(lurking
) and am finally posting(for the first time!!) because I could really use some advice. I have already learned so much from all your posts.

My ds is 19 mo. old and has had all sorts of gut issues. He was born with severe reflux (that he grew out of at 11 mo.) I did all sorts of elimination diets and never really saw much improvement. I quit breast feeding at 1 yr. because I literally just couldn't cope with it anymore. (up six times a night, constantly nursing yet he wasn't growing well, trying to change my diet, my mental health was really suffering). I realize most of you are dealing with all that right now, and I do have some regrets about quitting. Anyway, he has always had sleep issues although he has done much better since I quit nursing. He has been FTT since he was about 10 mo. I just can not get this poor child to gain weight. And he reacts to just about everything. The big ones are wheat, dairy and soy. He also doesn't tolerate eggs, coconut oil or milk, clo, avocado, tomatoes, some fruit, anything with citric acid, and more I just can't think of right now. He is now drinking rice milk that I add things to so it is more nutritious, but I really wish there was a better option for him. He has always had mushy poop or diarrhea. We are currently gluten free along with all the other stuff and his poop has firmed up about 50% of the time but at least once or twice a week we have a day that it gets mushy again and I can not figure out why.
: I am going insane trying to figure out how to help him. He is still very skinny, and has not gained any weight for months which is really getting scary. He has been tested for celiacs and cf, both came back normal, but we're gf anyway cause it seems to help. He is always on some type of df probiotic, and I am experimenting with different brands of enzymes. Zymeprime seem to make him reflux and give him diarrhea even at very small doses. Has anyone else experienced this?
I have been wanting to try SCD but not sure how I can or will with all his food reactions. Eggs, dairy, and I'm nervous to try any nuts with him at this age. Are any of you mamas giving your toddlers (under age 2) the nut flours? Has it made you nervous? I may just have to do my own version as closely as I can and hope for the best. Is that silly to think it would help?

Anyway, sorry for the novel! If anyone has any advice or input I would really appreciate it.

Oh yeah, has anyone tried water kefir for your toddlers that are dairy intolerant?

Thanks!
 
#495 ·
WE have done the water kefir-it was fine, but I prefered other sources of probiotics.

Annikate-cradle cap is indeed a symptom of food allergy.

Caedmyn-hugs to you, poor mama! Yes, it is likely the dairy. Same thing happens to my ds. It takes weeks for us (him) to recover. It happened even with a "dairy free" probiotic that contained traces of milk. I took that over a week ago. He's still only pooping every four days or so.
 
#496 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by shafer View Post
I have been following this thread for several months(lurking
) and am finally posting(for the first time!!) because I could really use some advice. I have already learned so much from all your posts.

My ds is 19 mo. old and has had all sorts of gut issues. He was born with severe reflux (that he grew out of at 11 mo.) I did all sorts of elimination diets and never really saw much improvement. I quit breast feeding at 1 yr. because I literally just couldn't cope with it anymore. (up six times a night, constantly nursing yet he wasn't growing well, trying to change my diet, my mental health was really suffering). I realize most of you are dealing with all that right now, and I do have some regrets about quitting. Anyway, he has always had sleep issues although he has done much better since I quit nursing. He has been FTT since he was about 10 mo. I just can not get this poor child to gain weight. And he reacts to just about everything. The big ones are wheat, dairy and soy. He also doesn't tolerate eggs, coconut oil or milk, clo, avocado, tomatoes, some fruit, anything with citric acid, and more I just can't think of right now. He is now drinking rice milk that I add things to so it is more nutritious, but I really wish there was a better option for him. He has always had mushy poop or diarrhea. We are currently gluten free along with all the other stuff and his poop has firmed up about 50% of the time but at least once or twice a week we have a day that it gets mushy again and I can not figure out why.
: I am going insane trying to figure out how to help him. He is still very skinny, and has not gained any weight for months which is really getting scary. He has been tested for celiacs and cf, both came back normal, but we're gf anyway cause it seems to help. He is always on some type of df probiotic, and I am experimenting with different brands of enzymes. Zymeprime seem to make him reflux and give him diarrhea even at very small doses. Has anyone else experienced this?
I have been wanting to try SCD but not sure how I can or will with all his food reactions. Eggs, dairy, and I'm nervous to try any nuts with him at this age. Are any of you mamas giving your toddlers (under age 2) the nut flours? Has it made you nervous? I may just have to do my own version as closely as I can and hope for the best. Is that silly to think it would help?

