Skip to main content
Maryland

Sue G.


I was pulling vines and weeding in my yard when I felt something on my forehead. An hour later I noticed four small bumps on my eyelid. My forehead was sensitive and swollen. I drove to Urgent Care nearby and a very young nurse practitioner prescribed clindamycin AND Bactrim.  I took as directed, and 10 days later I had stomach pains and diarrhea. I went to the hospital and the fecal test showed I had C. diff.   I was given metronidazole(Flagyl) and eight days later I thought I was all well.

Ten days after that, I had to be hospitalized for four days because of a low blood pressure of 79/59,  anemia, weakness, diarrhea, and no appetite.  I stayed on an IV the entire hospital stay and then went home with vancomycin. Ten days later I was finally well BUT I had lost 16 pounds. I have been eating voraciously ever since, and have gained most weight back. Thank goodness. I take probiotic capsules and yogurt often and eat a healthy diet. I must say that C. diff recurrences had a way of making me feel defeated. I hope we can conquer this disease.

Age


68

Gender


Female

Length


4 months

Source


Community Acquired

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…
  • 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 completio…
  • 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 …
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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 w…
  • 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…
  • 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’v…
  • 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 o…
  • 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 V…