Living with Diverticulosis

@Rachel Newman61...man, I am so sorry to hear about everything you've been going through. I really hope you're starting to feel a bit more like yourself. This whole sickness thing is no joke—it can get pretty scary, too. For me, my diverticula were just a total surprise; found them by accident during an ultrasound. I ended up having two colonoscopies. On the first one, this doctor (I actually went to a different guy for a second opinion because I wasn't sure about the first one) told me they weren't there at all! Then my primary doctor was like, "No way, I saw them on the ultrasound." So, yeah, I did the repeat colonoscopy and yep, they found them. I don't have a ton, and thankfully I haven't dealt with diverticulitis yet—nothing has ruptured or anything. As far as the diet goes for me... honestly, staying hydrated is huge, and just making sure things stay moving regularly. I drink tons of water and try to steer clear of dairy. A nutritionist once told me 200ml of milk in the morning is fine, but I prefer to keep it minimal. I also take some Lactibiane probiotics specifically for gut health. I cut out meat and all that processed junk, too. It’s not a huge deal though, you eventually just get used to it. Like you said...
If you're on Facebook, you should totally join the Paleo/LCHF group. Me and this girl who was actually hospitalized for diverticulitis used to chat in there all the time. There's this nutritionist, Anita Šupa, who gives really solid advice. She recommended the "Autoimmune Nutrivore" book to that girl; the diet is super restrictive, but she mentioned it really helped her out. Also, if you're up for it, try making as much bone broth as possible—but not that store-bought stuff, make it from scratch. Definitely check it out. I'll be keeping an eye on this forum in case you pop back up. Hang in there, wishing you the best with everything!!

This thread isn't exactly buzzing...
I’m dealing with the exact same thing, and honestly, food is my absolute biggest struggle right now.
I just can't figure out what triggers all this shit.
All summer long, I've been eating tons of rose hips every single day. Apparently, with these newer diets, they say the seeds aren't as big of a deal as people used to think.
Getting through that GI study was such a nightmare, but even after three days of dieting and two enemas, I wasn't "clean" enough to get a decent scan. It says there are "several diverticula in the sigmoid colon with spastic changes," but nothing else worked. The thing is, the pain is always in the exact same spot—I know precisely where it is, low on my left side. A few times a year, things flare up and I get a massive fever. I actually had one of those days recently where I thought I might need to take a COVID test, even though I knew exactly what was causing the fever. That scan is actually from 2005. Back then, my GP just told me to eat more rice. Now, this current doctor wants me to go back in (which sounds like a terrible idea since I don't want to repeat that whole ordeal) and run tumor markers.
Other times, it's just intense pain—like that one time after having a beer on an empty stomach, though it happens plenty of other times too—and other times I get a fever, nausea, and just can't eat anything for a few days, kind of like how I am now. I've stuck to light foods, but the bloating and the dull ache are still there.
For months, I was eating deli meats and winter salami every day, heavily seasoned (we have these really spicy peppers at home), basically everything. Then, I have two days of spaghetti with veggies and chicken breast, and boom—there it is. Or I'll eat a few clementines every day for months. I never know what the trigger is; I'll forget about it, and then... once, it hit me right after some peanut butter, and I haven't touched it since.
It's driving me a little crazy. One thing is a "no-go" for one spot, but totally fine for another. I read recently that doctors don't actually know the root cause, so they don't really know which diet works, and you just have to figure out what suits your own body. When a flare-up hits, my white blood cell count spikes, but I don't even know what's actually inflamed or how it'll settle down. In the past, I'd go to the doctor, get bloodwork done, and get prescribed antibiotics, but I realized things end up being the same even without them, so I just handle it myself.
If anyone knows anything that might actually help... I'm not looking for advice from Anita Šupa, she's just obsessed with pushing her Paleo diet.

