# Parasite?



## willow123 (Nov 21, 2011)

Hi all, I'm new to this group but have been lurking for a while looking for answers.I have been dealing with constipation issues for two or three years, that have steadily become worse and worse. I tried speaking up to my doctor, and she checked by thyroid, which came back normal. I eat a healthy, high fiber diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. I also have a vitamix, and try to drink a green smoothie every day. Still, I've had these constipation issues which have caused me to take MOM or laxatives. Every time I do, I feel really guilty because my mom has brainwashed me from an early age to think that laxatives are only for people who do not eat a healthy diet.Two months ago things because really weird, when (sorry, this is gross!)---I pooped out a worm! It was horrifying as you might imagine. Luckily, my husband had the presence of mind to put the worm in a Ziploc back so I could take it to the doctor the next morning. It turns out, the worm was Ascaris Lumbricoides, the largest round worm you could get. We live in the US, and it is highly unusual to get this type of parasite. The pharmacies didn't have the right medicine, and I had to drive three towns over to fill the prescription. My whole family was tested, and nobody had the worm but me, but we all took the worm medicine anyway, just in case.After the worm medicine, the doctor gave me that stuff you drink, magnesium citrate?, miralax, and laxatives to cleanse my colon out. I never saw any more worms come, but it was suggested that they might be digested. (Yuck.) Once I stopped freaking out about this, I was really hopeful that the worms were the source of my constipation problem, and that now I was cured. Unfortunately, this has not been the case, and I'm now worse than ever. Perhaps my body had even grown dependent on the worms helping me digest food. (again, yuck)So now I'm going to go see a GI doctor this week. I'm hoping for answers, even if it means I have IBS C, or (yuck), the worms might still be there. In the meantime, I've printed out the food journal from this website and am building up some data.Last week I tried eating as close to raw vegan as I could. This did not work! This week I'm doing the complete opposite, and am trying the low residue diet. This too, is not working. Next week I thought I might try gluten free? I am also an avid exerciser, but I don't think that helps either.My husband has been very supportive throughout all of this, but my mother keeps blaming my eating habits. When she found out about green smoothies she lectured me that I needed "whole pieces of broccoli to clean out my digestion." When I tired eating more whole, raw vegetable she told me "You are not a cow and you don't have a cow's digestion. You should only be eating cooked things." Now, when I took her latest advice and am trying the low-residue diet, with cooked vegetables, canned fruit etc, she has told me "That sounds really unhealthy. I never told you to do that." Do other people struggle with relatives blaming you for your constipation issues? I mean, I had a freakin parasite two months ago. I clearly have a messed up digestion and I really don't think this is my fault.P.S. I forgot to add, in the past two months I've also tried taking magnesium, but I think it gives me a rash. I went to the doctor about this too, and they took a sample and said it wasn't contagious, but that was all they could say. Very frustrating!


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

You are an adult right?? Let Mom know.. as gently as you can... when you would like advice from her or her help with anything..you will be sure to let her know. And I woudll be taking your Dr's advice rather than Mom on this.Taking laxatives isn't necessarily "bad" for you. And you _know_ this. Mom may have told you something different than than what is actually accurate. So there is no reason for any guilt whatsoever! And the statue of limitations on her "brain-washing" you was up the instant you became an adult.... so... try changing your own thinking.Educate yourself on laxatives & the different kinds and causes of constipation..... that will make changing your thinking.. a WHOLE LOT easier. And YES! I was blamed for years for my condition. And I still am by some people. I just choose to not to take anything they say to heart and try to forgive their ignorance. Let us know how you do with the GI. Here's hoping they have some ideas to guide you!


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## CQ91 (Nov 23, 2011)

willow123 said:


