[Mtngrl]

Tiffany,

I had diarrhea for years due to various treatments I've been on. I no longer do, and I don't really know why. But I can tell you what I've done and what I'm doing now. I also think there are other threads on this site about dealing with diarrhea.

I'm a big believer in staying ahead of diarrhea. It can become a vicious cycle (and overmedicating it can cause a diarrhea/constipation vicious cycle.) Don't wait to intervene. Take 2 Imodium when you have the first loose stool, and take one pill after every subsequent one until it stops. I got so I could anticipate (from how my belly felt) that I might be about to have diarrhea, and I'd take one pill prophylactically.

I was on Tykerb and Kadcyla last June for a very short time. It caused the world's worst diarrhea. I stopped taking the Tykerb, and it got less horrible but didn't really stop. Out of desperation I switched to the "BRAT" diet to heal my gut. That stands for banana, rice, applesauce, toast (white bread). It also includes cooked carrot. I cooked the rice and carrot in chicken broth. That's all I ate for a few weeks. Boring, but it worked.

I also think (contrary to the advice some people gave me) that fiber helps fend off diarrhea, at least the kind I was getting. After my gut healed from the super-diarrhea I got from Tykerb and Kadcyla, I started using psyllium husk. Stir it into water or juice, and drink it quickly, then have another glass of water. Start with a low dose a few times a day and work up. It is a water soluble fiber. I think it helps absorb the excess fluid in loose stools, without causing constipation.

I also take probiotics and eat yogurt (or put it in my smoothies). I have a very high fiber diet--whole grain bread, oatmeal (with flax seed meal in it), popcorn, fruits and vegetables, including the skins.