i was a regular on this forum for quite a while, when i was convinced that candida and parasites were what was causing my digestive woes.

i have had issues with slow digestion, severe bloating, gas, fatigue, brain fog, nausea, and pain for years. i tried doctor after doctor to try to find out what was wrong with me, and none of them could find any issues. after a lot of research and a lot of frustration with the medical world, i figured that candida must be my issue - all the symptoms fit.

i went full force into the diet and herbal treatments, and after months and months with no results, got fed up and upped the doses of the herbs i was taking (grapefruit seed extract, oregano oil, garlic, Black-Walnut , got my doctor to prescribe me fluconazole, and got even more strict with my dietary limitations.

when i started feeling much much worse, everyone here convinced me that it was just die off, that i was killing off the yeast and that it was a necessary part of the journey to feeling better.

...but i just kept getting worse and worse the longer the treatment went on. my mild but annoying digestive issues became life threatening - i started to be able to eat less and less solid food without either throwing it up or having it sit in my stomach for hours and hours without going anywhere. i could only eat small amounts of pureed food and liquid without feeling awful for hours. i slowly realized that even if candida WAS my problem, the diet and the remedies were not doing me any good, and that i felt at least 10 times worse than i did when i STARTED the candida diet.

i stopped the candida regimen. i started researching again and demanded certain tests from my doctor to find out what was wrong with me.

it turns out i have a chronic (life-long) condition called gastroparesis, which is where the nerve that empties your stomach doesn't work like it should, so the food sits in your stomach for hours (sometimes days) longer than it should, and makes you very sick. my upper digestive tract is basically paralyzed.

the doctors (and i) think that i had a mild case of it for years, but that the high fat/high fiber diet i was on, combined with the large amounts of herbs and antifungals that i was taking, kind of sent me over the edge. i feel like i traumatized my system by overdoing it on antibacterial/antifungal herbal supplements every day for so long that my digestive system just sort of gave up.

i am to the point now where i can only ingest liquids without being in pain. i have lost 30 pounds in the last 6 months, and am on the verge of malnutrition. there is not much hope in sight - once you have gastroparesis, it does not go away, it does not get better. i basically am going to have to learn to live on liquids.

i just wanted to tell you all to be VERY careful with how you approach your treatment, and be ABSOLUTELY sure that candida is indeed your problem before you go crazy on herbal supplements like i did. herbs are amazing and can help with all sorts of ailments, but you still have to be incredibly careful when taking them, because they can be just as dangerous (if not more so) than prescription medication.

listen to your body and DON'T discount any discomfort as die-off when it could be something much more serious!!