Food poisoning or stomach flu??

Labmum1 · 05-31-2006, 03:39 PM

You guys, I have never been so sick in my life. I am back at work today but absolutely not myself. Warning - graphic!

Tuesday morning at 3:30am I wake up with the runs. I figure huh, something must not have agreed with me. So I go back to bed. An hour later, get up again and realize I have more than just the runs. I was sitting on the potty with a garbage can in my hands, if you know what I mean. Never has that happened before. At 5am I was up again, same problem, this time I passed out (but luckily the wall held me up). That's the first time I've ever passed out in my life. At 6:30am after another wave, I called Ron to see if he was sick and he wasn't. We were going over what we had for dinner (we ate all the same stuff) and concluded that he must have had a stronger immune system than me, or something. I called my boss and told her I could hardly stand I was so weak and dehydrated. I wasn't able to keep water down at that point, and then I really started feeling sick. I had nothing in the house so I had to drive myself to the closest store and go buy gatorade and popsicles...luckily I made it although I had to sit down in one of the store aisles for a few minutes. I got home and drank some gatorade and then fell asleep for an hour, woke up and then threw up everything I had. At that point it's about 10am and I am this/close to calling 911 - I was afraid I was going to pass out and choke and no one is around to help me. I got a little scared but fought through it. Cole was really freaked out by what was happening with me, he would not leave my side all day, not even to go to the bathroom. Sweet boy. Anyway, at about 8pm I spiked a 103-degree fever and I had nothing in the house to take for it, so I had to ride it out. By this morning my fever broke, but I still feel like crap. My stomach is killing me and I can't get through more than a few bites of bread or soup before I start to feel pain.

Anyway - the only questionable item that Ron and I ate was some meat sauce he had in his fridge. He said that his stomach hasn't been the greatest the past couple of days, but he has not nearly been sick like I have. I wonder if I'm somehow just more susceptible?

Anyway...a crappy (ha!) ending to a fun weekend. We registered at a few places on Monday and that was a bunch of fun. Had fun with friends, worked on some landscaping...generally a very good time.

I hope all is well with everyone here...man, lemme tell you I would not wish this on my worst enemy. I was praying to God to either make it stop or kill me!

**labby** · 05-31-2006, 03:51 PM

I'd say food poisoning. When I had it after eating KFC I thought and wanted to die. The flu usually builds up and doesn't hit you suddenly. Food poisoning usually hits you hard. When I had it the SU never got sick even though we ate the same thing.

Even though you had a fever I still think FP. I think the fever was your body's defense against the bacteria, not due to the flu virus.

Labmum1 · 05-31-2006, 03:55 PM

I'm inclined to agree. I'm still not quite right. I feel like I won't ever be hungry for food ever again!

**imported_Jimbo** · 05-31-2006, 03:57 PM

I too think it sounds like food poisoning... I've had it before and it felt like I was dying the first night and took about another 2 or 3 days to fully recover.

**labby** · 05-31-2006, 03:59 PM

You felt like you were dying and were begging to do so. LOL

clancey canuck · 05-31-2006, 03:59 PM

Gosh - hope you are feeling better soon. Stay hydrated

**imported_Heather** · 05-31-2006, 04:00 PM

Nolan had the same thing 2 weeks ago and 24 hours later I had it. I think it is going around and I vote stomach flu or a bug of some kind. Nolan was drinking Gatorade in about 12-16 hours after he first threw up and eating the next day. I had it for over 24 hours before I was able to eat.

Labmum1 · 05-31-2006, 04:02 PM

Staying hydrated was so hard that first day - I knew I was going to yack, and so I didn't want to take anything in. Eventually it just stopped...but I still have the runs. I don't know how there could be anything left in me.

I think I am 100% better than I was yesterday, but still feeling like crap...yeah, you bet I was wishing I could die. If that is even a fraction of what hell is like...I'm not sure I think anyone deserves to feel what I felt yesterday!

**Mirabella** · 05-31-2006, 04:14 PM

You either had food poisoning or some GI bug. There is not such thing as the "stomach flu". Influenza is a viral respiratory illness with muscle aches, fever and chills. You don't have any diarrhea or vomiting with influenza.

Keep drinking fluids and hope you keep getting better!

**chocolatecoverdlab** · 05-31-2006, 06:14 PM

Even though you had a fever I still think FP. I think the fever was your body's defense against the bacteria, not due to the flu virus.

Quite the contrary...in the majority of cases your body's natural response to viruses is to elevate the hypothalamic temp control since heat denatures viruses. If you ate the same thing as Ron, and he was NOT sick then you can absolutely rule out food poisoning. Even if he had the strongest immune system in the world, the toxins produced by microorganisms causing food poisoning (the toxins are what make you sick) would at least make him vomit up the contaminated food. That is another important feature of your illness...food poisoning almost exclusively begins within 3-4 hours after ingestion of food and you would vomit up the food that was contaminated. Food poisoning may or may not be accompanied by a fever, but one that elevated (along with everything else) indicate a gastrointestinal virus. Unless you have other flu-like symptoms such as caugh, congestion, etc. then you have a GI viral infection.

So sorry...I have been in your shoes with a GI virus before and ended up hospitalized for dehydration. So take care of yourself and try to keep pushing fluids!