u/slalchandani

I am 26 F, from Mumbai, India.

Recently diagnosed with stomach erythema (erosions) because of H Pylori bacteria and mild gastritis.

My symptoms  (why I got endoscopy / colonoscopy):

Constipation - is the main reason I got colonoscopy/endoscopy done because no matter what I ate, it was always there. I can eat only 15 food items (mainly light green vegetables, jowar/bajra/ragi roti, sweet potato, fruits) which help me get good bowel movements the next day. My mom says I’ve had constipation since childhood, but I have only noticed it being prominent and severe since last 4 years (July 2022) - that is also when I started my job.

Stomach Bloating - used to go away once I passed stools but since 4-5 months or so, it is always there.

Extreme heaviness, difficulty to move after meals - which are very light like 1 jowar roti + 1 green veggie.

I’ve had some serious brain fog, i think i am less smarter than i was in school/college since past 4 years. 

Constantly sluggish, tired, no motivation / energy (mentally and physically) for anything.

I haven’t had extreme symptoms like most of the people on reddit (not sure why)

Doctor has prescribed me following meds : 

Sompraz - Proton Pump Inhibitor (PPI), reduces acid secretion in stomach.

Acotibien - Addresses the slow gut motility, It helps the stomach empty more efficiently into the small intestine, which reduces food sitting in the stomach for too long.

Rifagut -Typically used to treat bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine (SIBO) or to manage symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

Consulted another doctor based on reports: 

Advised to start taking meds asap, but also suspects that since i haven’t been prescribed HP kit, it might be mild.

Said gastritis etc can b treated, but bacteria cant b treated w/o medicines. IS THAT TRUE AS PER YOUR EXPERIENCES?

How you can help me:

I have seen more than 20 posts with people having mixed opinions - someone says it can only be treated through antibiotics, someone says antibiotics mess up the gut lining so bad & only diet can fix it. 

I am ok to do any method that just fixes it - and doesn’t worsen my existing symptoms.

I am essentially trying to know your experience in dealing with it : 

• Are you relieved now / still struggling?
• In either case, which route did you follow ? medicines / natural way? 
• If you did meds - were you also taking care of your diet - what are the things you were strictly avoiding? 
• How many years did you struggle / have you been struggling? 
• What are the mistakes you made (because of which it took longer to heal / still not healed) / what is the best thing you did (because of which it healed quickly)?

What about naturopathy companies like Thavira health, any recommendations of doctors in Mumbai who have healed it before & can help with it? I am specifically looking for doctors who have treated it earlier.

My questions based on research so far:

• If H pylori is in 70% Indians, and in less quantity its present in all bodies, is it really necessary to eradicate it OR reducing amount is also fine?
• I don’t get why I am not given meds to kill H pylori?
• What kind of food we have to take - should it be more of alkaline forming in body?
• Antibiotics disrupt gut lining & good gut bacteria - So take probiotics + extremely light food so that gut lining can repair fast & food is not damaging it, or eat such food items that help in gut lining repair. Is disruption statement true?
• As per what i have gathered on the internet, people who have been able to master it said that take meds prescribed & then keep your lifestyle in check for 6-12 months. And after H Pylori, we will get gastritis (bcs of the meds) - so have to deal with it. Is that true?
• I also want to know if because of this I can get constipation issues bcs my doc said that constipation is only due to just slow gut motility. 
• People who did test again (especially for India) did you do test again to confirm negative. Which tests you did - which is most reliable? Stool test?

 

My plan as of now based on research so far:

As mentioned above, by eating 10-15 food items that help me get good bowel movements, I have been observing my constipation has gotten better because of my boiled diet, and least stressful lifestyle. If I eat extreme foods like MAIDA once in a while, I feel ok.

I am thinking to continue this extreme diet w/o cheat and lifestyle enhancement & gym - and see difference to start with, and keep researching side by side.

And then introduce food items that kill bacteria - like sprouts, mastic gum, cabbage juice, and get tested again.
Doctors are rushing that I need to start meds asap - but i feel that this bacteria might have been there for years, so 1-2 months of research before starting meds wont do much harm, rather taking meds mindlessly will harm gut more.

Please feel free to call me out on any aspect of my analysis - based on your experience!

To be honest - I would try my best to not take meds and treat it naturally & go to extents of it, if anyone has cracked the code for it, please share.

But if someone has treated it 100% with both medicines & natural ways, I am willing to go down that road too.

I would be very grateful if you could share your experience, especially Indians, because of the commonality in environment, food, medicines, etc.