My FructMal Girl

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18 Months Healed from SIBO and SIFO!

It has been a year and a half since our final appointment with Dr. Abdullah & Dr. Buckle. They were right, Tootsie is indeed healed! We haven't had a hint of Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth, Small Intestine Fungal Overgrowth, or Fructose Malabsorption returning. Toots is feeling great! We just returned from our Spring Break vacation where she enjoyed anything off the menu that appealed to her. She is enjoying her new found freedom and has two fun trips planned this Summer with friends. I don't have to worry a bit about what she's going to eat! She is now 13 years old, 5' tall, and 84lbs. 🙌🏻 Buddy is doing fantastic as well! His celiac disease is well-managed and he is growing as tall as a tree! He is 15 years old, 6' tall, and 145lbs.

SIBO & Sleep Disturbances - Resolved!

I just realized I forgot to share that we had to seek help for sleep issues after Tootsie was healed from SIBO/SIFO last year. A symptom that would always come up during a flare was sleep disturbances - restless legs, waking in the night, difficulty falling asleep, a fear of sleeping in her own room (a generalized feeling of anxiety). All the other symptoms of SIBO/SIFO were gone, but the sleep issues were lingering. We were able to get into the sleep clinic at Seattle Children's where we saw a wonderful doctor that said the symptoms sounded like a deficiency in iron storage. She requested a blood draw and called us a few days later with results showing Tootsie's ferritin level was low. We started her on an iron supplement and in less than a week she was falling asleep easily in her own room and sleeping peacefully the whole night through!

6 Months Post SIBO & SIFO Treatment

It has been 6 months since Tootsie was treated for Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth and Small Intestine Fungal Overgrowth. She is still doing great! She is eating normally, without ANY restrictions. She takes a daily probiotic and multivitamins and that's it! She has attended two overnight camps through church and school and we didn't have to pack any food or ask for accommodations. She was thrilled to have a real cinnamon roll! Halloween was pretty awesome for her this year too. She wasn't limited to Dum Dums and Smarties. Life is good! We'll see what the next 6 months brings... 😁

FINAL GI APPOINTMENT - CURED! No more SIBO, YEAST, or FRUCTOSE MALABSORPTION!

We just got back from Tootie's FINAL GI appt! That's right. Her last one. EVER ! Dr. Abdullah and Dr. Buckle said she's HEALED !!! I wish I would have recorded those words so I could play them over and over. They don't believe the SIBO or the FM will come back. Her only supplement remaining is the probiotic, and a multivitamin & vit D. I told them I was sad we wouldn't be seeing them anymore, but that I would be sending all my friends. So here you go, my friends, meet the dream team! Prime Health Clinic | Pediatric Gastroenterology Dr. Bisher Abdullah (GI) | Dr. Heather Buckle (ND) 1420 3rd St SE Suite 106 Puyallup, WA 98372 253-268-0720 Here is a letter I sent the doctors... Dr. Abdullah & Dr. Buckle, We can’t even begin to thank you enough for healing our girl. We have searched for answers for seven years, from Bellingham to Tacoma. We have sought online help from a doctor in Oregon and advice from parents all over the U.S. - a

3 Month Follow up - Post SIBO/SIFO Treatment

Here we are 3 months post treatment of SIBO, SIFO, slow motility, and constipation. I am THRILLED to report that FODMAP reintroduction (or in Tootsie's case, introduction ) is going fantastically well! Tootsie is eating all sorts of new foods without any issues. Here are the foods she has tried so far that are working well: wheat, garlic, onion, cashews, cantaloupe, blueberries, zucchini bread, raisin toast, lactose free yogurt, ice cream bars. She has even tried a few apple slices! We cannot believe it! This opens up a whole new world for her. She has been going to friends' houses the past week or so without a packed lunch bag! You wouldn't believe the amount of weight that has lifted from my chest. I knew her health & diet was stressful, but now that the stress is lifting I'm realizing how weighted down I was by it. She and I have eaten out at a Mexican restaurant where she had a chicken chimichanga with seasoned rice, she's had MOD Pizza with whe