> Hi all, I'm new to this group but have been lurking for a while looking for answers.I have been dealing with constipation issues for two or three years, that have steadily become worse and worse. I tried speaking up to my doctor, and she checked by thyroid, which came back normal. I eat a healthy, high fiber diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. I also have a vitamix, and try to drink a green smoothie every day. Still, I've had these constipation issues which have caused me to take MOM or laxatives. Every time I do, I feel really guilty because my mom has brainwashed me from an early age to think that laxatives are only for people who do not eat a healthy diet.Two months ago things because really weird, when (sorry, this is gross!)---I pooped out a worm! It was horrifying as you might imagine. Luckily, my husband had the presence of mind to put the worm in a Ziploc back so I could take it to the doctor the next morning. It turns out, the worm was Ascaris Lumbricoides, the largest round worm you could get. We live in the US, and it is highly unusual to get this type of parasite. The pharmacies didn't have the right medicine, and I had to drive three towns over to fill the prescription. My whole family was tested, and nobody had the worm but me, but we all took the worm medicine anyway, just in case.After the worm medicine, the doctor gave me that stuff you drink, magnesium citrate?, miralax, and laxatives to cleanse my colon out. I never saw any more worms come, but it was suggested that they might be digested. (Yuck.) Once I stopped freaking out about this, I was really hopeful that the worms were the source of my constipation problem, and that now I was cured. Unfortunately, this has not been the case, and I'm now worse than ever. Perhaps my body had even grown dependent on the worms helping me digest food. (again, yuck)So now I'm going to go see a GI doctor this week. I'm hoping for answers, even if it means I have IBS C, or (yuck), the worms might still be there. In the meantime, I've printed out the food journal from this website and am building up some data.Last week I tried eating as close to raw vegan as I could. This did not work! This week I'm doing the complete opposite, and am trying the low residue diet. This too, is not working. Next week I thought I might try gluten free? I am also an avid exerciser, but I don't think that helps either.My husband has been very supportive throughout all of this, but my mother keeps blaming my eating habits. When she found out about green smoothies she lectured me that I needed "whole pieces of broccoli to clean out my digestion." When I tired eating more whole, raw vegetable she told me "You are not a cow and you don't have a cow's digestion. You should only be eating cooked things." Now, when I took her latest advice and am trying the low-residue diet, with cooked vegetables, canned fruit etc, she has told me "That sounds really unhealthy. I never told you to do that." Do other people struggle with relatives blaming you for your constipation issues? I mean, I had a freakin parasite two months ago. I clearly have a messed up digestion and I really don't think this is my fault.P.S. I forgot to add, in the past two months I've also tried taking magnesium, but I think it gives me a rash. I went to the doctor about this too, and they took a sample and said it wasn't contagious, but that was all they could say. Very frustrating!


Hello Willow,I am also new to this group and your post intrigued me as I have just been investigating parasites as a possible cause for my lifelong IBS symptoms.Now it sounds as though there is not doubt that you did have a parasite, and it sounds as though you are still experiencing symptoms that resonate with a parasitic infection.My suggestion to you would be to take a comprehensive stool test. I have just undertaken one of these and received the results today. This test is from Metametrix: http://www.metametrix.com/ and is performed in the US. The results of this stool testing inform you of whether you have any sort of parasite or ova in your system- this will tell you whether your suspicions of still having the parasite are true, whether you have a bacterial infection (and if so, what type(s) of bacteria are within you in unhealthy amounts), whether you have a yeast overgrowth, and many more facts about your gastrointestinal health. Often when a strong medicine is used to kill off parasites, the good bacteria of the gut is also killed off. This can cause the good bacteria that keeps your gut functioning properly to die, resulting in IBS symptoms. I would suggest taking the stool test and also taking a probiotic daily. The probiotic will help your gut to rebuild its natural healthy bacteria, helping your gut to regain its health. When my healthcare practitioner was suspicious that I had a parasite in my system, he told me to follow the SC diet. Here's a link: http://www.scdiet.org/This diet starves off bad bacteria and parasitic infection. Basically the gist is that you don't eat specific types of carbohydrates; no sugar, not fruits high in sugar, no carbohydrates. Best wishes,CQ


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## willow123 (Nov 21, 2011)

CQ91 said:


> Hello Willow,I am also new to this group and your post intrigued me as I have just been investigating parasites as a possible cause for my lifelong IBS symptoms.Now it sounds as though there is not doubt that you did have a parasite, and it sounds as though you are still experiencing symptoms that resonate with a parasitic infection.My suggestion to you would be to take a comprehensive stool test. I have just undertaken one of these and received the results today. This test is from Metametrix: http://www.metametrix.com/ and is performed in the US. The results of this stool testing inform you of whether you have any sort of parasite or ova in your system- this will tell you whether your suspicions of still having the parasite are true, whether you have a bacterial infection (and if so, what type(s) of bacteria are within you in unhealthy amounts), whether you have a yeast overgrowth, and many more facts about your gastrointestinal health. Often when a strong medicine is used to kill off parasites, the good bacteria of the gut is also killed off. This can cause the good bacteria that keeps your gut functioning properly to die, resulting in IBS symptoms. I would suggest taking the stool test and also taking a probiotic daily. The probiotic will help your gut to rebuild its natural healthy bacteria, helping your gut to regain its health. When my healthcare practitioner was suspicious that I had a parasite in my system, he told me to follow the SC diet. Here's a link: http://www.scdiet.org/This diet starves off bad bacteria and parasitic infection. Basically the gist is that you don't eat specific types of carbohydrates; no sugar, not fruits high in sugar, no carbohydrates. Best wishes,CQ


