Today was pretty uneventful, until about 3:00pm, when the exhaustion returned, along with increased nausea, and also some abdominal pain (for the first time since the treatment started, I think). So I've been snoozing on and off ever since. Thank God I took this second week off work, because I'm really not very useful at the moment.
Other than that, there's not much to report today except for this conversation with J:
Q: So, I’m a bit behind schedule on health improvements – can I do anything to hurry it along, like maybe book in another week of poo transplants?
A: No, the limit is generally two weeks; after that it’s just a matter of ‘wait and see’. To continue on with more poo transplants without knowing the end result of the initial two weeks’ treatment, could be a waste of time and money.
A follow up appointment is scheduled with patients eight weeks post-transplant, to assess the success of the treatment. If further “top up” transplants are needed, they will be arranged at that time.
Whilst eight weeks is usually a sufficient timeframe for any changes to stabilize, some patients have reported improvements six months post-treatment!
Q: I was thinking about an earlier conversation we had about the transplants being a combination of different donor poos, to ensure maximum strength of the good bacteria. If this is the case, then surely the anonymous donor poo is preferable to poo donated by a single family member or friend?
Why then does the reading material I was given make very little reference to anonymous poo, concentrating instead on ‘known’ donors?
A: From the hospital’s perspective, the anonymous donor poo is preferable, not only because of the ability to mix samples for maximum strength, but also because the hospital know the donors very well, and have insight into their diet and lifestyle details. This familiarity gives staff an even greater degree of confidence.
That said, many patients find the concept of a poo transplant hard enough to accept, without the additional stress of the poo being from a source unknown to them. The additional cost of the donor poo (approx $90 per day) is also a factor.
The patient’s overall wellbeing (including their piece of mind) is paramount to the hospital, and as a result, detailed references to the anonymous donor bank are not made in patient reading material.
Anally retentive thoughts
Time for bed...again! ;)