Keep getting sick – now on antibiotics and need some guidance

[OkieGina]

Sorry for the multiple posts - my earlier posts didn't load correctly and I can't get into them to delete them (if it's even possible).

 

I keep getting sick around day 24! I started my first W30 on Jan. 2 – got a stomach bug around day 24 and went off plan for 3 days (because I could only stomach crackers and Powerade). Started back up on the 29 – got diagnosed with a bad ear infection and perforated ear drum around day 24. It’s very frustrating…

Now for the needed guidance. The doctor put me on a fairly strong antibiotic and suggested I eat yogurt. My plan was to take a compliant probiotic and eat some fermented foods (sauerkraut and gut shots). However, despite explaining the basic tenants of W30 to the woman at the health food store (who also acted like she knew all about it), I ended up with probiotics that contain dairy and soy. I know, my fault, I should have read the label, but my thinking just wasn’t as clear as I’d like. Luckily, I did read the label before I took any. So…do you think adding sauerkraut and Gut Shots will be enough to counteract the antibiotic? My thought was to do that for now, and if I start having adverse reactions from the antibiotic, I can always go look for a different probiotic then.

Also, I read that since antibiotics can affect gut permeability, I might need to delay reintroduction (currently scheduled to start next Tuesday, Feb. 28). Any input on that? If antibiotics increase gut permeability, wouldn’t that mean I’d have more of a reaction if I’m sensitive to any of the reintroduced foods? If I should delay, for how long? When I went off plan for 3 days the first time, I definitely had some aches and pains and sleep issues return – so I’d really like to do reintroduction just to figure out what caused that. I plan on continuing mostly W30 after this is all over, but would really like to know what I can eat without reactions and what really needs to be a “special event” sort of food to be worth it.

Thank you!