|
Post by tod2 on Aug 14, 2013 16:25:58 GMT
O woe is me. On Monday I woke up not feeling great but dragged myself off to work as we are in the midst of a stock assessment. I only lasted two hours before coming home to bed. By this time my visits to the loo were frequent and my stomach hurt. I felt absolutely terrible and my husband got take-out for the family that evening. As I had only had water and not a drop of food all day, I managed a 2"square of fish and three chips. Wish I hadn't an hour later! I don't know about you, but I haven't "lost my dinner" in over 30years. It's a horrible horrible experience and I'm wondering about tonight....... I do feel much better than last night though.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2013 16:36:07 GMT
If it's been 30 years, it must be even more horrible. I think my record for not vomiting has never been more than 5 or 6. I have dodged gastro for the last several years while everyone around me was dropping like flies. I like to think that I built up tons of immunity in my years of world travel, where I ate and drank just about anything with no consideration as to whether it was sanitary or not -- and I almost never got sick, even if I have vivid memories of one time in Pakistan and one time in Indonesia. However, I get a bad cold at least once every winter.
|
|
|
Post by htmb on Aug 14, 2013 16:46:06 GMT
Hope you get better fast. Tod. It's awful to get sick like that.
|
|
|
Post by rikita on Aug 15, 2013 8:18:27 GMT
hope you are feeling better already.
last time i had a stomach flu was earlier this year, and it wasn't fun, but fortunately only lasted a day ...
|
|
|
Post by tod2 on Aug 15, 2013 12:32:57 GMT
Thanks for the 'get well soon' wishes - They must have worked as I felt almost normal this morning! I made it to the hairdresser and afterwards felt even better.....what is it about a nice shampoo and blo-dry that makes one feel a million dollars?!! The only thing that hurts now is my rib-cage muscles. I think it was because of the 'up-chuck' spasms....
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2013 13:49:52 GMT
Yes, you can strain muscles doing that!
|
|
|
Post by questa on Aug 19, 2013 1:39:35 GMT
Yes, K2, I think that travelling and working in developing countries means you meet up with 1000s bugs you never meet at home. Like you, I have built up a pretty good immune system, though from Jaipur through Pakistan I had such a bad case of bacillary dysentery I was nearly taken out by a medivac team. I persuaded them to leave me with enough medications and travelled on to China, where it settled down.
The golden rule is to wash your hands properly, or use good antiseptic wipes properly, OFTEN. Always before eating and during bus trips. Stick to freshly cooked food...market stuff is often safer than hotel food that has been sitting in a buffet.
|
|
|
Post by Kimby on Aug 19, 2013 13:25:35 GMT
I have vivid memories of having the "galloping gobloots" twice whilst traveling, in Burma in 1993 and in Cambodia in 2005. Awful sweaty delirious groaning "leave me alone and let me die" experiences that cleared up w/o medical intervention in about 30 hours. But I also got sick here in the good old US of A after a chili competition (I think it was the turkey chili) and it ran much the same course. Not fun, and ditch any plans you had, but survivable.
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2013 14:13:11 GMT
I know that I am extremely lucky in the fact that gastro generally lasts no more than six hours with me and also I feel the exact moment that it ends, usually with a sudden flash of fever of a duration of maybe 10 minutes. I think that is when my body is flash sterilizing itself against the final bacteria cootie things.
|
|
|
Post by mossie on Aug 19, 2013 14:40:15 GMT
Being brought up in the country in the dark ages as kids we used to drink from ponds or the stream, these had of course been used by animals. My first job was working on a farm where once we spent several days digging out a pig yard. Midday sandwiches were taken without the benefit of washing facilities, except wiping ones hands in wet grass. Later I suffered two bouts of dysentery when I was in Egypt, the first nearly killed me and I lost about 2 stone.
So I think I have built up a very good immune system, nowadays we are too hygienic and so the bugs have more chance to do damge
|
|
|
Post by rikita on Sept 1, 2013 10:36:40 GMT
the worst i got when traveling was during a university trip to romania. me and another girl bought peas at a market and ate them raw, as we had done in our garden as kids. seems those peas weren't meant for eating raw. next evening we had a ten hour train ride back to bucharest. there was no toilet paper on the train.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 7, 2014 11:58:01 GMT
I had something like that yesterday and especially yesterday evening and last night. Ate no supper, and for the moment I have no appetite for breakfast, just want water. The problem will be when caffeine withdrawal kicks in...