2 Month Follow Up - Post SIBO/SIFO Treatment

Tootsie had her 2 month follow up yesterday and is doing great! She has gained 5 pounds and has grown 1 inch. Dr. Abdullah (GI) and Dr. Buckle (ND) were very pleased. Stools are perfect, no reflux, great appetite, and sleeping well. Yay! We get to start introducing FODMAPs in a few weeks. Dr. Buckle believes she'll be able to tolerate most foods! This is music to our ears. I sure hope she's right. We have been bound to the low FODMAP diet for 7 years! Excited to break free from the chains! So very thankful for this duo!! They have given us new hope...hope for healing & normalcy. I can't speak highly enough of their expertise and compassion.

NEW Gastroenterologist - APPOINTMENT #3 (SIBO RESULTS)

Today's GI and Naturopath appointment went very well! Tootsie's breath test results were NEGATIVE. Hallelujah! She has 7 days left of fluconazole and once that is finished she will discontinue the folate and N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine. She will continue with the other supplements until our follow-up in a couple of months. The doctors advised following a strict low FODMAP diet for 3 months before introducing new foods - this will allow time for the intestines to heal. Tootsie is feeling good. She isn't having many tics (stretching or verbal), she is eating well and having Level 3-4 stools on the bristol chart . And she just started sleeping through the night in her own room! It's amazing how intestinal dysbiosis can affect a person. Happy to have it resolved! We are so very thankful for our new doctors - for their compassion, their wisdom, and their desire to heal our girl!

FOLLOW UP BREATH TEST

(Please view disclaimer .) Tootsie had her follow-up lactulose breath test today to see if the meds were effective against SIBO. We'll get results at our GI follow-up in a couple weeks. We did get a copy of last month's results, which shows a strong positive. As you can see, she was well above the 20ppm threshold. We made the best of prep day again by doing a little shopping at the mall (Tootsie picked out some press-on nails...something she's always asking for, but I never let her get.) We also stopped by Michael's to check out "Slime Headquarters". If you don't know, slime is all the rage among tweens these days. (Here is a YouTube video on what it's all about). She did a manicure and pedicure in the room, we rented a movie, and went for a soak in the hot tub. The day went by pretty quick and the Zofran worked out well at keeping the nausea away. The smiles disappeared the next morning. She woke up feeling nauseous an

HALFWAY THROUGH SIBO TREATMENT

Tootsie completed 2 weeks of Amox-Clav (250mg, twice daily). She is doing well. The past few nights she has wanted to sleep in her own room. This is huge! She hasn't been able to sleep by herself for 7 months. Three nights ago she woke at 11PM and came to our room and finished the night in our bed, the next tight she made it until Midnight, and last night she made it until 2:30AM! She started metronidazole (250mg, 1/2 tablet twice daily) last night and will be on it for two weeks. Hoping it wipes out the methane producing bacteria and she is finally able to sleep peacefully through the night without waking. The supplements are going well. She does get a few minutes of heartburn after taking the MotilPro. Dr B (the ND) prescribed an alternative if the heartburn is too bothersome. She said it's a local discomfort caused by the ginger, but it isn't harmful. We'll keep plugging along with it for now. The alternative is Gentian (1 drop on tongue 3 times daily

NEW GI - APPOINTMENT #2 (SIBO RESULTS)

Tootsie had her follow-up with the gastroenterologist and the naturopath today. The results of the SIBO breath test showed a strong positive, with a peak hydrogen of 136 ppm (the threshold his 20 ppm). It was also positive for methane producing bacteria. The blood test showed elevated levels for liver function, blood glucose, and white blood cell count. Doctor would like to repeat these tests to rule out diabetes. (I don't believe she has diabetes. I think he was assuming her fasting blood glucose was 153, but the nurse had sent us to eat lunch because she wasn't able to draw any blood after 15 hours of fasting). The celiac blood screening was negative, which means she can continue challenging gluten as long as it agrees with her. Both the doctor and the naturopath thought they could get rid of SIBO once and for all. They also felt by doing so that Tootsie's fructose malabsorption will greatly improve...and possibly could cure it all together! Say what?! Th