Anyway, sorry for the novel! If anyone has any advice or input I would really appreciate it.

Oh yeah, has anyone tried water kefir for your toddlers that are dairy intolerant?

Thanks!
i feel your pain...
there are many more experienced mamas who can offer more hands-on advice, but i couldn't read your post and not respond. we are in similar situations. my 20 mth old ds has many allergies/intolerances including eggs, dairy, nuts, cococut, avocado, gluten, rice. we did a modified version of scd for the summer and ds did gain 7oz., but we also started enzymes, probiotics, and vit c...to name a few. i say modified...we did stay scd legal for the summer, but i recently added in a few grains that i am pretty sure he can tolerate: quinoa, millet, buckwheat...occasionally white potato (very occasionally). with all of ds's issues, i felt like he wasn't getting a balanced diet...i am bfing, too, and i know i wasn't. we recently made the switch, so only time will tell. you can do some scd when there are allergies, i personally could not stay on it too long and feel good...i'm sure if i could follow it with dairy and/or eggs it would make a difference...just my experience. i do believe that any attempt to follow (even a modified version, if that's what you need to do) a gut healing diet will help.

i, too, am interested in water kefir...i have been told (on this thread, i believe) that kids with dairy allergies can usually tolerate water kefir. i need to find a reliable source for grains.

allergy testing did help confirm much of what i knew, but at this young of an age is only so reliable. just an fyi...although rice is low on the allergy list, i do believe that it is one that ds reacts to. with all of the other allergies/intolerances, i would be very cautious with nuts. ds recently tested IgE to both tree nuts and peanuts...scary stuff.

i have also found that ds can only tolerate a probiotic that is dairy free...right now we are using one from customprobiotics.com ...it is not cheap!!

hope this is helpful...
good luck...welcome to the whirl wind
 
#497 ·
I'm getting nervous about my dd's b-vitamins. I take a b-complex but I don't give one to her. She nurses a lot but I don't know how much of that transfers in the bm.

I'm looking at the brainchild vitamins, but I'm not sure those are a great idea either.

Anyone have any thoughts?

Oh and we had lentels today for the first time since starting the diet 7+ months ago. DD loved them and they seemed to have not caused any adverse effects.
 
#498 ·
Anyone here seen this study? It is about mercury fillings and a substance that could bind to the mercury.

Jane- Where are you??? How did that Dr's appointment go??? Did I miss her saying that she would be gone?
 
#499 ·
Welcome Shafer,
I'm still finding my way around too. I don't know the answer to whether SCD would help your DS or not, the pecanbread yahoo group would be a good place to read up and ask questions. The focus over there is specifically children on SCD.
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/pecanbread/

Also pecanbread is a good place to read about how to do the intro, they lay it all out for you:
http://www.pecanbread.com/foodprep.html

I know it is overwhelming to start this healing through diet but it will be worth it. There is so much to compute
: Good luck!
 
#500 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Pattyla View Post
Anyone here seen this study? It is about mercury fillings and a substance that could bind to the mercury.

Jane- Where are you??? How did that Dr's appointment go??? Did I miss her saying that she would be gone?
I didn't read the whole study but it sounds an awful lot like NCD or Zeolite. Check out this thread.
 
#502 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Annikate View Post
I didn't read the whole study but it sounds an awful lot like NCD or Zeolite. Check out this thread.
Now why didn't you post this sooner????

(ok I remember you posting about this a few months ago.)

HMMMMMMM................. (I've recently become convinced that my fillings may be the root of our yeast battle.)
 
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