I don't think it is "flu" so much as a mild case of food poisoning. The only thing I ate outside my place was a banh mi at a takeaway place near a conference I was attending. I ate no supper and had to get up several times in the night, but (avoiding TMI) it took a long time for anything to emerge.
I had an odd headache that was neither the headache from intensive computer work, nor the one from overindulging in food and drink.
Rght now I'm just drinking a lot of water, slowly.
|
|
|
Post by htmb on Sept 7, 2014 12:08:13 GMT
Sorry to hear this, Lagatta. Take care of yourself and do your best to avoid dehydration. It's good you are sipping water.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 7, 2014 23:27:54 GMT
The most current health advice is not to fast entirely, and one thing suggested was soup; fortunately I have some very good concentrated chicken stock, and stuck in some short pasta.
This evening I baked some basmati rice I had leftover with part of a tin of ratatouille and a bit of shredded cheese - I know, but I can't eat any of the really fresh vegetables I have as there is too much "roughage". Didn't eat very much of it though. The idea is to eat just enough to coat your intestinal walls, though I certainly didn't eat anything before noon. And very little after.
|
|
|
Post by htmb on Sept 7, 2014 23:41:43 GMT
If you need some medication, I learned after a terrible bout of food poisoning that Imodium worked the best for me. Take care!
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2014 4:32:52 GMT
Oh lagatta, so sorry. It sounds like you definitely had a case of food poisoning. The headache is a dead giveaway.
I read that there is no such thing as "24 hour flu", it's just something that people get after eating something disagreeable.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 8, 2014 11:38:43 GMT
I think it was food poisoning too. I haven't had this for over 20 years, probably more. I remember an ill-fated hamburger at a bus stop between Toronto and Ottawa, but that was many, many years ago. Of course I feel much better today, but a strange feeling in my guts from all the "activity".
I turned in at 8pm or so, as soon as it was dark. Got up a couple of times to pee (and fearing worse) but only finally woke up at 7 am. I NEVER sleep that much.
As for Imodium, the sites I consulted (Québec health ministry, the NHS which is usually reliable, etc) say it is better to avoid it if one can, but that it is good in the short run (sorry) if one is travelling, for example. But it is probably something one should have in one's home pharmacy.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 8, 2014 13:12:12 GMT
Bixa, the stuff we are advised to eat to recover from food poisoning is all starchy stodge:
This is the NHS site, so I guess "British cooking" doesn't help. I cite it because of the quality of the site:
Quote: To cope with your symptoms and speed up your recovery you should also:
rest eat when you feel up to it (the gut sometimes needs time to recover and food may cause diarrhoea even if you feel better) stick to foods that are easily digested, such as toast, crackers, bananas and rice until you begin to feel better avoid alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine and spicy and fatty foods because they will make you feel worse
Yecch! I never eat toast.
And I was very happy to drink a cup of coffee this morning. I feel great after it!
I'd have a hard time eating long-term without pasta. I've been mostly eating wholegrain organic pasta in small (measured) 80g portions. I hate eating a lot of meat. Yes, I know that vegetables should feature most prominently.
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2014 15:13:45 GMT
When it comes to toast, I confess to a fatal weakness for Melba toast. I do have an unfair advantage in that a very wide variety of fruits and vegetables are available here year round. Almost all of it is grown here, as well, so the prices are a fraction of what they are in the US & Canada. I know what you mean about meat. The good thing is that the less I eat of it, the less I want. That said, pasta is THE comfort food for me, plus easy to keep on hand & a no-brainer when uninspired at mealtime. Obviously I've relied on it too much, or wouldn't need to be on a diet right now. If you can lay your hands on some amaranth, it's a wonderful, healthful, & easy thing to incorporate into your diet. I have been using the popped kind -- even easier. wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/amaranth-may-grain-of-the-month-0
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2014 15:21:03 GMT
What an ordeal! I hope you are feeling much better now. The last time that happened to me, I was shocked at how weak I felt after all the more dramatic symptoms were gone.
