u/TheAwkwardEmu

Hello! I am on day 5 of injecting BPC 157 for gut issues and i have some questions for those who have also done this, to get an idea of what to expect based on peer anecdotal perspective.

Quick background: 34F - This is my first time trying peptides. I’m usually too scared of the risks (and potential waste of money) to try anything remotely controversial, but after 5 years of awful gut issues that have severely impacted my life, trying every treatment in the book and seeing no improvement or known cause, I have nothing else to lose at this point. A PA I saw told me this might be worth a shot if all else failed & I’m okay with the risks. So he orders it from a compounding pharmacy in a different state with less laws around it. I trust it’s of quality.

My questions:

1. What types of gut issues were you having & did you try any conventional medical treatments first

2. If you felt noticeable improvements, around what week mark did that happen for you?

3. Did your gut issues ever get worse before they got better? If so, for how long?

4. What improvements did you notice?

Thank you!!

TW: mentions of depression/SI

I am 34 years old and have worked at the same corporate company for the last 12 years doing project management. over the last 3 years (when my health plummeted and my partner of 7 years abruptly left me) it’s been increasingly hard to show up at all. I am on a disability accommodation to work from home which helps a lot, but my health issues have severely triggered my major depressive disorder (treatment resistant) and I have been struggling with a lot of intrusive SI thoughts.

Caring about bullshit spreadsheets and deadlines when I really don’t want to even be here anymore feels almost impossible. I am really only getting through it by abusing adderall when things are due. I am not “sick enough” for disability benefits (POTS,hEDS,Chronic Pelvic Pain) and only have a few grand in my savings account as my safety net. I live alone and am my own sole provider.

I’ve thought about quitting and finding an “easier” job - but honestly mine isn’t really “stressful” and at least I’m in the comfort of my home. I also make close to 6 figures and feel like I still can barely save for anything with all the medical bills (my company’s insurance provider sucks) and with how expensive literally everything is now. so it’s hard to imagine that taking a pay cut and having to learn something new at the same time would be worth it.

I don’t know what to do anymore. I dread joining meetings and faking the small talk. I don’t want to tell you how I’ve been or what I did over the weekend because it’s usually just crying in bed. I know I’m only doing the bare minimum and It makes me hate myself more than I already do.I used to be such an ambitious person, But now I don’t believe I can do fucking anything. My mental and physical health is out of my control.

Open to advice / suggestions… anything?

It’s been 5 years and I only feel worse. I don’t have the energy or money to keep pursuing treatment that doesn’t work. I’m sick of crying everyday. I’m sick of hating myself. I just wish I could tell my doctors this so that they know how deeply they’ve let me down.

I’m a 35F and have been suffering from hypertonic pelvic floor and dyssynergia for the last 5 years. (Please dont ask me what I’ve tried because I promise you I have tried everything from PT, to suppositories, to Botox)

If my stool isn’t complete liquid, it’s not coming out. I never feel like I got everything out. What bothers me the most is I always feel super full and my stomach is extremely bloated and distended all the time. I look either pregnant or like I have a beer belly.

I have not been able to recognize my body since this all started, and it has killed my self esteem. I am naturally tall and slender with no curves and a small chest (A cup). So you can imagine how out of place this huge distended belly looks on me.

I can’t figure out how to dress in my current body. Waist bands are my worst nightmare and dresses are hard to come by because they’re usually too short for my height, and if they are a good length - the chest is huge and the waist is tight.

I end up cancelling plans Everytime I start getting ready because once I start getting dressed my self esteem just tanks. I don’t know how to move forward with this, I barely have a social life anymore as it is but I just feel absolute disgust for myself when I look at my body in the mirror.

I can’t even imagine how peaceful it would be, to be a person with a normal brain without all the food noise. Half of my day is spent strategizing what I’m going to eat, resisting the urge to keep eating when I’m full, and feeling bad when I do. That’s SO MUCH TIME!! I wonder what normal people do with that free time and brain power. I can’t even dream of what that’s like? I’ve always been too embarrassed to ask people who don’t have BED lol

I’m a really stubborn person, so over the last 5 years with my condition I’ve seen over 25 different specialists, flew out of state to the best hospitals, spent thousands of dollars… and nothing ever even came close to helping.

I am exhausted. I’m depressed, defeated, tired, and hopeless. How do I get myself to stop constantly seeking treatments and reading about it? I genuinely do not know.

Every morning I wake up and look at the clock, and realize I have to get through at least 14 hrs of life before I can go back to bed and I just feel so much dread for those 14 hrs. Time moves so slow.

Im 35. I lost pretty much all my friends, my parents are retired and live a few hrs away and my sister doesn’t talk to me because she’s always really busy.

I work remotely because over the last few years I’ve been struggling with 3 chronic illnesses. on top of that, I’ve always struggled with treatment resistant depression and anxiety for as long as I remember.

I go months without talking to anyone but my remote coworkers. I go months without any hug, or physical touch. Everyone tells me to “get out and do things” but whenever I feel well enough to do something - like go on a walk, grab a coffee, go to a store - I’m still alone. And I’m still alone with my awful thoughts, so I genuinely just want to go back home and distract myself with tv or doom scrolling.

After years of doctors, tests & medications… I did the very last available treatment procedure for one of my conditions a week ago. Cost me thousands, It didn’t work, just like all of the other treatments. Once again, I’m left hopeless.

I still miss my ex partner, who broke our engagement and left me a few years into my illnesses. I believe he said “I can’t wait around for you to feel better”

I think about how I don’t want to be here every single day of my life. I feel so much jealously and resentment watching people live happy lives, start families, travel.

I am hopeless. And the pain I feel in my heart every day is more than I could possible explain. Is this all there is for me? Do some people really not deserve anything good in their lives?

I grew up catholic but I no longer believe in God/religion. As a teenager I prayed every night that my life would get better and I wouldn’t live with depression forever.

Well, I’m 35 now and not only do I still struggle daily with depression, I’ve also acquired multiple chronic conditions over the years. Now I feel like my mental and physical health is out of my control.

To add to that, a year ago my (now ex) fiancé left me after 7 years together because he was “tired of waiting for me to feel better”

Now I’m alone, literally all the time. In physical and emotional pain that seems unbearable most days, with no relief in sight. and I’m supposed to believe someone or something is looking out for me? Idk.

It’s been this way for years. But I feel like half of my day is spent mustering up the energy to do shit. like I have this internal battle in my head about every little thing I have to do. I have hyper POTS, ADHD, treatment resistant depression, and my neurologist suspects hEDS but it’s not confirmed.

The worst part about all of this… is I can’t ever tell if I’m just depressed? Is this normal ADHD executive dysfunction? Am I procrastinating because I’m lazy? Or if this actual fatigue?

I feel guilty for spending so much time in bed. But everything feels like such a fucking battle! I’m tired of feeling tired.