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I saw an emergency doctor for a bad upper-respiratory infection (coughing blood) and was prescribed Augmentin for 10 days. It abolished the lung issue but wiped

I saw an emergency doctor for a bad upper-respiratory infection (coughing blood) and was prescribed Augmentin for 10 days. It abolished the lung issue but wiped out my gut bacteria and gave me severe IBS-D. That was seven years ago. I was forced to quit my job. I couldn't travel at all, even across town. I became dreadfully sick with even light physical exertion. After five years of every test, diet, medication, and therapy available to me I was prescribed medication (eluxadoline) which is effective, but costs me $24,000/year and is not covered by insurance. I still have flare-ups once a month but at least I can ride my bicycle again. I wish I could sue the doctor who stole my twenties from me. But I stand no chance in court.

mettamage 6y ago
I don't know why precisely this story but it left a bit of an impact. I'm sorry for your lost twenties. I hope you can make the best of it.
gojomo 6y ago
If your hunch that the antibiotics' effects on your gut bacteria was the cause is correct, have you considered a fecal microbiota transplant to restore a healthier mix? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fecal_microbiota_transplant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fecal_microbiota_transplant
- whitehouse3 6y ago
  Yes! In 2019, the experimental medicine department at my local university hospital started scheduling FMT procedures. They're suspended now because of COVID-19 restrictions (much like dentists and optometrists). But I'm in the queue. Somewhat awkwardly, I am responsible to nominate a suitable donor.
  - im3w1l 6y ago
    What about diy?
    - im3w1l 6y ago
      For what it's worth, I asked this question sincerely. There are people who do it themselves, and I was curious about the tradeoff he saw between risk / reward of doing it this when there was a long wait.
  - virtue3 6y ago
    You should get a family member from what research I did into IBS and fecal transplants as a possible cure.
  - gojomo 6y ago
    I don't know where you are, but with so many medical workers now vaxxed in US, my impression is hospitals/etc are mostly eager to catch up on delayed non-pandemic procedures. If your own nearest option is still slow or requires a personally-nominated donor, other providers offering the freeze-dried pills, perhaps even via telemedicine, might be an option. Good luck!
Demigod33 6y ago
I wonder whether its possible to transplant the bacteria out before such a treatment and introduce them again later..
- webmaven 6y ago
  > I wonder whether its possible to transplant the bacteria out before such a treatment and introduce them again later.. In theory yes, but there is the challenge of avoiding re-infection with the one species you're being treated to eliminate.
  - Demigod33 6y ago
    Is the gut usually the main target or just as byproduct getting wiped? If not then its not necessarily an issue.
    - webmaven 6y ago
      The target species may not be thriving in your gut, if the location of the infection you're treating is elsewhere, but it is probably present.
- whitehouse3 6y ago
  Perhaps if a sample could be collected when healthy and frozen for long-term storage. In my experience antibiotics were prescribed for acute symptoms that quickly worsened. I don't think they would have delayed my treatment for the hours or days needed to collect a pre-treatment sample.
- newsclues 6y ago
  Or find a way to trigger creating the positive bacteria. Kevin rose did a podcast with https://pendulumlife.com/ https://pendulumlife.com/ that made that seem like a great path
tharkun__ 6y ago
So sad to hear this. I took a lot of anti biotics as a kid. I'm pretty sure it killed off whatever gut microbiome I had multiple times over. Never really had an issue except for becoming fat. Except for headaches. Which I never really thought about for many many years. You know, just take a pill. Probably took 20 years for me to figure it out somewhat. This may or may not work at all for you and even for myself I can't really scientifically say anything about it. But what helped me was probiotics. I had to try a lot of them. And it got worse first before it got better while the bacteria were fighting with each other and I'm not sure what would happen if I stopped them. However the best explanation I have found so far is that these probiotics that have Bacillus Subtilis in them made the difference. I don't want to advertise a specific product but since I've been asked before, what I take is Garden of Life Primal Defense Ultra. I tried others before and the one difference is Bacillus Subtilis. YMMV but worth a try if you ask me. I did combine it with a Keto diet too but I'm no longer on it and still fine. Also in case you drink beer for example, I get worse when I have beer. Hard liquor? Absolutely fine now with the probiotics but beer still screws me up if I have it for a longer period of time.
- dschuler 6y ago
  This is really helpful info, thanks for writing the comment!

