Help Please

[glassd18]

Here I am again. I had such a horrible night last night. Up about twenty x's.
I'll list what I did and maybe someone can point me in the right direction. I'm so exhausted, fed up, sad, and discouraged.

Breakfast: two rice bread w/cashew butter
chamomile tea

Bad argument with hubby at work over me being on this site too much.

Lunch: Arby's grilled chicken sand-suppose to have no preservatives
a couple of fries
Vanilla Milk Shake

Dinner: Honeydew Melon, Blueberry juice, mozzerella cheese/triscuits
Preservative free Hormel oven roasted turkey slices. Too hot to
eat a big meal.

A couple of pieces of Panda black licorice. (Kroger organic dept)

Decided not to take Ativan at bedtime and took Zyrtec instead, and it made me feel terrible. Heebeegeebees.

2 extra strength Tylenol
Prelief
Started Alesse Birth Control Pills three days ago

Other Meds:

Cystoprotek since April 27, 2006
Desert Harvest Aloe since about a week
Prelief
Fish Oil
Evening Primrose Oil
Pepcid Max Strength
Oregano Oil

Nothing seems to be working.
I feel like garbage today.

Another argument with hubby this am.

I just want to crawl into a whole and croak!!

[jah]

LOL...my husband is the same way....says I spend waaaaaaaaay too much time on the ol computer. No treatment seems to work for me either...desperate. Hoping someone on these boards will have a trick that works. Hoping doctors will read somewhere that NARCOTIC PAIN MEDS WORK FOR IC PATIENTS. Hoping hoping hoping....praying...that is all I have left.:pray:

[littlebear]

Hi,

So sorry to hear about your condition. Some people are more sensitive to foods than others, so lots of things on the list of what you ate before your flare might bother me (the Arby's shake, the Arby's sand, the triscuits, even the rice bread . . ). But, everyone is different, so this might not be the case with you. Have you tried the elimination diet? It isn't a walk in the park (and you have to watch and see if even some of the foods on it are causing you problems), but it can help you to figure out what your triggers are--especially if you start keeping a journal while you're on it and then keep it up while you're adding foods over time.

Also, the birth control pills might be a problem. You might want to go the the Estrogen and Hormone Replacement board and ask about this.

As for your hubby, the time you spend on the boards trying to figure out how to manage your IC is an investment you're making for both of you (and your family life). If he's having trouble handling your illness, he can log on too (and go to the family and friends boards). Along the same lines, maybe, after he's educated himself, he can log on and do some research to help you out (this could cut the time you spend on line almost in half). Just a few ideas--but, in the end, your relationship is your relationship and you know best as far as that goes.

Well, I hope that you are feeling better asap. Keep us posted! We're all rooting for you!

Sending you all my best wishes, littlebear

[glassd18]

Thanks Littlebear. I feel like a broken record here on the site, but I'm always hopeful someone sees something I didn't see. I am feeling better all of a sudden. I could have died last night right through to this afternoon, but at this moment for whatever reason my pain subsided to a 2. The elimination diet has been somewhat difficult because some days it seems that something bothers me and other days it doesn't. Can you eat vanilla ice cream at all? What is difficult is the time frame from which one suffers after eating the possible irritant. If I've eaten 4 foods, and I don't flare until tomorrow then I can I tell which one it is? Does the elimination diet take this into consideration? I also thought that maybe I should get tested for certain food allergies like wheat etc... I've been eating these things all my life with no problem though. Argh, this is frustrating!!! Thanks again, and I root for you too, and everyone else on this site!!!:woohoo:

[sacausa]

Vanilla icecream should be fine, go for one though that is natural with no preservatives and things you can't pronounce lol!

My best guess would be the blueberry juice, I know when I was diet sensitive I couldn't tolerate blueberries at all. (it's not a general rule that blueberries are OK for everyone with IC)

Stress is also a big flare trigger and can be as bad as drinking a gallon of cranberry juice for IC!!! It has the same effect on the bladder so remind hubby of that little fact!

The Arby's shake probably had a whole bunch of yucky stuff in it that could possibly have made you flare.

good luck

[Lisa_S]

I have had problems from honeydew before, but it is okay I think if I take Prelief with it.