It's true that with food poisoning it's initially better to let it rip, at least initially. However, another way to put a stop to diarrhea is with a strong tea of cloves.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 8, 2014 15:47:46 GMT
I don't imagine wholegrain pasta (which has a lower glycemic index) is readily available there, though.
I'm familiar with amaranth as a lovely bitter green the Greeks call "vlita". I should be able to find it as a grain here. I'll definitely buy some. I do eat quinoa, but it doesn't "work" in everything. I'll definitely look for amaranth seeds/grains.
There is a paragraph about vlita in your amaranth report:
Even the leaves of the amaranth plant can offer potential health benefits. Australian researchers in 2002 published a study focusing on Greeks who relocated to Melbourne but maintained their traditional Mediterranean diet. During this study, the foods that were selected for nutrient evaluation – leafy green vegetables, figs in season, and various types of olive oil – were those commonly consumed by Greeks living in Melbourne, but not by native Australians. Of all the commercial and wild leafy greens studied, amaranth leaves were found to contain some of the highest levels of beta-carotene and lutein, even higher than the commercially available chicory and endive. Imagine how powerfully nutritious a salad with amaranth leaves and amaranth grains would be!
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Sept 8, 2014 16:09:40 GMT
Oh, I can get whole-grain pasta here, but really, it's a whole different thing from the yummy white kind. I love brown rice & other whole grains, but find whole wheat pasta pretty dreary.
The ornamental plant cockscomb is an amaranth. It's one of the popular flowers for the days of the dead here & is long-lasting. Generally they set around on porcbes & steps at that time of year furiously dropping zillions of their shiny, teensy black seeds. I want to gather some to see how they do as a substitute for poppy seeds in baking.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 11, 2014 0:17:55 GMT
I feel much better, and am actually drinking a bit of white wine (cut with mineral water) with my arroz con pescado (a very mild version with a bit of fresh Espelette pepper, a mild red pepper with a lovely flavour). Rice, finely-chopped - and cooked - vegetables and white fish seems like a step back to normal eating. What makes me sad is that I will probably lose some of the roquette (rocket - arugula) I bought - oh, nothing in terms of money, but we have so much great local produce now and months of dearth and death not far away.
|
|
|
Post by mich64 on Sept 11, 2014 1:37:04 GMT
Glad to read that you are feeling better Lagatta! I completely understand about the sadness of losing our precious local produce. I noticed today at the store how the local produce is dwindling. All I can expect when I return from holiday will be pretty much root vegetables.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 11, 2014 16:02:54 GMT
I think I'll look for a nice squash, ideally a potimarron. Problem is, it is hard to talk about recovery from such a nasty bout without getting graphic. "All or nothing", perhaps?
Other than that, I'm feeling fine.
|
|
|
Post by bixaorellana on Sept 12, 2014 2:10:13 GMT
Glad you survived. That slightly shaky, somewhat weak feeling after such a bout lasts for at least a day.
What's a potimarron?
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Sept 12, 2014 10:59:55 GMT
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 25, 2016 20:47:19 GMT
So, it was my turn today. The attack began around 11 a.m. and now seems to be finished, about 10 hours later. I was never so happy to have a sink in my WC that can be used for emergencies while still sitting on the toilet.
The entire country is suffering an epidemic of this at the moment, but I have managed to slip through unscathed for about the last 10 years. Did not eat anything today but now have about 1.5 litres of sugar water in my stomach. I got really really thirsty after being totally emptied. I feel fine now but have no desire to eat anything until further notice.
I'm really happy that I did not spoil any friends' holiday meal by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
|
|
|
Post by lagatta on Dec 26, 2016 21:35:49 GMT
Do you have any idea why there is such an epidemic, in a country with generally good hygiene and no torrid temps this time of year?
Glad you are feeling better. I also have a small WC with a sink right beside the loo... I know that in France they are often separate - that is also true in many older flats here, but where I live was utterly renovated in postwar times...
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2016 21:46:05 GMT
There is an epidemic throughout various parts of Europe every year. This year is one of the worst, probably because various climate factors (humidity and no freeze yet) have been propitious to the development of germs. And of course cities like Paris are particularly vulnerable because even if you try to wash your hands often, taking the metro or the bus causes all sorts of contact no matter what -- holding on to poles, pushing buttons, pushing past other travellers and being coughed or sneezed on.
|
|