Greetings and salutations! I am currently suffering with the worst bout of food poisoning of my life. It started on Thursday evening after a meatball sub that may or may not have been the culprit, so this has been going on just over 48 hours.
I have had explosive diarrhea (although mainly during the first 24 hours) and lots of heavy-duty vomiting spells. I haven’t been able to keep any food down at all. All I’ve eaten have been a couple slices of bread, and sips of water. I tried Gatorade, but it burns on the way down and back up as well. The acid in my stomach is bubbling and gurgling, and my entire insides feel like they’re bloated with acid. Everything I choke down burns, like acid reflux run amuck. I have almost constant violent hiccuping attacks that always precede the vomiting as well. Needless to say, this is no fun at all.
I know food poisoning always passes, but I’ve never experienced anything so bad before. I hate going to doctors, and currently don’t even have a doctor. Does anyone think this sounds serious enough to warrant a trip to the ER? Right now I’m hoping for a bunch of "No"s. I can continue to suffer with this until it moves its way through my body, but the constant hiccuping and vomiting is getting really old, plus I’m extremely hungry. All I can think about are Chalupas and falafel wraps and homemade chili and fresh salsa with chips!
Basically, should I continue sucking it up (no pun intended), or does this sound like something more dangerous and medical attention-worthy than garden variety food poisoning?
That said, today I took my daughter to the doctor for pretty much the same symptoms, which first appeared Thursday morning. Her diagnosis? Stomach Virus. She was prescribed something to help with the vomiting and diarreah, and is on clear liquids for another day or two.
Our first thought was food poisoning, the really bad acid reflux, then ulcer. She was also achey, like when you have the flu. She is a bit better tonight, however.
So, it is worth the trip to rule out anything more severe, go ahead and go anyway. Are there any walk in clinics in your area?
I had similar symptoms, minus the hiccups, for six days when I was about 12 or 13. Life sucked. My diet during those days consisted of strawberry Jell-O and water; everything else was completely unappetizing. Though my mom wanted to take me to one I never saw a doctor about it.
I’m thinking if you’re hungry and can think about chili, you’ll be fine.
I believe that you should, in your best interest, but probably only to a G.P. and not necessarily ER.
I myself had a bout of food poisoning (albeit less severe). What you should take will depend on whether it is bacterial or virus related infection (if it is food poisoning at all). However, in the mean time I would recommend a healthy intake of electrolytes to replace those lost through… bowel movements…
I got a nasty case of food poisoning about a year ago, and it only lasted for about 24 hours.
My dad (former ER nurse) told me that food poisoning will set in around 12 hours after you ate the nasty food, if that helps. Anyone know if this is correct?
It depends on the bacteria, but that’s a good baseline to start from. Most food-borne illnesses take on average 12-24 before symptoms start to show, basically because it takes that long for the bacteria to multiply to the numbers needed to make the human body sick. There are a couple that are quicker, and others with take longer. (Such as Hep A, which can take 3-7 days IIRC, which is one reason it can be so hard to track down a hep A outbreak.)
IANAD, just going by memory from sanitation license classes many moons ago.
It depends. There are two types of food poisoning - intoxication and infection. Intoxication is when you eat food in which bacteria have been growing and excreting toxins. You eat the toxic proteins, even if the bacteria are dead, and they can make you sick almost immediately. Infection is just what it sounds like - you eat a few live bacteria, and they infect your system and grow. In that case, sickness usually takes a day or so to show up.
I’m not a doctor either, but if I were you, I’d see one. I was always told that if vomiting and diarrhea last more than 24 hours, you need to seek medical attention to prevent massive dehydration. Seriously, this sounds kind of scary. Get thee to a medical establishment.
Also, Pedialite is better on the system than Gatorade. It’s made for babies and little kids, so it’s a lot gentler on the body. If you can’t get any Pediality, I’d suggest diluting the Gatorade.
I had food poisoning once for about 5 days. It was awful. Mine started with bloating in my stomach and gut, followed by nausea, vomiting and diareah within the first 24 hrs. Afterwards, I didn’t want to eat anything for the next 2 days, during which I still had major diareah. I kept trying to force myself to drink fluids during that time. The last two days, the diareah started to subside and I was able to start eating very light foods.
On the whole, I wouldn’t recommend food poisoning to anyone. Yes, you can live through it, but you want to die during it.
One way to help minimize this symptom is to stir a spoonful of baking soda into a glass of water, then gargle with that, and swallow the rest of it. The base in this will neutralize some to the stomach acid that is coating your throat, and you’ll feel much better. Note: expect major belching when you do this.
Also, this is just something to make you feel more comfortable after vomiting. It will do nothing to deal with the cause of your illness; look at the advice from others about that.
P.S. Good Luck! I had this once, years ago (likely from unrefrigerated tuna-mayonaise-macaroni salad) , and I still remember it. Really, really uncomfortable. I remember sitting on the toilet, simultaneously throwing up into a bucket, and hunching over from stomach cramps. And thinking that from real poison, at least you die quickly!
I had a bout with this back in December (without the vomiting). The whole thing lasted six days, practically to the minute, with the last day being one of the worst. My doctor said that if the severe symptoms didn’t subside within a couple of days, to go to the ER. The danger is in dehydration, of course. The vomiting can cause some damage to your esophagus, so that’s a concern.
I survived by sipping warm herbal tea and nibbling on soda crackers. By the way, if you are on any acid reflux meds such as Nexium or Prilosec, stop taking it immediately. These can cause extended problems, such as the bacteria taking up residence in your intestine and not willing to depart.
My boyfriend and I are currently suffering through a bout of food poisoning, and have just sent our friend to get us Gatorade and chocolate milkshakes. We both took the day off, but can’t even enjoy it because we’re so achy and poopy.
Have you heard of the BRAT diet? See if you can stomach bananas, (white) rice, applesauce, and toast. I especially like white rice cooked with chicken broth when I’m sick. Too bad we don’t have a rice cooker anymore and I’m feeling too icky to get up and make it the regular way.
It’s real easy to make acceptable rice in a microwave. Put equal amounts of instant rice and water in a covered dish, and microwave 2-3 minutes (until all the water is absorbed). Add a pat of butter, and a bit of salt or sugar if desired. And substituting chicken broth for the water works fine, too.
This is something you can easily make, even when you’re sick.
I want to thank everyone for their advice, kind thoughts, and shared stories. I’m definitely on the road to recovery. I’ve eaten a few meals of solid food, and kept them all down! Yay! (I even broke down and tested myself with two Chalupas!)
I know I definitely got dehydrated for those few days there, so my body still isn’t functioning quite right, but I’m already up and about again. I wouldn’t wish food poisoning like this on anyone, though. Another day or so and I’ll be operating at 100%. I appreciate everything, guys and gals!
you probably wont die if you werent underweight when it all started...... fluid is the most important... Look at the bright side... you wont need a port a cath or anything… eat what you cat, drink what you can and stay off meat… somkindasoup for i while I`ve travelled around the world an gone sic millions of times… I am still alive… oddly enough… hugs
I`ve travelled around the world an gone sic millions of times… I am still alive… oddly enough… hugs