I won't have time to keep a journal very often, but can tell you how I'm doing generally. (I'll also post this in my journal)
The serious flare-ups that need antibiotics seem to be few and far between... so far at least 8 mos.-1 year apart. In between my digestive system has its ups and downs.
I usually avoid spicy stuff, and have never been able to eat onions, garlic, or peppers without upset. Some things like chili or chinese food with red pepper seasoning seem ok. Lately tomatoes have been a problem, so I just began to avoid them except for sauces.
I tend to eat a very bland diet with some meat -- beef, chicken, pork -- and occasionally fish, lots of pasta, yogurt, fruit, salad and cooked veggies (broccoli is my favorite!). I also love salt... but I've always had low blood pressure and use lite salt (sodium/potassium mix) so don't worry about it.
I take a ton of vitamins and supplements, always experimenting with what will help. Right now I've added an intestinal support herbal combo that has slippery elm and a few other things, and ginger. I do a lot of research (being a medical librarian!), and found one article that said eating ginger root might help with reducing bacteria in the colon, so I now eat a chunk of crystallized ginger after every meal. Also added a probiotic/enzyme combo pill in the evening. I've taken fiber on and off... just added back Fiberchoice, but may switch to another kind to get rid of the sugar it contains.
Sometimes I get quite painful spasms that begin in my stomach and move right down through the intestines -- usually it is just gas. Some days I just feel like I have a big lump in my middle, others I'm fine. I don't have the constipation a lot of sites say is common with diverculosis... I bet I go 3 or 4 times a day! ... sometimes the stool is normal, others not. If I only eat food prepared at home I'm better -- if I go out, it usually means I feel worse the next day. Can't figure out why exactly. If I eat a smorgasboard type meal I'm worse. When I feel really bad I make up noodles in chicken broth with a little margarine and parmesan cheese. Always makes me feel better.
I'm beginning to wonder if my bland diet is part of the problem. I have not found any statistics on spice in the diet and prevalence of this condition, but will continue to search. I'm trying to kick my taste buds up a notch -- eating the ginger, trying to get used to more garlic and tumeric (both also have antibacterial action), eat more Indian food. We'll see.
Heard just last week from a former nurse that sometimes gluten is thought to be a problem (wheat), and some doctors will say to avoid it for a while. There's also something called Specific Carb Diet (SCD) that is pretty grim -- basically just meat, veggies, fruit, and only honey as a sweetener -- but some claim that it "cures" the problem.
The whole theory of why this happens (increased pressure in the colon wall due to not enough bulk) doesn't make sense to me, so I keep searching for other possibilities. Also, doctors vary on what they tell their patients. Mine said avoid seeds, nuts, popcorn, corn on the cob, etc. But if you read the medical literature, they now say that advice is not valid. Still about half the physicians give that advice. Other folks I've talked with say stress brings it on and it doesn't matter what you eat.
BTW, another piece of medical advice used to be that if you had 2 or more flare-ups of the -itis you should have part of your colon removed! A recent study negated that, and says only after 4 or more should it be done as elective surgery. A MORE recent study says that it may not fix the problem anyway, so may not be advisable at all unless you have a pocket burst and cause peritonitis.
I know my doctor wants me to have a colonoscopy, but so far I've avoided it because of a higher risk of perforation with diverculosis. I know they want to rule out cancer just to be safe, but I had a CT scan so they know for sure I have diverculosis.
Bottom line: the medical profession is also struggling with the issue and trying to determine cause and best advice, so we need to each try and learn as much as we can and figure out what works for us.
Later!
-- Pam
The serious flare-ups that need antibiotics seem to be few and far between... so far at least 8 mos.-1 year apart. In between my digestive system has its ups and downs.
I usually avoid spicy stuff, and have never been able to eat onions, garlic, or peppers without upset. Some things like chili or chinese food with red pepper seasoning seem ok. Lately tomatoes have been a problem, so I just began to avoid them except for sauces.
I tend to eat a very bland diet with some meat -- beef, chicken, pork -- and occasionally fish, lots of pasta, yogurt, fruit, salad and cooked veggies (broccoli is my favorite!). I also love salt... but I've always had low blood pressure and use lite salt (sodium/potassium mix) so don't worry about it.
I take a ton of vitamins and supplements, always experimenting with what will help. Right now I've added an intestinal support herbal combo that has slippery elm and a few other things, and ginger. I do a lot of research (being a medical librarian!), and found one article that said eating ginger root might help with reducing bacteria in the colon, so I now eat a chunk of crystallized ginger after every meal. Also added a probiotic/enzyme combo pill in the evening. I've taken fiber on and off... just added back Fiberchoice, but may switch to another kind to get rid of the sugar it contains.
Sometimes I get quite painful spasms that begin in my stomach and move right down through the intestines -- usually it is just gas. Some days I just feel like I have a big lump in my middle, others I'm fine. I don't have the constipation a lot of sites say is common with diverculosis... I bet I go 3 or 4 times a day! ... sometimes the stool is normal, others not. If I only eat food prepared at home I'm better -- if I go out, it usually means I feel worse the next day. Can't figure out why exactly. If I eat a smorgasboard type meal I'm worse. When I feel really bad I make up noodles in chicken broth with a little margarine and parmesan cheese. Always makes me feel better.
I'm beginning to wonder if my bland diet is part of the problem. I have not found any statistics on spice in the diet and prevalence of this condition, but will continue to search. I'm trying to kick my taste buds up a notch -- eating the ginger, trying to get used to more garlic and tumeric (both also have antibacterial action), eat more Indian food. We'll see.
Heard just last week from a former nurse that sometimes gluten is thought to be a problem (wheat), and some doctors will say to avoid it for a while. There's also something called Specific Carb Diet (SCD) that is pretty grim -- basically just meat, veggies, fruit, and only honey as a sweetener -- but some claim that it "cures" the problem.
The whole theory of why this happens (increased pressure in the colon wall due to not enough bulk) doesn't make sense to me, so I keep searching for other possibilities. Also, doctors vary on what they tell their patients. Mine said avoid seeds, nuts, popcorn, corn on the cob, etc. But if you read the medical literature, they now say that advice is not valid. Still about half the physicians give that advice. Other folks I've talked with say stress brings it on and it doesn't matter what you eat.
BTW, another piece of medical advice used to be that if you had 2 or more flare-ups of the -itis you should have part of your colon removed! A recent study negated that, and says only after 4 or more should it be done as elective surgery. A MORE recent study says that it may not fix the problem anyway, so may not be advisable at all unless you have a pocket burst and cause peritonitis.
I know my doctor wants me to have a colonoscopy, but so far I've avoided it because of a higher risk of perforation with diverculosis. I know they want to rule out cancer just to be safe, but I had a CT scan so they know for sure I have diverculosis.
Bottom line: the medical profession is also struggling with the issue and trying to determine cause and best advice, so we need to each try and learn as much as we can and figure out what works for us.
Later!
-- Pam
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