18 replies to this topic

[SeanMike]

So I went out for a late-ish dinner last night, and about 4-6 hours later I have the worst case of food poisoning I've ever had. I would do anything to get rid of this feeling.

Help Needed #1: What can I do, other than let it flow?

Help Needed #2: Should I call or e-mail the restaurant and tell them?

Anyways, thanks. I was at the stage where I almost went to the ER for it, but seem to be on the uptick right now. I hope. I pray to god. I can't take much more of this.

[beachgirl54]

Gatorade. And real Coke, not diet - will help with nausea. Feel better.

[weezy]

If Gatorade is not handy, defatted chicken broth is another good way to get and keep fluids in you. Until things clear up, best to avoid fat as much as possible.

[DaRiv18]

Gatorade. And real Coke, not diet - will help with nausea. Feel better.

For nausea, I put about 10 shakes of Ango in a shot glass and just inhale it, better than smelling salts.

[DC Deb]

Ginger helps with nausea and stomach upset. If you can handle the spiciness, just slice it and cover with hot water for ginger tea. You can also toss it in your chicken broth as suggested by Weezy. Good luck.

[SeanMike]

Fortunately for me I had Gatorade around, as it's only $.88 at CVS for 32 ounces! I'll have to look over what mixers made the move...

I dropped a line to the manager of the location I went to by e-mail. I don't wish them any ill will - I know sometimes it just happens, and as someone who eats out pretty much every meal, it's inevitable that it would to me - I was just surprised at where it got me at. (i.e. not a crappy fast food chain or something) I also don't want to say anything publicly about who it was unless there's a compelling reason to do so.

[Pat]

Fortunately for me I had Gatorade around, as it's only $.88 at CVS for 32 ounces! I'll have to look over what mixers made the move...

I dropped a line to the manager of the location I went to by e-mail. I don't wish them any ill will - I know sometimes it just happens, and as someone who eats out pretty much every meal, it's inevitable that it would to me - I was just surprised at where it got me at. (i.e. not a crappy fast food chain or something) I also don't want to say anything publicly about who it was unless there's a compelling reason to do so.

I hope you're feeling better, but food poisoning doesn't always present immediately. If you eat out very often (which it seems you do), it wouldn't hurt to contact restaurants you've eaten at in the past several days.

[SeanMike]

I hope you're feeling better, but food poisoning doesn't always present immediately. If you eat out very often (which it seems you do), it wouldn't hurt to contact restaurants you've eaten at in the past several days.

That is why I checked with the doctor first...but I'll dig up my receipts and see where I was...

[DonRocks]

Gatorade.

If Gatorade is not handy, defatted chicken broth is another good way to get and keep fluids in you.

Fortunately for me I had Gatorade around, as it's only $.88 at CVS for 32 ounces!

Gatorade isn't nearly as good as it was 20 years ago. Pedialyte is good for dehydration - the problem, when you live alone, is getting some.

Coconut Water may be best of all, especially if you can get it unpasteurized. If you have a stomach virus, have a loved one go out and get you a gallon of it.

[weinoo]

My last bout of food poisoning (like SeanMike, I eat out way too much for someone that can cook) I tried the coconut water thing. Unless you like coconut water, there's no way to even force that stuff down. Pineapple juice, on the other hand...

[B.A.R.]

If you have food poisoning, any anti-nauseau treatments will be counter productive. You need to throw up. Stay hydrated, coconut water works the best.

Go to the ER and get an IV, it will do you wonders. And be prepared not to eat for a while. I had food poisoning in 2000 and did not eat for 8 days. Lost 13 pounds, which was a bonus!

[DonRocks]

I've had food poisoning three times in my life, and I can absolutely identify the source of each:

1) A raunchy, gray ham sandwich on the train from Lyon to Paris. Needless to say, it was a long flight home, with me sprawled out in the back row of the airplane (reserved for people having heart attacks, etc.). While we were landing, I heard the flight attendant say, in French, "Il souffle encore?" (Is he still breathing?)

2) A taco or burrito (I can't remember which) made from ground beef run through a meat grinder with clear evidence of old, raw ground beef on it at a pupuseria in Annandale. This was the most mild of the three, symptom-wise.

3) A bad oyster from a well-known Arlington restaurant. I felt terribly ill later that night. However, three days later I went back to the same restaurant and ordered a dozen more (kind of like falling off a bike - got to get right back on).

To my detriment, on none of these occasions was I able to purge; especially with the first and last cases, I just had to lie there and shiver with cold, clammy skin. Food poisoning can be a miserable sickness to endure, but it does pass. Hydrating yourself is important not only to replace fluids, but to get your kidneys moving to hasten the release of toxins, but often, your best friend is the passage of time.