[kadi]

I'd probably blame the Arby's shake first. I avoid almost all fast food.
When I drink blueberry juice, I take a couple of Calcium Citrates with it to bind the oxalates (or I get itching something fierce).

I do notice you took Tylenol. Tylenol makes my bladder so irritated I forget about the headache I probably took it for (not how it's supposed to work!). So, if your flare was after taking the Tylenol, that might be it too.

The birth control pill might have done it too, but then you'd still be flaring in a few days because you'd be still taking it...

I did get allergy testing done after I developed IC. I had several food allergies identified, eliminated those foods & had some minor improvement from that.

This is maddening, I know. Hang in there, keep a food diary for awhile. You might consider the elimination strategies in the Confident Choices book, I think those are very helpful:)

[glassd18]

Regarding the Tylenol, I have seen on this site some people taking Tylenol 3 for their IC pain. I assumed that Tylenol was a safe bet, and my uro's office said I could take it. I know the red coated Tylenol flared me sooooo bad, and I figured out about that not long into it. I can not tolerate narcotic pain killers so what would be a good pain killer choice. I've seen some people taking celebrex. I take Ativan at night, and that works fine for me at night, but would love not to have to take it because of the grogginess next day, and it doesn't help my memory any.LOL

[ICNDonna]

I see two distinct possibilities --- the stress of an argument and the honeydew melon. Some ICers can't tolerate those.

Donna

[RandiBPD]

I feel the same way you do. I am newly diagnosed, and although I have a mild case, I am afraid I have been feeling sorry for myself. And I feel guilty because I haven't had the intense pain and other trauma that many people here have. It's more the diet and the incredible changes in my lifestyle and the enjoyment I used to get from eating.

The thing that bothers me most about the diet isn't giving up individual foods, but the enormous difficulty in lifestyle, restaurants and stuff. My husband does all the cooking, so it affects him. The onions and vinegar and tomatoes thing makes it--as u know--sooooo difficult to find recopies that work. Yes, I have the IC cookbook, but I am used to a different kind of food--spicy, Indian, Mexican. Right before this happened, for other health reasons I had to cut out sweets and reduce carbs. Now, take away these things and you have cottage cheese (which I like, by the way.)

AND I HATE EGGS. I can eat them if there is enough other stuff there to mask the egg. But there is something about them early in the morning...

I can subsist on the diet, but I haven't seen a recipe and thought, "oh, I really want to make that. Don't get me wrong--I am incredibly grateful to Bev. What a labor of love. THANK YOU. I do see things there I want to make. But I approach it with the same enthusiasm I would to run around and do errands.

Many years ago, I went into a remission that lasted so long I forgot I had this. Lurking beneath the surface is the fear that this time the Elmiron won't cut it and I won't be able to go back to a normal life this time.

Other chronic health problems include severe depression. Enough to be hospitalized three times. Oh, by the way, back stuff. And I have a demanding job.

Anyway, like I said, I know I have it good compaired to others. Maybe it's a combo of depression and IC that makes it worse.

Still, think positive, right? Thank u for reading this far.

Randi

[Eccles]

Both the melon & blueberry juice would make me flare; I can only eat pears & try to make up for lack of fruit by eating more veg. The only things I can drink are water at room temperature and a drink made from just oats.

It's very individual isn't it? Why not try cutting out all the suspect food & reintroducing them one at a time earlier in the day, so your nights aren't affected?

Hope you're feeling better now, & that hubby has started being supportive. x

[glassd18]

Okay, can do, no more melon, no more blueberries just pears. Blah!!! I really have to go backward because I had a handle on this (so I thought) for a little while then started eating different things. One thing at a time. I can do that, I hope!!! I take Prelief with every meal and at bedtime. I don't think it's working if I'm flaring from all these things. Also I'm wondering about the Desert Harvest Aloe Vera I just started. Could this be a culprit too? I didn't take any tonight with dinner and I will evaluate in the morning.

Randi, hang in there, I know the diet is hard. I certainly hope Elmiron continues to work for you. As far as the depression, talking here on this support sight is very healthy it saved me a million times when I was sinking deep and fast. Hugs!!!

[glassd18]

Me again!! Can we eat shortbread? I saw some at Wild Oats and it was organic with very little ingredients. By the way I went to there regular bread section, and most of the breads had vinegar in it!!! Grrrrr!!