Skip to main content
Share Your Story
New York

Mary Ules

After menopause, I got five UTIs in one year. Each time I took ciprofloxacin and I got C. diff. It got so bad that my urologist would take me off the vancomycin that my GI doctor prescribed to put me back on ciprofloxacin. Finally, my endocrinologist put me on estrogen (vaginal route). My UTI stopped and so did my C. diff. The last time was ten years ago when I had shingles and took an antiviral medication.

I have taken two probiotics every day since then. I take Culturelle and Florastor daily, and if I am on antibiotics it’s twice daily. I have weathered bronchitis, etc. without antibiotics and I insist on metronidazole for any antibiotic treatments. In 2018 I got strep throat. I talked the doctor into only prescribing antibiotics for five days and I did not get C. diff.

Age

Gender

Male

Length

Source

Other

Other Stories

Mira

In December of 2019, my husband got sick with C. diff. It was after he was prescribed antibiotics for what they thought was a case of diverticulitis. In hindsight, it’s clear he may have simply had C. diff all along. He was treated with vancomycin a…
More about Mira
Length: ON AND OFF FOR 5 YEARS

Beth W.

My story began in 2018 when I went to see a colorectal surgeon for the incision of a thrombosed hemorrhoid. In order to ‘prevent’ an infection, the surgeon prescribed me both Amoxicillin 800mg 2x daily and Vancomycin 500mg 3x daily. Upon completion…
More about Beth W.
Length: 1 YEAR

Mollie Lauck

My Husband and I were expecting our first child. We were so very excited. My Pregnancy was complicated to begin with- I was considered “Advanced Maternal Age” and had Hypertension and Gestational Diabetes. Though it was a labor of love, Pregnancy wa…
More about Mollie Lauck
Length: 5 MONTHS

Ken Fredrickson

I’m 62 and generally healthy, I’ve never had an intestinal issue. I went to the ER on Jan 2, 2023 and a CT scan revealed Diverticulitis. They sent me home with a 2 week course of antibiotics. Four days after completing the antibiotics, I developed s…
More about Ken Fredrickson
Length: 8 MONTHS

Jan

I am a healthy active older woman. On March 1, 2019 I had an explosive episode of diarrhea, out of the blue, no idea what caused it. The smell was indescribable, like nothing I had ever experienced in my long life. That was the beginning of a long s…
More about Jan

Dr. Melissa Geraghty, Psy.D.

At the start of 2018 I was diagnosed with C. diff. I never really heard much about C. diff outside of people acquiring it in a hospital setting or people of advanced age contracting it. Oh, was I wrong. After being sick for about 8 weeks with wor…
More about Dr. Melissa Geraghty, Psy.D.
Length: 19 MONTHS

Cassie Padilla

As a nurse for 35 years I thought I knew a lot about C. diff but as a patient I’ve discovered I knew NOTHING about C. diff. I have had 2 episodes of C. diff in my life. The first was in 2017 following (prophylactic) antibiotics after surgery. That l…
More about Cassie Padilla
Length: 3 YEARS

Julia

I’ve been suffering from this infection for the past few years. When I was first diagnosed, I was shocked and thought this was something that only the elderly suffered from. It’s been 3 years since my first infection, and I still suffer daily. I’ve…
More about Julia
Length: 4 MONTHS

Sue

I had emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix and was given SO MANY antibiotics in the hospital. I was also given Protonix for the acid reflux that resulted from all the antibiotics. Looking at the list of risk factors for C. diff, I fit every one…
More about Sue

Howard

While many of us who battle C diff have quick success with the usual antibiotics, the purpose of my entry here is to emphasize the high rate of success of the Fecal Microbiota Transplant. My C diff experience was such that A) a lengthy course of Van…
More about Howard