Nicholas Barnes74 said:This thread isn't exactly buzzing...
I’m dealing with the exact same thing, and honestly, food is my absolute biggest struggle right now.
I just can't figure out what triggers all this shit.
All summer long, I've been eating tons of rose hips every single day. Apparently, with these newer diets, they say the seeds aren't as big of a deal as people used to think.
Getting through that GI study was such a nightmare, but even after three days of dieting and two enemas, I wasn't "clean" enough to get a decent scan. It says there are "several diverticula in the sigmoid colon with spastic changes," but nothing else worked. The thing is, the pain is always in the exact same spot—I know precisely where it is, low on my left side. A few times a year, things flare up and I get a massive fever. I actually had one of those days recently where I thought I might need to take a COVID test, even though I knew exactly what was causing the fever. That scan is actually from 2005. Back then, my GP just told me to eat more rice. Now, this current doctor wants me to go back in (which sounds like a terrible idea since I don't want to repeat that whole ordeal) and run tumor markers.
Other times, it's just intense pain—like that one time after having a beer on an empty stomach, though it happens plenty of other times too—and other times I get a fever, nausea, and just can't eat anything for a few days, kind of like how I am now. I've stuck to light foods, but the bloating and the dull ache are still there.
For months, I was eating deli meats and winter salami every day, heavily seasoned (we have these really spicy peppers at home), basically everything. Then, I have two days of spaghetti with veggies and chicken breast, and boom—there it is. Or I'll eat a few clementines every day for months. I never know what the trigger is; I'll forget about it, and then... once, it hit me right after some peanut butter, and I haven't touched it since.
It's driving me a little crazy. One thing is a "no-go" for one spot, but totally fine for another. I read recently that doctors don't actually know the root cause, so they don't really know which diet works, and you just have to figure out what suits your own body. When a flare-up hits, my white blood cell count spikes, but I don't even know what's actually inflamed or how it'll settle down. In the past, I'd go to the doctor, get bloodwork done, and get prescribed antibiotics, but I realized things end up being the same even without them, so I just handle it myself.
If anyone knows anything that might actually help... I'm not looking for advice from Anita Šupa, she's just obsessed with pushing her Paleo diet.

Check out the Paleo Mom blog or look into the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP). There should be an American version of that "Autoimmune Nutrivore" book too. If you really do have diverticulitis, I'm pretty sure you shouldn't be eating almost anything you listed above. Sadly, I don't have much else to offer, but all these autoimmune issues come down to gut microbiome imbalance. That's why people overhaul their entire diet—to help themselves and stop being stuck on meds forever. It takes a ton of sacrifice, but... that's just how it is. And hey, neither Paleo nor AIP is the end of the world; you eventually get used to it.

The whole Paleo diet thing—meat is actually one of those things you really shouldn't be leaning on too hard.
The hospital protocol basically says to stick to veggie purees for as long as possible, and once you're finally stable, they move you toward foods packed with both soluble and insoluble fiber.
So, we're talking brown rice, lentils, barley, fish... stuff like that.
It's not even totally clear what causes these issues—it could be genetic, I guess—but one theory is that it's caused by increased pressure in the gut, straining during bowel movements, or just a diet that's way too low in fiber.
Maybe it’s a stretch, but my first painful flare-ups actually started right after I switched to eating way more meat because I married MM—he's a huge meat eater, so I ended up eating much more than I used to. It would technically fit with that blood type diet (we're both Type O), though I honestly think that whole blood type nutrition thing is pretty baseless. Just my two cents.

So, I saw that the Pope had surgery, and they were mentioning diverticula—and now I'm reading in some tabloid that diverticula can actually turn into cancer. Since the tabloids are always blowing things out of proportion anyway, I tried doing a little digging on Google, but I couldn't find anything to back it up.🙄

I honestly don't think that's how it works. It’s not like polyps just turn into that. What I’ve seen in my own experience is that when you deal with diverticulitis—you know, that painful inflammation from diverticula—it can be a real nightmare to tell the difference between simple inflammation and actual cancer on a CT scan. It's super tricky. Usually, once the inflammation finally settles down, the doctors will send you in for a colonoscopy just to be absolutely sure about what they're looking at. That usually happens maybe eight weeks or so after the initial flare-up.

