It IS SIBO.......

"Go gently through this day,

keeping your eyes on Me. 

I will open up the way before you,

as you take steps of trust along your path."

From Jesus Calling

by Sarah Young

So, this was in my devotional reading this morning.  I am so loving this devotional.  So intimate and so on the money so often. 

I guess "so" is the word of the hour.  :-)

Well, my appointment in Portland today was amazing.  Dr. Allison Siebecker, who specializes in and devotes her practice to SIBO, confirmed that it IS SIBO.  She considers the test results accurate and classifies my case as moderate to severe.

We spent an hour together, and the Lord so totally empowered me to communicate a ton of information clearly and concisely and in rapid fire order.  Yesterday I could hardly think or articulate at all.  She listened well, is a delightfully interactive person, respectful of the work I've done on my own health, is compassionate and available.

She was able to work through a treatment plan/protocol with me.  There are a few different ways to treat it, and she was so helpful in determining the best one for who I am and how my body reacts to everything that goes into it.  A course of natural antibiotics comes first, with follow up in a month or so.  She was also able to help me understand the diet I need to follow.  There is a lot of information out there that doesn't always agree.  Her research has been instrumental in determining a more complete picture of what works and what doesn't.  She was also able to recommend some things to help get calories into me and hopefully stop the weight loss.  It will take a few days for things I've ordered to arrive and enable me to get started, but I am hopeful in a way that has been a long time in coming.

My hope is always in the Lord, and at the same time He, in His mercy and grace, has also given me some hope through the work and research of Dr. Siebecker, which seems to be about to help at least some of this long-standing problem I've had.  And I am grateful.

Thanks for praying.  I'll be updating as I go through the treatment phase.  It can be pretty brutal.  The die-off of the bacterial overgrowth will make me sick and tired, but at least I know that there will be purpose in it.

Bless each one of you.  I so felt your prayers today.  It was amazing.

Test results.......

The test results show that SIBO is a likely possibility.  The test itself apparently has a 62.5 percent sensitivity for SIBO, but my doctor thinks it's likely that this is what is going on.  There are a variety of options for treating it, but in my limited knowledge, I don't really know what to choose. I sincerely desire the opinion of someone who really knows this condition inside and out.  I'm hoping that the specialist in Portland of whom the Lord made me aware is that someone.  I will be seeing her on Thursday morning.  Her practice and research is devoted to SIBO.

The past two days have been really hard.  Not much of a break from the nausea and my head has been foggy.  And I'm just so tired.  I long to feel better.  "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness."  And I also hope He will use this doctor in Portland to make sense of where I am after these years of mystery.  And if not, He is still the solid rock on which I stand.

We'd really appreciate prayer that He would give this specialist wisdom in my case.  Supernatural "seeing" of what is truly going on.  Recognition of tests that need to be done.  Diet that needs to be followed.  The best treatment options.  And strength for me to do this.

Thank you so much for praying.  Bless each of you.

I will refresh the weary.....

"I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint."

Jeremiah 31:25

This verse was part of my devotions this week and I'm grateful for it.

Thank you for your prayers as I took the SIBO test.  I made it through okay with less difficulty than I anticipated.  I am waiting now for the test to be evaluated and for my doctor to contact me.  That will probably be early next week.  If the test proves positive, I will for sure be seeing the SIBO doctor, and if not I will talk with the clinic as to whether she would want to see me anyway for the mystery-solving aspect of my gut issues.

I am asking for prayer for the ability to gracefully make it to next Thursday.  My weight has continued to drop as I struggle to find things I can eat.  Each day has brought discouragement.   Today I am again not feeling well.  On top of this, my heart is breaking over things I cannot talk about.  In the midst, God is all over everything, and I need to cling to the hope I have in Him.  For that is truly the only hope any of us have. And it is a mighty hope.

Thanks so much for praying.

A reward for His suffering......

"May the Lamb that was slain

receive the reward of His suffering."

1st Moravian Missionary

On Sunday, our teaching time was used to watch and listen to a video of revival preacher sermons.  One of them was Paris Reidhead, who preached the famous sermon "10 Shekels and a Shirt" which concludes with the quotation of one of two Moravians who had sold themselves into slavery in order to reach slaves who would otherwise never hear the gospel.  As they sailed away from their loved ones, never to return, he called back to them, "May the Lamb that was slain receive the reward of His suffering!"

That is our reason for being.  Jesus's reward for His suffering.

This has been in my mind all week.  We, His beloveds, are the reward of His suffering.  Every soul who comes to a saving knowledge of Him is the reward of His suffering.  That is an amazing thought which is settling into my heart.  And recognizing that I am the reward of His suffering enables me to see new ways in which I belong to Him.

Last Friday my health took a turn for the worse.  My gut has just come to a point where it doesn't really like anything in it.  I'm dealing with nausea most of the time, as well as light-headedness and dizziness.  My weight has dropped again.

After doing some more research on SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), my original belief that it isn't a factor has been challenged.  There are many markers that indicate it would be wise to test for it.  I found a doctor at a clinic in Portland who specializes in SIBO, and the lab provides a SIBO hydrogen breath test that I can do at home.  That was a huge relief, because the test requires a 12 hour fast, involves drinking a sugar substance and then taking breath samples over a 3-hour period.  Having to drive somewhere on a fast, being in a strange place and sick from the sugar substance, and then having to drive home again was keeping me from actually going and getting the test done.  Yesterday I went to Portland to pick up the test kit and will be conducting it on Monday here at home.  From there I will have the opinions of two doctors as to the results.

If SIBO is the problem, it will involve both specialized antibiotics and a tailored diet.  Diet stuff doesn't bother me anymore.  I'm so limited as to what I can eat now, it really doesn't matter.  :-)  Antibiotics are always a concern for me because of my Candida history, but this is worse than what I went through 25 years ago, and I have to trust that a SIBO specialist will guide me through the mine field.

My emotions are up and down.  I'm seeking to draw near to the One Who calls me "Beloved" and feel Him draw near to me. He reminds me daily to seek Him. Seek Him at every turn.  So I'm trying to sink into that mindset.  Let go of me and embrace Him.

One other thing that is on our hearts and minds is that the company for which Dale works is having difficulties with solvency.  His job is in jeopardy, with the very real possibility that the company will have to close down.  Prayer for another job solution, should that happen, would be greatly appreciated.

How you can pray:
~ That the SIBO testing will be definitive and conclusive.
~ That this specialist will be someone with whom I can work comfortably.
~ Perseverance!
~ Dale's job.

Thank you all for praying.  You are a great blessing to us.