So Confused!

[Lexi]

So, here it goes. What is going on?? My life has been one big medical nightmare since I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. It has been very hard to deal with, and sometimes I just want to give up. The hardest part about all of this is that I constantly have all these weird and unusual symptoms, and it makes me feel Crazy. As of now, none of my Doctors have been able to give me a clear answer as to why I feel the way I do. I have Celiac Disease, other food allergies, and Candida. It seems as if the candida is actually worse than the Celiac Disease. I also have terrible terrible back pain. I was recently diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. A lot of different things that I read seem to suggest that the Candida can actually cause all the other problems that I listed. Anyway, everytime I try and treat the Candida, my body hurts so bad that I cannot stand it. When I try to eat the things to kill the candida or take the medicine or probiotics for it, I get terrible back pain, and it travels up my spine, and into my shoulders and neck. It is like constant spasms over and over. So, it gets so bad, that I quit the diet and quit the medicine. I have done this over and over because I can't take the pain (even with pain medicine). My Doctors are all baffled by this. Does anyone know what could be causing this?? HELP!

[RiceGuy]

What you describe sounds similar to what I had experienced at one point. And yes, the pain is horrible. It also traveled around, and week to week it was usually in a different place. Eventually it was just all over.

What resolved it was magnesium, and methylcobalamin (a form of vitamin B12), though other nutrients do play a part. Start with 200mg to 400mg magnesium, and work upward from there. There are different types of magnesium, and each have particular benefits. Don't be afraid to try a few, to find what works best for you. Magnesium citrate is said to be absorbed better than most, though the malate, oxide, and other forms have their uses too. Work up to the amount which gives you relief. If you take more than you need, probably the most noticeable sign will be loose stools.

Take at least 1mg methylcobalamin. You cannot overdose on B12, so take as much as you feel you need, though more than 5-6mg per day probably isn't going to be of much benefit, so suggests the research. I recommend a sublingual tablet (lozenge) type, for optimal absorption.

A decent multivitamin/mineral formula might also be a good idea. Just make sure it's gluten-free. Avoid the cheap brands in most drug stores. Go to a health store, and look for the ones which have co-enzyme forms of the vitamins. You may end up with separate bottles for minerals, and B-complex, since adequate amounts of everything just doesn't fit into one pill. Various forms of the minerals are available, and they do differ greatly in bio-availability. It is often helpful to take more than the "daily value", and many good supplements do provide such levels. Look for that too when selecting supplements, though with some nutrients, overdose can happen more easily, which is why you don't usually find high dose pills for things like iron for example.

Brands I usually end up with are NOW Foods and Source Naturals. They are pretty good about labeling gluten-free and such, though some others do ok too.

For the candida fighters, what have you been taking?

[lindalee]

There is alot of info on the SCD--Breaking the Vicious Cycle--

They refer to the reaction as bad bugs--lots of epsom salt baths helps me. It helps with the fibro. issues as well. Getting out toxins by soaking in hot esalt bath for 20 min. It will help! Just keep doing the baths and it will get better.

Linda Lee

[Heidi S.]

To me it sounds like the pain could be related to a vitamin deficiency, like others have said. I had gotten so bad with pain I went through physical therapy, chiropractor, and pain meds. My doctor told me I needed to change my PROFESSION! What a joke! Finally they came up with either rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia. In a chance test they discovered it was a severe Vitamin D deficiency. It was horribly painful, back, neck, hands, feet etc. On prescription supplements I am pain free!

Best of luck!

[RiceGuy]

  lindalee said:

There is alot of info on the SCD--Breaking the Vicious Cycle--

They refer to the reaction as bad bugs--lots of epsom salt baths helps me. It helps with the fibro. issues as well. Getting out toxins by soaking in hot esalt bath for 20 min. It will help! Just keep doing the baths and it will get better.

Linda Lee

Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate. That's why it can help - if you have a magnesium deficiency. Whether or not it can help pull out toxins is another matter, and I haven't looked into that.

[wschmucks]

Yea if you think its candida related I would absolutely do the SCD. At least that way you will know if it is or is not candida.