In all three of my cases, I was better the next day, but there are some forms that can take longer. SeanMike, are you better?

[bookluvingbabe]

I've mercifully lost the details but I've had food poisoning twice and needed antibiotics both times. The first time I never did identify the source and after 2 days went to urgent care. Within hours of the first dose of Cipro I felt like a new person. The second time I was at an out of town reception and noted that the food was already out before we went into the 90 minute lecture. And I ate the food anyway. I was sick within 4 hours and had to drive home the next day. Cipro to the rescue again.

Good luck!!!

[SeanMike]

Yipes, Cipro. I was on that earlier this year - that's the cure being almost as bad as the disease. (Well, not really, but more long-lasting...) *

Interestingly enough, I had someone tell me that they got food poisoning recently from the restaurant I had eaten at the day before. Now I'm starting to wonder. None of the food I had at any time - or anywhere those couple of days - made me wonder at all. Except the green beans at the dinner the night before (I thought they seemed weird. Dunno how to describe it. Not bad, but less cooked than I am used to. Not that I worry about cooking times with veggies, typically.)

Fortunately for me, like I've said, I live feet away from a CVS. I didn't bother trying to find the Pedialyte on my last visit, but now that I've sucked down a bunch of Gatorade and ginger ale, I'm going to try to stock up on it (since it works wonders on hangovers, too). I'm clearly still dehydrated but trying to build that back up.

Trying not to be too graphic, when I finally managed to purge yesterday it made all the difference in the world, and not just because I had to clean the bathroom afterwards and I'd been putting that off for ages. I only wish I'd done it earlier.

Today I'm in the "delicate" stage (yes, SeanMike, you're a delicate flower!). I feel better, but weak. I'm not exactly certain if I feel nauseated still, or if I'm just starving. I ate some wonton soup and lo mein noodles from next door and couldn't finish as much as usual. However, it did make me feel better, and helped me knock back more fluids. I am debating what I want to do with my evening in terms of food - I kind of want to get of the damned house and get something more hardy but I'm not certain if I'm ready for that. I've always been an overachiever.

* - My doctor yesterday thinks my Cipro experience might have exacerbated one of my pre-existing conditions. When I talked to my boss for the day off (who is also one of my best friends), he pointed out that I'd been out several times in the past couple of months (since the Cipro) with what I described as food poisoning like symptoms. It's not been this bad, but I'm wondering if there might be a correlation - I know that stomach nausea is a side effect with some of my other meds, so I'm also wondering if I'm going to have to just admit that my stomach is a delicate snowflake, determined to be upset at the fatty, greasy, spicy, alcohol-drenched concoctions I throw at it regularly, or what.

[SeanMike]

One thing I forgot to follow up on: the manager from the previous night's restaurant wrote back to me quickly, saying they'd double check everything both in terms of kitchen and bar with regards to processes, cleanliness, etc., and said he'd send me a gift card for the meal that I "lost".

Given the question of from whence it came, I am thinking now that I will return the gift card, but make it a point to go back there once I'm back on feet. That's also why I haven't said where it was...because who knows, really. I did really appreciate his quick response!

[qwertyy]

Food poisoning can be a miserable sickness to endure, but it does pass. Hydrating yourself is important not only to replace fluids, but to get your kidneys moving to hasten the release of toxins, but often, your best friend is the passage of time.

This is why you shouldn't ever take Immodium or Pepto when you've got something like this unless you have to (travel that can't be rescheduled, for instance). Without being too graphic, your body needs to get the gunk out of your system, and temporary fixes like these just keep it in and makes you sicker, longer.

Signed,
Someone who has eaten a lot of ill-advised food in developing countries

[Anna Phor]

I've had food poisoning at least four times. Twice from high-end restaurants in dc, both times from seafood products. The third time was from a bar in Greenwich Village; others were not so lucky as I was. The fourth time it was probably the whisky.

[Genevieve]

Coconut Water may be best of all, especially if you can get it unpasteurized. If you have a stomach virus, have a loved one go out and get you a gallon of it.

Do they sell it by the gallon? I've only seen the little juice-box containers, and slightly larger cardboard containers.

[B.A.R.]

Lucky me, I got it again!

16 solid hours of purging, followed by 3L of IV, Cipro, Zofran, Immodium AD and tons of Power Ade (more sugar than Gatorade, so says the Doc). Haven't eaten in 90 hours. Not even hungry.

I did learn something, however. As you become dehydrated your blood thickens, so your heart begins to beat faster trying to move the thickened blood around. My usual resting heart rate is around 56 (pretty low) and when I got to the ER it was 118 when standing. My heart felt like it was going to explode from my chest, and that, coupled with the acid pain from vomiting, made me think I was going to have a heart attack.

Good times.