Remember my Activia yogurt "problem" in April? I lost 25-lbs in eight weeks. Beaver-Fever!

[DemoTex]

It wasn't the Activia. It was giardia ("beaver fever"). Dannon, please forgive me!

I have been so f**king sick for over two months (did you notice I've been scarce? Or not-scarce-enough for some of you?), and the docs have not had a clue. Finally, one medicine-man ordered a poop culture. It took 7 days for LabCorpse to provide the results (during which time I had to visit the ER), and that was just as the gastroenterologist were putting on gloves to explore my caves .. to pluck tissue for biopsy. But the lab results came by fax in the middle of an examination .. POSITIVE: Giardia.

Slam, bam! Five days on 1500 mg/day of Flagyl. Now I'm fine and gaining some weight again.

I probably picked up the giardia protozoa at my dad's farm in Georgia. Either his farm lake or the structure there. My brother primed the well pump with lake water in early April (they had winterized the H2O system). The well water is potable (we think!), and he should have primed the pump with safe water. My dad (88), and my brother who lives with him, both have classic giardia symptoms now. Both promised to be tested tomorrow. They will also test water at the lake house and the main house in town.

BTW: On medical advice I had Nick-Nick (my dog) tested for giardia at his veterinary clinic. My dog's giardia results (negative .. which doesn't necessarily mean he doesn't have it) were relayed to me in less than 24-hours by the vet herself!

BTBTW: Damn I'm slim and trim!

[Island Blue]

1. "Beaver Fever"

You must call Stephanie Miller so she can add that one to "The Beaver Stack". :rofl:

In all seriousness, sorry about your illness and I'm glad you're feeling better! Hope your dad, brother and dog are okay too.

[DemoTex]

11. Where I grew up, in the Deep South ..

"Beaver Fever" was a condition putatively treated by a plump, hair-netted school dietician, Mrs. Turlock, with a bottle of salt-peter. Mrs. Turlock, now long-gone, might be happy to know that her liberal doses of salt-peter have started to kick-in big time with the surviving boys of the hellish Class of '66!

It took a northern doctor to edjumakate me an the real "beaver fever."

[eleny]

16. They did a BS segment yesterday that was a scream

They'd love this!

[ret5hd]

2. You could market this...

the "beaver fever fat cleaver". You too can lose 5, 10, 20, even 25 pounds in 8 weeks or less! Read testimonials from our satisfied clients!

[DemoTex]

14. Exactly what I said to Nick's vet!

Gain weight. Drink from the Reedy River! Then she pointed out the other killer organisms there.

[DesertRat]

3. Wow. Glad to hear you're okay

Also glad it wasn't from the Activia. I love that stuff. :)

[XemaSab]

4. Better than tapeworms

:shrug:

[pt22]

7. I got a bad bottle of Johnny Walker Red once...came down with

Scotch Tapeworms.






:evilgrin:

[DemoTex]

17. You bullshit me GI! Shirley!

I've spent a few nights at the Walker Home in Troon. Drank the famous drink. No way a tapeworm could survive that EtOH titer!

Oh FUCK! Scotch-Tape-Worms! HAD .. hook, line sinker!

[eShirl]

5. sounds like a bad 80s movie

[pt22]

6. Here's a pic....actual size

:rofl:

[DemoTex]

22. Fuck me!

Hate those big-ass single-celled protozoa! What's that? A X100,000 view?

[supernova]

8. Glad you are feeling better, DemoTex!

:hi: :hug:

I have missed seeing you around and so happy you are on the mend. Yea, GI symptoms are not the best crash diet. :P A few years ago, I had similar symptoms to you and one doc suggested giardia to me as a possible cause of my awful distress since I have an underground well.

Of course I immediately came home and hit the net for research about giardia. I found out it mostly loves to live in shallow waters, so your dad's pond sounds right. My well is 180 ft deep. And I tested negative. Eventually learned I had a garden variety UTI gone amok. Boy I loves me some antibiotics.

Welcome back! :D

[PetrusMonsFormicarum]

9. Glad you've recovered

Glad you're recovered Demo Tex, but as I discovered after a serious bout with gastroenteritis, you've probably lost the wrong kind of weight. Illnesses like these tend to cause the body's musculature to break down (complicated, no doubt, by being generally unable to MOVE). Sure, not being able to keep food down will do it too.

So make sure you show off that new slim-and-trim getting some exercise!

Good to have you back!

