Treating chronic illness requires a lot of preparation from both the physician and the patient. In my opinion, more so on the patients part that the physician. As the patient, you need to know what you are getting yourself into, and how that treatment will affect your life as a whole, your relationships, personally, financially, socially, etc. You need to prepare for what is to come of your treatment, by reading about what is required to heal yourself and with the wonderful gift of the internet, you can also prepare yourself by reading about how others have fared in a similar treatments that you are preparing to go through.
Personal experience:
The first time I went through SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth) treatment, I was not prepared and neither was I knowledgeable about what SIBO really was, what I was truly suffering from and what to expect through the treatments. Worst of all, I did not mentally prepare myself for the self-discipline it would require to maintain an intro-diet (SCD – specific carbohydrate diet) neither was I financially prepared for the tests, doctorโs visits and medications, and finally I was not truly prepared for how big of a toll the treatment would take on my body. I also did not take into consideration how my treatment and the effects of my treatment would have on my world.
Below are 4 ways I prepared for my second round of SIBO treatment that was coupled with h-pylori, candida and leaky gut treatment. The second time around, I took major steps before diving into the treatment, such as researching the cost of all the medications and treatments, gearing up to take on as many of my health concerns as possible and preparing to treat myself with more kindness as I go through the treatments.
What to do:
Prepare, prepare prepare
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Mental
- The first time I did a treatment for SIBO, I did not fully comprehend what the disease was and what the treatment would do to my body. The only information I had was what the doctor had told me, and I soon realized that it was not enough. Yes, she had gone over treatment (anti-microbials) and had told me that I would need to help my liver detox because when the bacterium die, they release toxins and rupture (die-off). She had also mentioned that I might get constipated and gave me a list of things to do to facilitate movement and had instructed me to increase my detox routine(which I already had one – stay tuned for a post about my detox routine). She also mentioned very lightly that after the treatment we would delve into an intro-diet that consisted mainly of soups that would help heal my gut.
- Well, taking the anti-microbials was hard on my body and heavy on my relationships (below), while the into-diet+SCD was extremely difficult on my finances and my resolve.
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Financial
- Healing a condition that is not covered by insurance can be extremely costly. The first part to consider while preparing for treatment is the cost of testing to find the problem. In the case of SIBO, most conventional doctors do not have training in it and therefore do not treat it. When I spoke to my doctor about the findings of SIBO my Naturopathic doctor and I had discovered, she simply said that she did not have training on and it cannot offer any advice or prescriptions. This means that majority of tests and treatment options come out of pocket. The first time, I simply wanted to get better and spent a majority of my savings and monthly income on appointments, tests, prescriptions and the SCD diet (very costly). When the first set trial of triumphed and failed soon after treatment failed, I realized I needed to be smarter the second time around. The treatment my doctor and I decided to use was different from the first due to uncovering more health problems in addition to SIBO, but I decided to be smarter. I made a chart of the treatments and where I would find them at the best price and best quality.
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Physical
- Treatments are tough on the body. There is not way around this fact. Irregardless of the type of treatment one is going through, the body has to endure some kind of pain to get to the other side of health. Whenever I was in significant pain, fatigue or exhaustion, my mother would say, did you think this would be easy? Your body is currently a battleground and the bacteria are fighting for their lives and their land. Without a doubt, understand and acknowledge that you will be in some kind of discomfort, pain, fatigue etc etc.
- Acknowledge that fact and give your body the rest, kindness, and the respect it deserves, hint: detox, detox, detox. While in treatment, avoid doing and eating things that will make it harder for your body to get better. Be kind to yourself and most importantly be kind to your body. The most important point for me was being patient with myself and body and giving it what it needs rather than what I want. Increase detox, decrease exhaustive and pain inducing activities and foods and keep in positive environments. Yes, this includes media and company, perhaps start with reducing the amount of news you watch and increase funny, lighthearted media and conversation.
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Relationships
- During treatment, maintaining your end of a relationship can be very difficult and daunting. I was exhausted, fatigued, always in pain and quite frankly, depressed, moody and very cranky. Everything was overwhelming and the most I wanted to do was stay in my room, blinds closed, in silence( perhaps with Netflix) and not be disturbed. But I needed to go to work and I needed to be alive and kind to myself and others. I simply drifted away from staying connected with friends and family who were not in my immediate presence. I just could not conjure the energy to reach out, or keep in regular contact.
- The second aspect of relationships that was difficult was that my pain hurt my mother (my sole caretaker through the illness). When I was in pain, I could see the toll it took on her, the worry, concern and sadness was much harder for me to handle than my own personal pain. So I stopped sharing discomfort, and slight pains and would only share my pain or need of help when I truly could not handle it. Even with these efforts, my family still saw the discomfort and pain and determination to be OK when I was not.
- It is important to understand that your illness will not affect you alone, it will affect the people that love you the most as well. So it is important to discuss treatment and possible reactions and how you might all deal with the situation. It is important to keep each other in the loop and do your best to keep each other in a positive mood. Treating chronic illness may be difficult and very stressful for everyone involved. So it is important that you all discuss how you to face the challenge of treatment together.
Related Posts:
4 mistakes that slowed my SIBO healing game.
5 things that helped heal my SIBO.
