About My Case

Primary Symptom Overview

• Itchy skin (pruritis)
• Brain fog
• Poor memory
• Smelly, frequent gas; burping; bloating
• Low libido
• Low energy or fatigue
• Occasional depression
• Insatiable hunger when underslept

I've had most of these symptoms for most of my life.

Everything worsens when I eat food that others would consider normal, but symptoms improve with a restricted diet.

Dietary Restrictions

Over the last year, I have eliminated or extremely reduced intake of the following foods.

• Tomatoes
• Onions
• Garlic?
• Bread
• Fruits
• Vinegar
• Cabbage
• Spinach
• Dairy (including butter)
• Undercooked potatoes

I don't do super well with many foods, but sticking to olive oil, salt, pepper, meats, and a few vegetables have made symtpoms tolerable. The diet is a challenge socially, but I'm not super social and my significant other has similar restrictions.

Subjective Description of Symptoms

When I would eat fruit, I would develop asthma (pre-existing diagnosis) shortly after ingestion. Within 30 minutes, I would be overcome with fatigue, so much so that I would immediately seek a place to lie down. This was common at family parties with fruit bowls.

I consistently find myself forgetting things. This could be household tasks, video lectures, or reading. I understand that some or all of this is normal, just want to document it.

My mental clarity wanes dramatically over the course of the day. I am generally very cognizant up until about 11AM, then after lunch I never really rebound. I notice a mid-day fatigue, which I believe is normal for any human. By 9PM, I'm usually exhausted. I would previously coach from 8AM - 1PM and would occasionally notice slurred speech around 12:30PM.

I'm a restless sleeper. I toss, turn, and grind my teeth. When my skin is itchy, it may be bad enough to wake me up.

Itchiness is one of the toughest symptoms. The scratching itself is one thing; my skin will often burn in the shower due to the open wounds. The insatiable urge to itch, however, steals mental acuity. I find that difficult to manage. As an example, if I'm talking with someone, I might not be able to process what I've heard them say for an extra 3-5 seconds. I may ask them to repeat what they've said.

Gas has been another difficult problem. It's some of the most smelly, most frequent that I've known in my life. In fact, I never understood why people would freak out when someone farted; they never seemed that bad. Bloating after meals is common. Occasionally, I'll have stomach pain as well.

I've noticed a correlation between direct gut symptoms and depression symptoms.

Coping Strategies

• Take a daily antihistamine
• Extreme dietary restriction
• Limited, but non-zero exposure to outdoor allergens
• Limit face-to-face communication; generally a daily maximum of five coaching hours
• Regular exercise

Testing

• Awaiting results of lactulose breath test
• Positive for ANA titer
• Very high iron levels
• Very high bilirubin
• Low free testosterone
• Low liver enzymes
• Possibly low thyroid function

Current Plan

I asked for a case evaluation from Dr. Bryan Walsh about a year ago. He recommended a broad-spectrum herbal anti-microbial protocol.