Exhaustion, abdominal pain, diarrhea and flatulence – Tabea

Field report by Tabea Brucker, Lich, October 2017 to April 2018

Weak, tired, abdominal pain, diarrhea and flatulence
Tabea Brucker felt weak and tired and had been suffering from abdominal pain, diarrhea and flatulence for several months. “I could never find out where my complaints could be coming from. At first, my doctor prescribed me Salofalk tablets, but they didn’t help. I then found out about the Cytolisa test from my cousin and my doctor.”

A slap in the face
“When I got the test result, it was almost like a slap in the face.” Tabea reacted to all dairy products, to eggs, to some types of meat and also to some cereals such as spelt and wheat. “I lost a lot of food, at first I thought I would be left with almost only fruit and vegetables. But I hoped it would help and threw away all the food I couldn’t tolerate.”

The consultation is a great help
Although Tabea had already cooked a lot herself before and has a lot of cooking experience, “the consultation was a great help – I was able to ask everything and got lots of valuable tips on changing my diet.” She found the change particularly difficult at the beginning because she had to give up many of her favorite cooking habits and find new foods and recipes. “I couldn’t cope with baking waffles. I switched to muesli and pancakes for breakfast instead.”

“After two weeks I felt much better – my motivation to keep going”
Tabea’s motivation to keep going and to continue with the change in diet despite considerable cravings for the foods that reacted in the test comes from a significant reduction in her symptoms. “After three weeks I no longer had any diarrhea or stomach pains, I felt much fitter and I had more energy.”

“I felt better than I had for a very long time”
After around a month, Tabea starts to get used to the new diet and “after six weeks, I felt better than I had for a very long time.” Over the next few weeks, she realizes that there are also other factors that have an influence on her well-being. “When there are quieter times at work, I feel better; when things get more stressful, I feel a little less well too.”

Iron and inflammation values in the normal range
Overall, Tabea is at least 70-80% better than before with the change in diet. Before and during the change in diet, her doctor had regularly taken blood samples and it turned out that her blood values had improved significantly. An iron value that was too low is now within the normal range and an inflammation value that was previously too high is now also stable in the green range. “Although I ate significantly less meat than before and didn’t take any iron supplements, my iron levels increased.”

It pays to persevere
Tabea recommends that others who find themselves in a similar situation persevere. “Don’t be discouraged when you see the test result, but be open to new things, get involved, try new dishes, flavors and different food. It’s worth it.”

Recorded by Thilo Keller