POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Questions About Treatment & Side Effects => Topic started by: olliederp on November 07, 2011, 11:04:24 pm
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I started atripla in mid September and have not had a normal bowel movement since. I've been suffering from diarrhea pretty much continuously with very little relief. Imodium helps somewhat but as soon as I stop taking it it's back to ass burning, hemroid bleeding agony. My ID doc said this wasn't a side effect typically associated with atripla but I don't know what else could be causing it! Has anyone else experienced anything similar or have any advice on how to deal with it??? :(
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Hi Ollie,
Sorry about you're issue. I've been on Atripla for almost a year now and that's one side-effect i've never had and haven't really heard anyone else talk about that with Atripla. Have you recently been sick? you might want to go back to the doctor it could be something else causing the issue.
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I don't know if this will work for you since I am on truvada+aluvia, I had the similar situation last few weeks. Somehow I started to notice that when I eat an hour or two before taking meds., it helps to ease the problem. Or at least it is not as bad as all we know what can happen.....So I have tried to stick on this rule.
But as Mickey said, you might also want to discuss with you doc.
Hope you get better soon.
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Hey, listen. Peruse this site for a while, and you will find VOLUMES on the very subject.
Having the runs is no fun. Have you tried the BRAT diet?
Bananas
Applesauce
Rice
Toast
I noticed when I get med-related diarrhea, taking in significantly more fiber helps.
Regardless, if this does not go away soon, it's absolutely worth talking over with your doctor.
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Ollie, have you been checked for parasites? You really need to exhaust all possible causes of your diarrhea before concluding that the meds are causing it.
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Ann, my doctor took a stool sample at my last visit ( by far the oddest thing I've ever had to do) so I'm guessing he'll be checking for parasites. As of right now I'm taking imodium everyday with my morning meds and a prescribed suppository. He said it might be being caused by my immune system recovering and should clear up sooner rather than later. Here's hoping!
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Ann, good for you asking about parasites!
I sound like a stuck record, but after years of the bugs, if there is diarrhea there might be bugs.
Being compromised doesn't help the situation.
Good luck Ollie.
Hoover
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Hope your better soon Ollie, the runnies are no fun.
-W
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Hope your better soon Ollie, the runnies are no fun.
-W
Actually if they're happening to someone else they can be hilarious, especially if they've just stolen someone's laxative laced ice-cream from the freezer. Of course the fun ends when they miss the bowl and leave you with the mess to clean up.
GROWLER
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Actually if they're happening to someone else they can be hilarious, especially if they've just stolen someone's laxative laced ice-cream from the freezer. Of course the fun ends when they miss the bowl and leave you with the mess to clean up.
GROWLER
That reminds me of a prank that used to get played now and then at my high school. Remember the chocolate ex-lax bars that you could buy? (Do they still make them?) They were the same size and shape as kit-kat bars and you could swap the wrappers. Hilarity would ensue. Knickers would be washed. Faces would turn red. Thankfully, I was never on the receiving end nor the pranking end. I was only an amused spectator.
Seriously though, chronic dire-rear is literally a pain in the ass. It can make a person house-bound or more to the point, toilet-bound. I remember a forum member (Joe Killfoil?) once told the story of having med related dire-rear (back in the old days) and had to improvise while grocery shopping - he took the elastic bands off a couple bunches of broccoli and put them around the ankles of his jeans to stop the leakage until he could get outside to his car. Funny in retrospect, but horrible to live through.
An unfortunate fact of having hiv is that some of us will experience hiv-related diarrhea. I'm one of those persons. I've been tested for everything, went on bare-basics, lacto-intolerant, wheat intolerant etc diets, tried pharmaceutical and "natural" remedies for IBS and nothing worked. It's just something I have to deal with and the only thing that works is taking codeine daily. It's far from ideal but it works. I've also tried immodium, but it makes me nauseous, like I've got a case of travel sickness that never goes away.
Ollie, I'm glad to hear your doctor had you provide a stool sample. (yes, a weird experience. I've had a few done.) If the tests come back negative,you might want to look into going on a bare-basic diet for at least a month to see if that helps. If it does, you then start to add foods back in and hopefully you'll find out what is causing the problem. It could be a wheat or dairy intolerance and the best way to find out is by eliminating those foods for a while. It's a difficult process to go through but it just might help.
In the mean-time, get yourself some baby wipes for the bathroom. It makes a huge difference when dealing with chronic dire-rear. You'll need to get yourself a litter bin (with a lid) because if you flush the wipes, you'll end up with blocked sewage pipes and trust me, you don't want to deal with that!
