Food

During C Diff, I had a lot of sweet potatoes (great for nutrition, helped keep me from having diahrea, and soothing on the gut. They are also a probiotic. There were orange or purple ones.) I also tried different kefirs (probiotic yoghurt drinks). After C Diff, I still did these but started working on adding back other foods that I lost the ability to eat. I worked closely with a dietician and a food support group.

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I avoided caffeine, alcohol, sugar, fat, salt and spice for a long time during and after C Diff. I also couldn't tolerate fibre very well (salads, legumes). When re-introducing foods, I would try a half serving one day and if it went well, a whole serving the next day. Sometimes I had to try a few times before I was comfortable eating something.

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Digestzymes helped me digest food after C Diff. I couldn't really digest food for a while.

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I also took "SON Formula" protein pills VERY OCCASSIONALLY after C Diff. I was so weak and underweight that this helped me start gaining my weight back.

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I had a lot of soups when sick with C DIff but my priority after C DIff was to try to get my weight back. Other people might not have this problem because I was fit to start with, and my approach was to starve the C DIff and overwhelm it with probiotics. If I didn't eat, the C Diff didn't eat, but that made me lose a lot of weight and almost die.

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More information is in the Diet section of this site.

Antibiotics

This is not medical advice.

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Don't take antibiotics for any ailment unless necessary.

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Take the lowest duration of antibiotics possible.

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Stop a course of antibiotics when your body is telling you to do so.*, **, ***

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*After being clear of C Difficile, I had an inflamed colon but was testing negative for C Difficile infection. I was prescribed Cipro & Flagyl, and my stomach was in sharp pain when I took the first one or two doses, so I stopped. I was not prescribed any further antibiotics. At that time, I would rather have died than take further antibiotics, because I felt that the four courses of antibiotics I had in two years, ending with C Diff treatment, caused me great harm, although I believe that antibiotic treatment did kill C Diff in my case. I was preparing to do a home fecal transplant, but did not have to do so because I recovered--slowly.

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**My friend was prescribed Amoxiclav for a small bedsore, and felt he should stop after five days, but the doctor told him to finish the 10-day course of antibiotics. My friend was diagnosed with a C Difficile infection, and as a bodybuilder lost over 17kg.

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***Five years after C Diff, I went to the dentist to have a wisdom tooth removed (I became sick with C Diff when I requesting an alternative antibiotic after my first two wisdom teeth were removed). I had to decide whether to take the antibiotics that were prescribed, or not. 

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When you must take antibiotics research antibiotics that have the least chance of causing recurrence (for example, some people who have had C Diff ask what antibiotic is OK to take for a urinary tract infection)

Mental health/sleep

[Work in progress - a separate page will be set up.]

Gratitude

​While I was recovering from "C Diff", I made sure I had enough strength at the end of each day to play my guitar. Since it was during Covid, I created a Facebook group called "[Name]'s Facebook live", where every night I would record myself practicing or playing a Christian worship song. This allowed me to express my faith, sing, and show that no matter what, you always have something to enjoy.

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Did you do something you enjoy, today? Consider writing a list of five things you are grateful for, in the comments section below :)