[tularetom]

10. Sucks to have a disease that sounds like the name of a goombah on the Sopranos

Glad yer better. Take care of yourself and the doggie.

[madokie]

12. Its good to know you're on the mend,

I remember you mentioning this now that you mentioned it, a while back. Good to read that you're on the mend. I'll be sending you some well wishes and good vibes just in case :-)
Its good to know it wasn't the other forum, the Gawd Damn Primaries, that had you down.

[DemoTex]

20. In my fever I did draft a resignation letter to Skinner .. yesterday, in fact.

Never pushed the send button.

[Skittles]

13. you want I should kick some giardia ass, Mac?

I'll become microscopic Skittles to do it

[Jane Austin]

15. When I had that, I went to the night clinic at the big practice I go to here.

I explained to the doc that I'd had this for two weeks and that I kept thinking it would go away - it always did.

He said we could do $500 worth of tests, or he could give me a course of Flagyl and if it went away, it was giardia.

He said if I were one of his kids, he just go with the Flagyl.

After one pill, I was 100% improved, and just got better and better.

I've had it once again since then, but now I know what to do.

BTW, I didn't lose an ounce. :(

[Junkdrawer]

18. And the irony is that, after a strong course of Flagyl, you'll need yogurt...

to reestablish a health intestinal flora.

[DemoTex]

Yep

Rxed that today

[DemoTex]

27. Yep

Rxed that today

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Get well

and good to see you

[muriel_volestrangler]

21. Ooh - I had that once. Two months?

Wow. no wonder you lost weight. I picked it up on vacation (as did about 8 of my 10 friends), and when I got back a few days later, still feeling unwell, my dad, a doctor, went for the 'poop culture' test at once. He said it was surprising I'd picked up Giardia in Europe - "you normally have to have a holiday in Asia to come up with this!".

But it was about the only time I've felt unable to eat anything for days at a time without major symptoms - it was more like I felt full as soon as I tried to eat something, and I never had any appetite at all - I just couldn't face eating. 2 months of that would have been severely bad for one's health.

[DemoTex]

24. Bingo! The sight of food nauseated me.

I'd be hungry and cook, the throw the food away .. nauseated.

[bobbolink]

23. Interesting theory about the origins of giardia in the U.S.

It started spreading in this country about the time the Vietnam vets were returning.

It's thought it was brought here from Vietnam.

:/

[DemoTex]

30. Wrong, on the time-table.

It was here a century before the 'Nam vets (like me) came home. My dad (a PhD in Entomology) studied giardia in microbiology at Auburn (API) in the early 1940s, before he went to North Africa as an arty officer.

[bobbolink]

35. Interesting. thank you.

[SoCalDem]

25. market that water & sell it..You'll be RICH, I tell ya..RICH!!

I once lost a bunch of weight from pneumonia, and have since almost hoped for it again :)...almost !!!

[Junkdrawer]

26. IIRC, tapeworm pills were once all the rage.

Then the FDA stepped in. But, hey, now that the FDA is neutered... :think:

On edit:
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/vanities/tapeworm.asp

[kestrel91316]

28. Don't you need to "shock" the well with bleach now? To clean it up?

Oh, and good to test the dog as he could have got infected from the same source as you.

Contrary to popular belief, Giardia is NOT normally spread from pets (dogs and cats) to humans - the cats I am sure about, the dogs IIRC same. But dirty water outside can spread it to all of us.

[DemoTex]

31. U R Right!

But I could afford the $48 to test Nick, and he is my best bud in the world!

[kestrel91316]

33. I see a fair amount of diarrhea in kittens if they are off the street

and pretty much automatically treat them for Giardia rather than testing, lol. The meds run about $10. And getting material for testing from a cat is a little, well, DIFFERENT than a dog, as you might imagine, lol. Just treating presumptively is safer for all parties involved.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

29. "Getting mono was the best diet I ever had!" -Romy and Michelle

Glad you're better DemoTex. :hi:

[Ilsa]

32. I'm so glad you got the diagnosis and are getting well. Hugs to you! nt

[AnnieBW]

34. Not a good way to diet

Trust me, you don't want to do it that way. Glad that they've finally pinpointed what your issue is!

[Beaverhausen]

36. Oops - sorry

:hi:

[DemoTex]

37. I am skeptical of you motives .. Beaverhausen!

:hi:

[stevedeshazer]

38. Beaver Fever? LOL

In Oregon, that means something entirely different, but glad to read you're getting better.