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While in most circles this is a taboo topic, this is certainly talked about A LOT on these forums. Because it's something almost all of us will face, have faced, or are facing.
The BRAT diet, fiber (or supplements thereof,) careful monitoring of dietary habits and adjustments, and getting re-acquainted with your body (which will happen time and again. Don't ever assume things will always be static) are fundamental measures you will need to consider when dealing with HIV and the meds used to treat it.
My own diarrhea is a near constant, and has been for years. Fiber helps a LOT, often giving me respite for weeks at a time. But there are times, especially in the two hours after I eat a meal, or are under stress, when it's just awful.
It literally comes out of nowhere, and I have, at best, three minutes to find a restroom. I can't tell you how many times I have ended a date early, or thrown out pairs of underwear in the bathroom of a restaurant. And believe me, I listen to my body as carefully as I can.
What Ann said about baby wipes CAN NOT be repeated often enough. If you can't afford them, or can't flush them in your system, four or five sheets of toilet paper folded into a pad and then wet with warm water will help. Believe me, stuff doen there gets pretty raw pretty fast.
As far as over the counter meds are concerned, many people take Immodium (the brand name in the US) and swear by it.
I personally avoid it, because it often causes the exact opposite problem, which while socially less embarrassing, is often excruciating and can cause painful hemorrhoids. In addition, unless they have changed the formula since I checked last, the "filler" ingredient in the "store brand" or generic version of Immodium has an ingredient that can cause gas, bloating and yes, more diarrhea in those with even a smidgen of lactose intolerance.
For many of us it's simply a fact of life living with HIV. The virus thrives in the human gut, and the meds target that same gut. So the cause AND the treatment can often lead to the same - well, pardon the pun - end result.
Obviously if things don't get any better, check with your doctor. There are powerful prescription medicines that might help. I've avoided that route myself, for concrete and purely psychological reasons.
Best of luck, and remember, it might be embarrassing out in the world, or at the family dinner table, but here at AIDSMEDS it's absolutely not. If we can't talk or joke about it, we'd go absolutely bonkers.
I mean, more bonkers than we are already. Caveat.
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What Ann said about baby wipes CAN NOT be repeated often enough. If you can't afford them, or can't flush them in your system, four or five sheets of toilet paper folded into a pad and then wet with warm water will help. Believe me, stuff doen there gets pretty raw pretty fast.
When I run out of baby wipes, I use a little dab of moisturiser on the paper instead of water. One that has no perfume is best, and one with aloe vera is even better. I even carry baby wipes in my handbag or jacket. Having a sore butthole is no joke!
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The last few posts remind me of something that occurred when my ex-wife and I were together. She was from the Bahamas and we had some family over for the holidays. Well her cousin, a sweet girl we called Toshi, came out of the bathroom with a little skip to her gate and asked us about the wipes we kept beside the toilet. She said they left her feeling really clean and fresh, she wanted some to take home with her.
Being one to oblige, I gave her the entire container of Clorox Bleach wipes and told her they also work great for minor spills and cleanup too.
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I haven't used toilet paper in over 16 yrs. it was when PI's came out in 96 that I had to switch to baby-wipes, to date, I'll never buy toilet paper ever again, w/ the baby-wipes, I love that clean fresh feeling after you clean off all of the ass-butter :D
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Baby Wipes are for the weak.
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Well, due to an ear infection, I had the most violent diarrhea and as a result blew out my bum and am now stuck with an anal fissure. Boy do I wish I had baby wipes now!
Anyway, another thing to get checked for is C. diff, aka Clostridium difficile. That little bugger of a bacteria will wreak havoc on the bowel and leave you miserable with diarrhea! The doc has to order a special culture of your stool specimen to check for it but if you have it, finding out is worth it. There are some antibiotics that you take for like a month that can usually knock it into submission. I've had C. diff like three times and it sucks big time!
Also, yogurt yogurt yogurt! If you aren't lactose intolerant eating yogurt with active cultures does wonders! Really!
odyssey (the man with a split bum and noxious farts from hell)
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Baby Wipes are for the weak.
Whatever. Just because you have a houseboy to lick you clean doesn't mean that the rest of us do. Get over yourself.
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Baby Wipes are for the weak.
Why miss P, I thought you were Sparking Clean City Boy, guess I was wrong then ;D
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Imodium helps somewhat but as soon as I stop taking it it's back to ass burning, hemroid bleeding agony. My ID doc said this wasn't a side effect typically associated with atripla but I don't know what else could be causing it! Has anyone else experienced anything similar or have any advice on how to deal with it??? :(
Bleeding is not good when associated with a BM. The subject may be embarrassing but you really should insist that the doctor check (visually) to see if you may have an O.I. Genital Herpees can sometimes cause bleeding and could also cause that burning sensation in your butt. They have a pill for that too! Good luck and I hope they get to the 'bottom' of this soon.
