My medical history. Fighting Candida and SIBO.
I haven't found any substantial, ready-made material on this board, so I'd like to tell you about myself. I'm 25 years old and only recently started taking care of myself. I'm mentally ill and have gastrointestinal issues. I've also suffered from infections like CMV. I've been diagnosed with pancreatitis and IBS. My pancreas appears to be fine. I've had Candida since childhood (I'm guessing since birth). I took simple courses of probiotics and medications. They didn't help. My symptoms included terrible body odor and abnormal stools (I don't remember the terms, but at the peak of my illness, I had all sorts of problems. Now they've become less frequent). The acute attack began after a drinking binge and a subsequent attempt to treat it with large quantities of Mechnikov's yogurt. I made it at home on the advice of a YouTube blogger. (I know it's weird, but that's all I could come up with at the time. It's like live yogurt with some kind of beneficial bacteria.) I took gastrointestinal antibiotics (I'm too lazy to remember the name).
After this crisis, my immune system suffered a terribly low level, and my tests showed staphylococcus and other bacteria, including candida. Now I've gotten a little better, and I've started taking care of myself.
Candida, or more precisely, the thick, sticky white film and flakes I'd find in my mouth the morning after I was sick (with a cold) or didn't wash my mouth after eating sweets in the evening, is something I always remember. Only recently did I realize that it's most likely (as confirmed by tests, but not accurate for culture and sensitivity to bacteria) in my intestines, and it's really negatively affecting my mental state. I also had it on my penis, but I easily removed it with ointment.
The doctor advised me a long time ago to give up sweets for at least a month, but for me, it's torture, even with sugar substitutes. I barely last even a week before I relapse. I love sweets and eat them every day. (I don't have hidden diabetes...at least, I never did.) I suspect I have SIBO or something similar because of all this. I can give up alcohol or...I don't know...masturbation, but I'm truly addicted to sweets.
I started a micronutrient-based diet and am seriously taking multivitamins and nystatin (just today). Fish oil, and on the advice of an inspector (that's all I have, yes). He also recommended ACC and Saccharomyces boulardii in different regimens. I think he covered the key points. I plan to have a Candida culture and sensitivity test for various antifungal agents (if nystatin doesn't yield any results in the next few days). I know fluconazole is often effective, but as I understand it, it's super toxic, and in my country it's sold in a package of two capsules, I think, and I feel like taking it for a long time is crazy. I could be wrong. I also want to take a course of metabiotics since they're relatively inexpensive. I haven't tried NAC.
What would you recommend, given my condition and the fact that I've always had Candida? What are my chances of winning, and what facts from your experience could help me? Any medications or tricks I could theoretically use?
My overall physical well-being, measured subjectively and not by emergency criteria, is poor, like a lingering flu (in terms of how I feel and what it feels like). Mentally, I just emerged from a really severe depression and consider myself relatively recovering. In terms of minimal sustained attention and interest in life, I have a minimal amount of sustained attention and a zest for life.
Blood tests are normal, except for an elevated C-reactive protein. I have a family history of diabetes. I take pancreatic enzymes and a tranquilizer for sleep, which you likely don't have.
I have no other chronic illnesses. Besides dandruff and less-than-stellar skin, I had a mild head injury from previous fights and surgery to strengthen the retina in my right eye. I'm in the midst of a mild alcohol addiction, but I can give up alcohol, unlike sugar.