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	<title>WIRL Project &#187; GERD</title>
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	<description>What It&#039;s Really Like.</description>
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		<title>Fructose Malabsorption: My Long Road to a Diagnosis</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/fructose-malabsorption-my-long-road-to-a-diagnosis/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/fructose-malabsorption-my-long-road-to-a-diagnosis/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Jun 2015 08:30:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Guest WIRL]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health/Fitness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bloat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bowl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celiac]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Coeliac]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Diagnosis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Diet]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FODMAP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fructose Malabsorption]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GERD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GORD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[IBS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Insulin Resistance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Intolerance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nutrition...]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stomach]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Symptoms]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wheat]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=6769</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Growing up I always had an issue with wheat. Over the past 30 years, I&#8217;ve been tested numerous times for Coeliac (Celiac) Disease &#8211; all of my results were always inconclusive. There was never an explanation of my symptoms, which included lethargy, bloating, excess gas, stomach pains, constant nausea, and weight gain. In my late 20&#8217;s, &#8220;food sensitivity&#8221; started to get much worse. I had endoscopies and colonoscopies over the years &#8211; no apparent issue or problem. I was very frustrated at the lack of answers. When I got pregnant with my third child, doctors stopped looking for anything more because being pregnant explained it all. In my 40&#8217;s, symptoms got worse. Uncontrollable diarrhea or chronic constipation &#8211; one extreme or the other. Bloat 2 sizes up 20 minutes, 2hrs after eating. Abdomen would go painfully rock hard and not go down. (I now know every time I eat something that irritates, I can stay distended for a couple of days &#38; have irritable bowel.) It can take 3-5 days for everything to settle on low FODMAP diet (FODMAP=Fermentable Oligo-Di-Monosaccharides and Polyols &#8211; learn more here). Gastroenterologists put me on low FODMAP diet after diagnosing GORD (GERD). Felt so much better for a while! Unfortunately, he didn&#8217;t let me know that you have to challenge your system with excluded foods. Stayed exclusively on diet for 3 yrs unchallenged made reactions worse when eating something that irritated by mistake. Great&#8230; In April 2011, I started having excruciating abdominal pain. Kidney stones were removed. 6 days later undetected Spigalian hernia ruptured and strangled bowel and I had emergency surgery. I was in the hospital for 15 days. Recovery was prolonged because I was unable to move very much and was being very careful with what I was eating. I started putting on more weight, feeling extremely nauseous &#8211; this was just NEVER ENDING. With everything that had happened my Doctor was listening, but didn&#8217;t ever really have &#8220;answers&#8221;. With everything that had happened my Doctor was listening, but didn&#8217;t ever really have &#8220;answers&#8221;. I mentioned that I felt a constant feeling of alcohol in my breath, in the back of my throat. She explained some reading she&#8217;d done on Fructose Malabsorption and thought we should test for it. (She had 2 other patients with some similar symptoms &#38; they had tested positive). In Feb 2012 I tested positive with Fructose Malabsorption &#8211; not great news, but finally some answers! Also, later in 2012, my gall bladder was removed because it was dead. My doctor now thinks this could possibly be related to Fructose Malabsorption and it&#8217;s link to organ failure. In June 2014 I was also diagnosed with Insulin Resistance. The diet required for that was in conflict with my FODMAP diet. There really wasn&#8217;t much left that I could actually eat. I was referred to a dietitian who turned everything around for me. They identified specific trigger foods for me, things I could eat once in a while, and main staples. In 6 months have lost 8  kgs (17.6 lbs) not &#8220;trying&#8221; to loose weight! Something is actually working for me! I have answers!! I feel healthier and fitter, (and look younger) than I did 5 years ago! I have answers!! I feel healthier and fitter, (and look younger) than I did 5 years ago! The point of this story is to hopefully help educate and inform others who may be going through a similar situation. If you&#8217;ve been diagnosed with IBS, but feel it&#8217;s something &#8220;more&#8221;, look into some of the tests/options I have mentioned. I&#8217;ve been dealing with this for many, many, many years; I thought it would be best to pay-it-forward and pass on my experience with hopes that I can help at least ONE person. Thank you for listening to my story. &#160; Join the conversation! Easily contribute your story here. &#160; About the Author… This WIRL was contributed by Charan Brennan from Sydney, Australia. ]]></description>