I have diverticula myself, and since I'm not even that old, no doctor has ever even hinted that there was a chance it could turn into something more serious. They always just tell me to keep an eye out for those sharp, stabbing pains so I can catch any potential inflammation early.

I know exactly where it’s hitting me—like, down to the millimeter. Honestly, I just can't face another colonoscopy. I barely survived the last irrigography, and that was only after three days of fasting, liters of Gatorade, and those brutal enemas... and even then, they couldn't get a clear view. I guess I just didn't "clean out" enough. I've also been reading some pretty scary stuff about how a colonoscopy can actually perforate the bowel—there was even a case where a woman passed away from sepsis in the hospital because they didn't catch the issue fast enough. So, besides the food—which, let's be real, I never know what's going to trigger me—I'm starting to think stress plays a huge role too.

I honestly can never tell which foods are going to trigger me. There’s just no rhyme or reason to it—one day I’ll eat the exact same meal and feel totally fine, and the next, it hits me with that sharp, stabbing pain. It’s so frustrating because sometimes I can pinpoint the sensation down to the millimeter, too. And don't even get me started on stress; that definitely sets off the stabbing pains for me, at least.

That’s exactly how I feel about it too🙂

So, I couldn't make it into work yesterday. It all started last night—just these intense cramps and sharp pains, honestly felt like I was going into labor or something. My doctor had prescribed me some stuff for the spasms back when I had an attack a few months ago, so I took everything they gave me, but... yeah, didn't really see any point to it. I did try some elderberry and chamomile tea, which helped calm things down just a tiny bit, I guess. I barely ate anything all day, just a little bread and some yogurt. I'm back at work today and feeling a bit better, though I have no clue what actually triggered it, besides maybe just being stressed out. I've got some stuffed peppers left over from the day before for lunch, so I'm just hoping that doesn't make things worse. Luckily, I didn't run a fever or anything.

My mom was stuck in the hospital for 10 days dealing with some inflammatory bowel issues—diverticulitis, specifically.
The CT scan results read like this:
On multi-phase abdominal and pelvic cross-sections, there is no sign of pneumoperitoneum, ileus, or free fluid. There is colonic interposition between the anterolateral liver margin and the diaphragm—Chilaiditi sign. Moving aborally from the described bowel segment down to the sigmoid colon, including the aboral segment of the sigmoid colon, there is a loss of haustra along with mesenteric fat stranding; meanwhile, the ascending colon wall is thickened and shows intense post-contrast enhancement. Radiomorphologically, this appears consistent with inflammatory bowel disease. Sigmoid diverticulosis is present, without signs of perforation. Further internal medicine evaluation is required.
The liver, pancreas, and spleen are normal in size with homogeneous post-contrast enhancement.
Both adrenal glands appear normal. Both kidneys are normal in size with maintained parenchymal thickness.

She’s scheduled for a colonoscopy in a month, but she’s spiraling right now—totally convinced it might be a tumor or something worse. Based on these findings, can you actually jump to that conclusion... or not?
One thing to note—after 10 days on antibiotics, her condition stabilized completely and she's doing much better.
Also, her occult blood test from this winter was negative, and all her markers came back normal.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts...

In moments like this, when you just need a little support and someone to lean on while you talk through your struggles, I really find myself missing this forum. ☕
Maybe someone will check in.
About two weeks ago, I dealt with my very first diverticulitis flare-up. I had absolutely no idea
I even had it until then. I took some Augmentin and Medazol (my CRP was up at 215), and I'm doing okay now. Currently sticking to a strict diet with about 5 grams of fiber.

bolddriver12 said:In moments like this, when you just need a little support and someone to lean on while you talk through your struggles, I really find myself missing this forum. ☕
Maybe someone will check in.
About two weeks ago, I dealt with my very first diverticulitis flare-up. I had absolutely no idea
I even had it until then. I took some Augmentin and Medazol (my CRP was up at 215), and I'm doing okay now. Currently sticking to a strict diet with about 5 grams of fiber.

I hope you see this and that you're around. I also dealt with a diverticulitis flare recently.
Sent you a DM.