Hmm... I have never heard of the SC diet before, but am willing to try anything! Coincidentally, before I read this post I had just called the doctor asking for the stool test equipment. Since I'm in the US, I have to go through our health insurance. Luckily we've already hit our deductible this year.I'm not sure how accurate stool tests are though. Since I actually pooped out a worm in September (sorry, yuck!), we know that I had parasites. But the doctor had me take day 1 of the stool test _before _I took the worm medicine. That test came back negative for parasites. It could be that I only had male worms in me, or it could be that the test is not very accurate. It seems unlikely that I only had male worms, because (again, sorry about the yuck factor), the female worms crawl down into the colon to lay their eggs, and sometimes they crawl out of you. That's how I found the worm to begin with, so probably it was a female.I'm taking two different forms of probiotics right already, and hoping that helps!BQ, thanks for the tough love pep-talk, it was needed! My mom called me today to tell me she talked about me with her dietician friend, and that "dieticians *never* recommend you drink juice because it's just concentrated sugar and doesn't have the fiber necessary to scour out your intestines, and that I should blah blah blah..." I finally had the guts (ha, ha) to tell my mom to back off, and that she doesn't know what she is talking about. Besides, I don't drink concentrated juice anyway. I have, in the past, drunk blended green smoothies from my Vitamix with none of the fiber strained out, as an addition to my normal diet, but lack fiber is not my problem. In fact, maybe my problem is *too* much fiber. I also told her that every time she talked about what I eat or drink she was implying that this was my fault, which is NOT true. I pooped out a worm a couple of months ago, for Pete's sake! Ugh! It was good to say all of that to my mom and stand up for myself. Unfortunately, this conversation has happened the day before Thanksgiving.


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## CQ91 (Nov 23, 2011)

Willow,Absolutely agree with you there on stool tests... Most of them, that is!I took 2 stool tests via my doctor, both of which came back with nothing to report except some mucous (even though mucous is a problem, my doc said it was not). Knowing something was wrong, I went to a wonderful naturopath who told me that only 2 in 100 stool tests done here in Australia (where I'm from) come back with any remarkable results. This is not because only 2 in 100 have bacteria overgrowth or parasitic infections, it is because they can only test for certain bacteria/parasites. I took his advice and sent stool samples to Metametrix in America.So my results just came back and I have a yeast infection (could be the reason for the mucous and lots of the IBS symptoms), Helicobacter Pylori bacterial infection (again, could be causing mucous) and a Cyclobacter infection. On top of this, the metametrix test told me that I have a gluten sensitivity. The 2 Australian 'standard' stool tests told me none of these issues at all!I hope that your next stool test comes back with some more conclusive results. CQ


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## BQ (May 22, 2000)

Hey Willow!!!! GOOD for you! You hold your head up! You have nothing to feel badly about.. SHE was the one out of order. You just act like that was something you needed to say... for her benefit as well as your own. You said it... and it's over. Keep right on rolling... act NO differently! If she acts hurt.. tell her that wasn't your intention and you are sorry she it took it that way. Let her know you appreciate her concern but it is just something you need to deal with on your own & with your Dr's advice. Let her know you understand that as a Mom she wants to fix it... but she just can't this time. Give her a hug.. and..... And then.. drop it... and change the subject!







You did great! (((((Hugs)))) I sincerely hope you are proud of yourself! And have yourself a great day tomorrow!


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## willow123 (Nov 21, 2011)

I'm definitely going to look into getting one of those extra special parasite tests. It looks like they test for parasite DNA instead of just eggs. It seems like that would be a lot cheaper for my insurance, (and less invasive), then scoping me from one end or the other.Thank you for the tip!


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## QuiQui (Aug 15, 2010)

I don't have anything useful to add about your parasite, but I do have a bit of advice about dealing with your mom. I'd suggest that you just don't tell her so many details about your health from now on, and if the subject comes up, change the topic of conversation. If she asks how you're feeling, just tell her everything's great now. The "mom" instinct of trying to protect you and fix you and fuss over you never goes away!


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## QuiQui (Aug 15, 2010)

How much does that Metametrix test cost? It looks as though it's not covered by most insurance plans in most states. Just the partial payment for the complete stool profile is $250!


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## CQ91 (Nov 23, 2011)

Willow, you're welcome. Qui Qui, yes the tests are expensive. I was fed up with taking average stool tests as these all came back negative, even though I KNEW that something was wrong. If you can spare the money, I would say go for it. I found it incredible that the average stool tests (those recommended by my doctor!) did not show these high levels of bacteria or yeast when infestations of bacteria and yeast can lead to fatal diseases including cancer. I'm in Australia, and I paid about 450 AUD for the Metametrix complete stool test. I'm not sure how much that is for you, especially if you live in the US. You might be charged less seeing as there won't be as much transport. I am really happy that I actually got some results after so long. I'd definitely recommend it. CQ


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## willow123 (Nov 21, 2011)

Just a quick follow up. I turned in the standard stool test today, so we will see how that goes.My digestion system has been really great for four days in a row now! But I'm not sure what is making the difference. I cut out gluten and started taking 100mg of Magnesium both at the same time. So now I'm not sure if going gluten free is helping, or if it’s the Magnesium. I'm still on the Miralax too, but that hasn't been very helpful in the past month.I'm continuing to keep track of each day on the food chart from this website, so I'll have a lot of data to offer the GI doctor in two weeks.Btw, I think the advice of just saying "I'm fine," from now on to my mom is the way to go. Thanks!


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