[lindalee]

  Heidi S. said:

To me it sounds like the pain could be related to a vitamin deficiency, like others have said. I had gotten so bad with pain I went through physical therapy, chiropractor, and pain meds. My doctor told me I needed to change my PROFESSION! What a joke! Finally they came up with either rheumatoid arthritis or fibromyalgia. In a chance test they discovered it was a severe Vitamin D deficiency. It was horribly painful, back, neck, hands, feet etc. On prescription supplements I am pain free!

Best of luck!

Yes, Vit. D deficiency is causes lots of problems! I take calcium w/D,K, and Magnesium --and extra D. ( D is cheap)..

Go to Dr. Mercola's site and research it.

Linda Lee

[Lexi]

I am currently taking a Multi Vitamin (for her by Nature Made), Calcium - Magnesium - and Zinc with added Vit. D, magnesium (250 mg), B-12 (500 mg), and Vitamin C. So, I don't see how I can have any lack of nutrients, and I eat very healthy (usually). I am going to try the epsom salt baths too. I have tried Candex, Yeast cleanse, and Fluconazole for the yeast. I have also tried probiotics and the low sugar diet. However, I just can't stick with them because of the pain. The pain is always there, but it is only UNBEARABLE when I take the antifungal medicines. The pain is ALSO unbearable when I eat nightshades (which I simply can't resist sometiemes). I am ALSO just so TIRED all the time. I am currently doing physical therapy which is helping some. Thanks for all the suggestions - I will give it a try.

[lindalee]

Nightshades----Not on a Healing Diet------------------

I love them too, especially potatoes and someone gave me 2 bags of tomatoes and g. peppers today!

The b12 helps the tiredness and it will take a while to feel better- those e.salt baths I took for a year to get all the bugs out..

Wishing you the willpower to get through this.

LindaLee

[RiceGuy]

  Lexi said:

I am currently taking a Multi Vitamin (for her by Nature Made), Calcium - Magnesium - and Zinc with added Vit. D, magnesium (250 mg), B-12 (500 mg), and Vitamin C. So, I don't see how I can have any lack of nutrients, and I eat very healthy (usually). I am going to try the epsom salt baths too. I have tried Candex, Yeast cleanse, and Fluconazole for the yeast. I have also tried probiotics and the low sugar diet. However, I just can't stick with them because of the pain. The pain is always there, but it is only UNBEARABLE when I take the antifungal medicines. The pain is ALSO unbearable when I eat nightshades (which I simply can't resist sometiemes). I am ALSO just so TIRED all the time. I am currently doing physical therapy which is helping some. Thanks for all the suggestions - I will give it a try.

Yep, nightshades caused me tremendous pain, so I haven't tried them in quite a while. The alkaloids they contain are nerve toxins. But magnesium and B12 support nerve health and proper function. Magnesium also increases the blood/brain barrier, helping to keep out toxins. Thing is, 250mg is just over half of the daily recommended value, which likely isn't enough when you're not absorbing properly. So, I recommend increasing that to at least 400-500mg, and keep increasing slowly every few days until you start to have loose stools. Then back down a bit to a comfort level. Some folks take over 2000mg for their pain.

For B12, make sure it's methylcobalamin, and it should be a sublingual too, or you may not derive the benefits, again due to malabsorption. Take 5mg or more per day. Double-check your B12 - I bet it's 500 mcg, not mg. In that case it's only half a mg. And if it's cyanocobalamin, you're getting cyanide in every dose (hence the "cyano"). They say the liver is supposed to be able to deal with the toxic load of the cyanide, but aren't we dealing with enough already?

You may want to try Open Original Shared Link, but start slowly. Gradually work up to the full dose over a period of weeks. Too much right away does tend to be very uncomfortable. Of course, avoid all sugars, yeasts (like in breads), vinegars (such as ketchup), and fruit. Stick to it - you can do it!

Other than that, make sure the vitamin D is D3 (cholecalciferol), and make sure your multi has the co-enzyme forms of B vitamins, at decent levels. Many do not, and thus are a waste of money. Some of the Bs can be taken at thousands of times the daily value. What's the Vitamin D dosage? I don't recall if you've mentioned any allergy to corn, but many vitamin C supplements are derived from corn. Sensitive persons should use a different product, such as one derived from rose hips, etc.