why not to colon cleanse if you have diverticulitis

[cydneycsc]

Dear Doctor,
I am just recovering from my "2nd" hospitalized bout of "Diverticulitis"  and need your take on PREVENTING further outbreaks.

I am 44 year old healthy white female that was just hospitalized for 4 days and treated with IV antibiotics for a "Micro" preferation in my Sigmiod Descending Colon.

The first time was almost 3 years ago with no problems in between (except the occasional feeling of slight pain in the same lower region)...thankfully, my first case was treated at Northwestern Hospital in Chicago and I recived the BEST healthcare and treatment to this disease.
(no surgery, no drainage - just 3 weeks of liquids and NO seeds or skins)

I live in New Jersey and over this past Summer had my FIRST colonoscopy (as a preventative measure for my upcoming "Total Abdominal Hysterectomy") i.e., "we did not know what we would find once i was opened-up).

I was VERY SURPRISED that this Doctor stated, "Eat Nuts and Seeds, it's an Old-Wife's Tale about nuts and seeds"

Because, I took EXTREME measures to remover skins from fruits and extract seeds from a fresh tomatoes for the past 2 years!
I Choose to DISAGREE with her theory and still practiced this procedures.

UNTIL 1 week before my "2nd Attack" of Diverticulutisis on Decemeber 9, 2008.....I ate Eggplant and Zuchinni (both have alot of seeds!)
Then the next week wound up in the ER!!!

The G.I.'s and Surgeon's thought this relation of adding seeds to my diet was crazy....BUT, i completey disagree!

Yes, I know they are completly qualified to treat this disease, but if you have never had it....you do NOT know how certain foods "feel" as they move through your system.

So I am now faced with the medical comments of, "After the second outbreak, the next is surgey to reconnect your bowels"

I want to AVOID SURGERY at all costs and manage my disease through diet and daily care.
I have been doing alot of research on the Disease and hear about "colon-cleansing" (my surgeon LAUGHED at this and said it was hogwash)

But it makes 100% sense to me....my questions are:

If you have any area of the Sigmiod Colon that is "weak" and tends to "Collect Debris" , then WHY not clean out the bowel of "Years of Residual Debris" and start with a NEW freshly cleaned colon?

After doing so, then you can start your "Changed Diet Practices" of introducing Daily Psyllium Husks and NOT combining certain "foods and beverages".
(I have found drinking HOT tea after a meal helps digestion and produce stools a couple of hours after...NO cold drinks during meal)

I am also doing "Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda and Lime with warm water" once daily.
~ NO Fried Foods
~ NO Beef
~ No Pastas or Rice
~NO Soda ever!

So, what do think about me introducing a "Colon- Cleanse" to clear-out the bad stuff and start with a clean bowel?

Thank you, I await your response.

Sincerely,
Cydney Anne
44 years, White, Female (no children)
Total Abdominal Hysterectomy 9/2008 (5x Enlarged Uterus, Fibriods, & Adnomyosis)

[RonaldoR]

Hi,

I had Diverticulitis back in Dec. 2013. I ended up in ER. I don't know what the cause was but all I know I wend under a colonoscopy a month prior to the attack. And I had eggplant a week before the first episode. After all antibiotics and treatment, I was told by the doctor that "it has nothing to do with seeds" and that is a "myth". I continued with my life but the second episode occurred right on 4 of July 5 days after having eggplant again. Another course of treatment and several hundreds of dollars for ER. A few months later, before a dinner in a restaurant, I ate eggplant but had no idea it was eggplant until after the dinner. I called my doctor and expressed my concern but he called me crazy. 4 days later I was in ER.  He AGAIN expressed to me that it had NOTHING to do with eggplant. Per a friend's suggestion is a general surgeon, I went under elective surgery of bowel resection in November. 6 months past and I started having my normal life. This time, unlike doctor's advice, I totally avoid eggplant until one day where I tried eggplant WITHOUT it seeds. You guessed it right... I was sick again but this time no infection. The bloating, constipation, pain, and other related symptoms appeared exactly like before. I went  NPO (nothing by mouth) for 3 days and the pain went away!  

I made an appointment with my doctor (3 weeks leads) and told him about it. His answer was "don't eat eggplant".

My advice, as a patient who has been through hell, is to go through process of elimination rather than listen to some doctors how just follow books and don't want to hear what the patient actually says.

I hope now that you read this, you are all fine and you have your health back but I thought I'd share.

All the best,

Ronaldo

[CalGal]

It is a fee-based board.

I have never had a question I wanted to ask the doc, but there are many people who do. You may want to take a look through the posts to make your own decision on whether or not you want to post on that forum.

[cydneycsc]

thnaks for letting me know....i was wondering why nobody got back to me.
Duh!

do you have to pay for the ask a doctor?

if so have you ever used it successfully?

thanks

[CalGal]

There are no docs on this forum. If you would like to post your question to a doctor, you need to go to the 'Ask A Doctor' side of the forum and post your question there.