Diverticulitis

Ugh! I, too, have diverticulitis attacks. The trick is figuring out what foods might trigger it, usually it's fatty foods, or certain proteins. Sometimes, just overeating. For me, salmon is an absolute trigger. Salmon for dinner, diverticulitis attack by noon the next day. Which sucks, cuz I love salmon. They used to tell you to avoid seeds and nuts as they could aggravate the intestines, but I think that's changed. I still wouldn't eat them during an attack.

I don't know if they told you in the ER, but for the first day of an attack, and sometimes the second day as well, the second you feel symptoms coming on, you should go to a clear liquid diet- Broth, water, gelatin- nothing that your intestines have to try to digest. Don't worry about dieting, because it's pretty hard to gain weight on liquids.
Usually, the antibiotics can clear up the infection in a couple days (make sure you take them until they're gone!) Once the infection is cleared up, you'll feel your energy coming back.

Write down everything that you ate for the 24 hours before your attack, and see if you can figure out what triggered it. Sometimes, it's a combination of foods, so it can be tricky. Now that I know what my triggers are and how to recognize an attack coming on, it barely affects my life at all. I avoid salmon and foods fried in soybean oil, and the second I feel that first twinge of pain, I drink a glass of water and go to clear liquid diet, and it usually subsides within 24 hours. If it doesn't, and I start running a fever, I call my doctor for a run of antibiotics, but that's only happened once in four years since my diagnosis. I know the attacks can come on really suddenly, and how really scary it can be, but it won't be this bad forever. You'll get a handle on what causes the attacks for you and how to mitigate them.

I had a bad attack of diverticulitis at the end of February. Make sure to get rest and eat very LOW fiber for the first few weeks. I had introduced walnuts and raisins to my diet, had a bag of popcorn, a few alcoholic beverages, and was upping my fiber just before the attack. I had to eat mostly white bread with tuna, or turkey sandwiches, mashed potatoes, and practically no fruits or veggies while recovering. I started on a multivitamin to make sure I was getting the nutrients I needed. I could only eat fruits with pits, not seeds. The antibiotics made me very cold but I got over it. Salmon didn't affect me at all and I still love it to this day so different things obviously affect different people. If I hadn't been logging I'd probably still be wondering what triggered it. It sounds crazy to most people but a lot of low fiber foods are low in calories and can be beneficial to those of us with intestinal/digestive issues. I don't eat perfectly by any means but feel free to friend me if you want to check my food diary.

I have not had that. I have a different (very challenging) GI disorder caused by being wrongly prescribed meds. I agree with the others about keeping up with the probiotics and fermented foods like kefir and sauerkraut. Those are powerful antibiotics. But, you can recover from it once you finish the course. Hang in there. These things are so difficult. ♥

Check with your doctor before starting probiotics. They can be good and bad. "It has been shown that the use of various probiotics for immunocompromised patients or patients with a leaky gut has resulted in infections and sepsis (infection of the bloodstream). One case of bacteremia (bacteria in the bloodstream) was recently found when someone with active severe inflammatory bowel diseases with mucosal disruption was given Lactobacillus GG. Always speak with a doctor before taking any supplement under these circumstances."

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/mobileart.asp?articlekey=83173&page=13

JanetYellen wrote: »

@Erfw7471 If you have the money, consider a vitamix to make green drinks.
This stuff seems to come back.
I think costco has them on sale for $350 or so. I think Sam's club also carries them.

I actually have one, and that's a great suggestion about the drinks-thank you!

@JanetYellen Great suggestion on the vitamix. Thank you!

My husband had many bouts of diverticulitis and chose to basically ignore the symptoms one time too many. Last September he ran a fever for a week and kept hoping the pain would go away. By the time he decided to go to the doctor he was critical. He had a perforation in this colon and was hours away from death. He had 11cm of his colon removed during what was a very risky surgery due to sepsis. He spent 12 days in ICU, then 3 more days in the hospital and came home 30 pounds lighter with a colostomy bag. It was a lengthy recovery. In March he had additional surgery to reverse his colostomy and everything seems to be working fine. All this being said, always talk to your doctor if you have flare ups, don't try to self-medicate or make it go away with diet. Once you have the pain you have infection. Ask your doctor about what type of diet to follow to help prevent further problems. I don't recall that he ever felt bad from the Flagyl & Cipro, but just having the diverticulitis would drain him for a couple weeks. As far as your diet and exercise, I wouldn't push it too hard, you need to let your body heal. Good luck to you and I hope you can put this behind you.

@Squirrel698 Whether it's dietary or just a wrong turn in your intestines, is it possible that you fell, an animal or child jumped on you while you were resting, or something hit you in your side? Prior to my attack I was trampled while sleeping on the couch by our dog. This may have caused the food to make a wrong turn. You might not have to worry about dietary concerns unless they trigger another attack. Just an observation when I think back to that day...