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Why miss P, I thought you were Sparking Clean City Boy, guess I was wrong then ;D
Child please. I wear black underwear so I can't see the crusty skidmarks. And anyway, diaper rash builds character.
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Child please. I wear black underwear so I can't see the crusty skidmarks. And anyway, diaper rash builds character.
Sorry Dear , but I'm not into Diapers, it just aint thang :-*
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Sorry Dear , but I'm not into Diapers, it just aint thang :-*
I see you're still have that reading disability issue. You might want to increase you lithium or something.
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Bleeding is not good when associated with a BM. The subject may be embarrassing but you really should insist that the doctor check (visually) to see if you may have an O.I. Genital Herpees can sometimes cause bleeding and could also cause that burning sensation in your butt. They have a pill for that too! Good luck and I hope they get to the 'bottom' of this soon.
He did inspect the area visually and didn't seem to suspect anything like herpes or an o.i. He just said he could tell there was some irritation.
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I can't tell you how many times I have ended a date early, or thrown out pairs of underwear in the bathroom of a restaurant.
It has happened two times to me already. I guess it happens when I am under stress and/or under very weak ( did not have a meal on time or skipped it or drank a lot etc) immune status.
I have started to notice things about last 4 months or so. One time I was in the subway and I was going somewhere but of a sudden out of nowhere accident happened and I had to go to a downtown Manhattan Starbucks restroom where I had to throw out my underwear in the bathroom and I went to the event without my underwear on and luckily nothing happened there. Funny thing is, there were two Indian Brit girls were making eye contact or flirting ( poor me and I am gay) with me while they are also waiting for the bathroom. I had to smile back at them and trust me I was not feeling sexy at all!
In another occasion, I had been drinking two nights in row (Sat and Sun) and passed out (Yea I am carrying on my college life still in my mid thirties sometimes more than I should but that's another issue). What happened is , while I passed out I might have loosen myself up and slept/passed out that way. And I don't shower every morning and mostly do that after workout in the evening or so. So, I have not noticed what happened on my bottom and went to work!!! I did smell something when I woke up and looked for pukes but did not think about it anymore and was rushing to go to work. I have spent few hours with my dirty underwear and with my smell and I had a meeting with boss and coworker. How embarrassing is that! Finally, I took an early lunch and bought myself two pairs of under wears, went to McDonald restroom, got rid of my dirty underwear and did wear both of the pairs, bought body odors and cleaned myself and went back go work. That was one of the embarrassing days of my life! I have always drank like that but I guess things are changing and body can handle so much now that I have HIV.
Baby wipes, codeine, Brat, Imodium, bare basic info is helpful. OP, sorry did not mean to hijack your thread. Wish you the best luck.
Since
(Who started to realize once again HIV is NOT a joke! And he is so glad that he could share his stories with others no matter how embarrassing the story is)
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Since, just a word to the wise, cultural normative expectations in Manhattan generally include a shower before work, especially if one spends the weekend drinking.
Wishing you career success!
A
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Since, just a word to the wise, cultural normative expectations in Manhattan generally include a shower before work, especially if one spends the weekend drinking.
Wishing you career success!
A
LOL - talking with someone who lived high school age/ years in NYC! On and off since then about 16/17 years! I slipped! I guess we all know how that feels one way or the other!
As far as career success, if I don't check my occasional heavily drinking anytime soon that wouldn't be happening specially with my current health situation due to HIV. I guess drinking heavily has to do with my acceptance issues about HIV and sexuality. Bathroom accidents are part of the dealing with HIV I suppose...
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I've dealt with intestinal issues since my early 20s. I always knew where a bathroom was wherever I went. It wasn't too bad in Atlanta. You drive everywhere. But here in NYC..."A" express (HA!) 59th to 125th was nerve-wracking. It's not fun and it's not always medication related.
Have your doctor do stool tests, a couple of them, there are some things that slip by once in a while..bug-wise. Stress is another big one...you'd just have to figure out if that was one of the issues you're dealing with...and see if you can find a way to lower it. If nothing else, go to a gastroenterologist and get a colonoscopy to eliminate all those other nasties (Chron's Disease, cancer, etc.). It would be the first step in a long process of elimination (no-pun intended...just knowledge from experience).
Good luck...
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I seem to have (at the moment) resolved the issue by adopting a diet that most inmates would pity and imodium as needed. It sucks but the alternative is worse.