mettamage 6y ago

I don't know why precisely this story but it left a bit of an impact. I'm sorry for your lost twenties. I hope you can make the best of it.

gojomo 6y ago

If your hunch that the antibiotics' effects on your gut bacteria was the cause is correct, have you considered a fecal microbiota transplant to restore a healthier mix? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fecal_microbiota_transplant https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fecal_microbiota_transplant

whitehouse3 6y ago
Yes! In 2019, the experimental medicine department at my local university hospital started scheduling FMT procedures. They're suspended now because of COVID-19 restrictions (much like dentists and optometrists). But I'm in the queue. Somewhat awkwardly, I am responsible to nominate a suitable donor.
- im3w1l 6y ago
  What about diy?
  - im3w1l 6y ago
    For what it's worth, I asked this question sincerely. There are people who do it themselves, and I was curious about the tradeoff he saw between risk / reward of doing it this when there was a long wait.
- virtue3 6y ago
  You should get a family member from what research I did into IBS and fecal transplants as a possible cure.
- gojomo 6y ago
  I don't know where you are, but with so many medical workers now vaxxed in US, my impression is hospitals/etc are mostly eager to catch up on delayed non-pandemic procedures. If your own nearest option is still slow or requires a personally-nominated donor, other providers offering the freeze-dried pills, perhaps even via telemedicine, might be an option. Good luck!

Demigod33 6y ago

I wonder whether its possible to transplant the bacteria out before such a treatment and introduce them again later..

webmaven 6y ago
> I wonder whether its possible to transplant the bacteria out before such a treatment and introduce them again later.. In theory yes, but there is the challenge of avoiding re-infection with the one species you're being treated to eliminate.
- Demigod33 6y ago
  Is the gut usually the main target or just as byproduct getting wiped? If not then its not necessarily an issue.
  - webmaven 6y ago
    The target species may not be thriving in your gut, if the location of the infection you're treating is elsewhere, but it is probably present.
whitehouse3 6y ago
Perhaps if a sample could be collected when healthy and frozen for long-term storage. In my experience antibiotics were prescribed for acute symptoms that quickly worsened. I don't think they would have delayed my treatment for the hours or days needed to collect a pre-treatment sample.
newsclues 6y ago
Or find a way to trigger creating the positive bacteria. Kevin rose did a podcast with https://pendulumlife.com/ https://pendulumlife.com/ that made that seem like a great path

tharkun__ 6y ago

So sad to hear this. I took a lot of anti biotics as a kid. I'm pretty sure it killed off whatever gut microbiome I had multiple times over. Never really had an issue except for becoming fat. Except for headaches. Which I never really thought about for many many years. You know, just take a pill. Probably took 20 years for me to figure it out somewhat. This may or may not work at all for you and even for myself I can't really scientifically say anything about it. But what helped me was probiotics. I had to try a lot of them. And it got worse first before it got better while the bacteria were fighting with each other and I'm not sure what would happen if I stopped them. However the best explanation I have found so far is that these probiotics that have Bacillus Subtilis in them made the difference. I don't want to advertise a specific product but since I've been asked before, what I take is Garden of Life Primal Defense Ultra. I tried others before and the one difference is Bacillus Subtilis. YMMV but worth a try if you ask me. I did combine it with a Keto diet too but I'm no longer on it and still fine. Also in case you drink beer for example, I get worse when I have beer. Hard liquor? Absolutely fine now with the probiotics but beer still screws me up if I have it for a longer period of time.

dschuler 6y ago
This is really helpful info, thanks for writing the comment!