Nausea , sickness & diarrhoea for over a week

[annie0000]

I have been suffering with the above for over a week now - not bad enough to be absent from work, but have been unwell and not eating properly (or at all at some points!) and I am starting to feel run down. Started last Friday when I went to bed not feeling great and had a really gassy tummy - woke up sick and with diarrhoea. Was pretty ill and not eating all weekend and went back to work thinking I'd had a tummy bug, but have been feeling nausious and been occaisionally sick and had diarrhoea instead of normal poo since. Woke at 5am this morning sick but had nothing in my stomach, been feeling crap all day and haven't eaten a proper meal since last Friday. Haven't had a temperature. Did have a bit of a headache but think that was from dehydration. No-one else in the family has got it and I am definitely not pregnant. I am generally quite healthy, but do still have a chest infection I picked up when I was in Turkey 3 weeks ago.

Anyone any ideas? I wouldn't have thought a tummy bug would last this long.

[boxtops]

Go to your doctor. This is a long time to have D&V, especially if you have a chest infection too. Drink as much as you can keep in, to avoid the dehydration headache. Do you have a walk-in centre near you, that you could go to tomorrow?

[annie0000]

Cheers boxtops - that's just it - I would feel like a fraud going to a walk in centre, cos I am perfectly able to function and am now drinking fine. I still have all the symptoms, but it's not like I am running back and forth to the toilet, it's just that I know when I go it will be diarrhoea and that I feel constantly nausious and as a consequence am not eating well, I am probably being sick about once a day and going to the loo twice a day. I had some cereal this morning, and a sandwich for dinner, but I can feel it rumbling away. I think I will need to go to doctors on Monday but I keep thinking that it will just go by itself and then another day goes by....

[boxtops]

I wouldn't wait if I were you, they would rather see frauds than you make yourself worse. You might have picked up a bug in Turkey, you can't tell. The last time I had D&V was due to eating overripe fruit (and boy was I ill) but it lasted 3 days, no more, then I could get back to normal. yours has been going on too long, you need to get it looked at - well, you know what I mean :-)

[237SJ]

I`ve had diarrhoea from a couple of places (turkey was one of them) and the problem went on for 2 weeks. When I eventually went to the GP she said that when one gets diarrhoea, the lining of the bowel sheds and it can take anything up to 2 weeks for the bowel to settle down. That`s because the bowel grows a new lining which is sensitive and can`t take normal food (which is why they say eat something bland after the Mangetouts)!

[boxtops]

Mangetouts, 2375, I bet you didn't type that!

[Meg]

My son was very ill after holidaying in Turkey, some form of hepititis (can't recall the letter after it).
It apparently was due to a chef having a number 2, not washing his hands and the bacteria got into the food.

[boxtops]

If that's not an incentive to get it checked, Annie, I don't know what is.... fingers crossed it's nothing more than duff food in your case.

[annie0000]

Thanks everyone. I've been back for over 2 weeks now, was pretty sure that I didn't come back with anything (other than the chest infection!) I usually have a cast iron gut - i've never had a dose of holiday tummy and I've been in loads of countries including India and Mexico. I'll see how I feel tomorrow,

[boxtops]

The common factor seems to be Turkey, a girl at work was ill while she was there. Perhaps a combination of different food, heat, etc. I've not been there (yet) so can't share experiences!!

[Meg]

After what I've heard I've no intention of going!

Annie, I do think you should see a doctor. I rarely go but sometimes it really is necessary, good luckxx

[Sqad]

All above posts show good advice.........follow them..
Google Giardia Lamblia......can be present without the stomach cramps.
There is also another gut infestation, a parasite, very similar whose name I have forgotten.

P.S You are not on antibiotics for your chest infection, are you?

[annie0000]

Cheers sqad - i'll look those up. No not on any antibiotics. Haven't had antibiotics since I was about 10 - now 44.

[Coldicote]

I'm suspicious of water supplies abroad - including Turkey. The 'holiday industry' could be more helpful with research and information on the subject.