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		<title>To paraphrase R.E.M. ~ It was The End of My World as I Knew It.. and I&#8217;ll Be Fine</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/to-paraphrase-r-e-m-it-was-the-end-of-my-world-as-i-knew-it-and-ill-be-fine/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/to-paraphrase-r-e-m-it-was-the-end-of-my-world-as-i-knew-it-and-ill-be-fine/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 11 Mar 2015 16:00:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Aunt Deb]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Food/Drink]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health/Fitness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Love/Relationships]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gastroparesis]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GERD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[I'll Be Fine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LPR]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Normal]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=3999</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I have struggled with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) and LPR  (laryngopharyngeal reflux) for many years. My specialists in Rhode Island, Michigan and New York had prescribed every medication (both prescription and  over the counter) on the market; numerous X-rays, CAT scans, ultrasounds; changed my diet; scoped my throat regularly; sent me to vocal chord therapy, strapped me to a table then turned me upside down while they injected radioactive dye; had me drink barium and radioactive swallow marshmallows; and finally implanted/glued a camera in my throat that required me to wear a fancy fanny pack to capture the photos/info for several days. I was also advised to stop sleeping in a bed ~ so I slept semi-reclined in a chair for the better part of a year.. and nothing helped. I had a hiatal hernia and my lower esophageal sphincter had stopped functioning.. allowing the acid from my stomach to cause permanent damage to my vocal chords. A biopsy also showed precancerous Barretts esophagus. Four specialists all concurred that I had 2 options ~ do nothing and more than likely develop esophageal cancer in 6 months or have a Nissen fundoplication.. and on top of everything else my gallbladder stopped functioning.. just flat out quit working! Hubby &#38; I weighed the odds and scheduled the Nissen fundoplication and  hiatal hernia repair with my thoracic surgeon who specializes in diseases of the esophagus, thoracic surgery, and laparoscopic antireflux surgery and has lectured across the country and internationally on topics related to general thoracic surgery. And a cholecystectomy to be done in tandem by a doctor who specializes in gastrointestinal malignancies, including gastric, pancreatic and colorectal cancers. He also is an expert in laparoscopic applications of surgery including treatment of gallstones, hernias and staging procedures for cancer. The combined surges took just under 4 hours. On the day before Thanksgiving November 23, 2011, my life changed forever.. it was the beginning of the end of my world as I knew it. I was very fortunate that the surgeries went very well. My recovery, however, was difficult. For the first 3 months I was restricted to liquids/purees and finally graduated to minced food for the next 3 months..  but when you get right down to it.. it still beat the alternative. Unfortunately, I have been plagued with dysphagia, a recurring hiatal hernia and strictures since the original surgery. I&#8217;ve had a corrective surgery, plus several other procedures to try to alleviate the issues. I am considered to be among the very few failures of the Nissen fundoplication.. an elite group of less than 2%. It&#8217;s hard for me to accept that label.. because of the surgery I do not have esophageal cancer.. so while I may have issues it&#8217;s hard for me to call it a failure. We moved late in 2013,  so I now have a new gastroenterologist.. he&#8217;s another very thorough, great guy. In the spring of 2014 I started having new symptoms that became progressively worse over the summer. It was decided I needed  another series of X-rays, ultrasounds, and finally in October another combined EGD &#38; colonoscopy with biopsies.. the 2nd set in just under a year. I now have a new label.. Digestive Motility Disease aka Gastroparesis (GP) and Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD).. brought on by the &#8220;failure&#8221; of my Nissen. I also have a gastro-nutritionist who has added major doses of probiotics and celery* to my diet. And I am very gradually finding my way to a new normal.. My normal. My new day starts at 3am when I take my medications and go to sleep for a few hours. Once I wake up I need to eat..  that&#8217;s an adventure all of it&#8217;s own because my gastroenterologist and nutritionist have added raw fruit and vegetables to the already long list of No No&#8217;s from the very first surgery. Very few bread products, no dry or gummy foods that can get stuck in my throat, no fried foods, no carbonated beverages, no drinking during a meal, no straws in drinks, no gum chewing.. plus all of the foods that I&#8217;m allergic to must be avoided.. well, you get the gist. If I&#8217;m having a good day I can leave the house around noon.. on a bad day I am stuck at home. Yes, I have missed some family events, had to reschedule appointments and flights. It has been very long year but thankfully, the good days are becoming more frequent. I&#8217;m getting used to my new normal..  and with the love and support of my wonderful and accepting family..  I&#8217;ll Be Fine. * Here&#8217;s a link that explains why she prescribed the celery.. it&#8217;s actually working for me. Who knew it was such a super food, an anti-inflammatory with digestive and other benefits?  ~ sure beats taking more pills! http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&#038;dbid=14#healthbenefits]]></description>
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