Tokyo007
Well-Known Member
Hey doctor and everyone..old school member here. Got a question when you get a chance if you could respond.
This is really a sad story but i've been sick and nauseated for 3+ years. 2 weeks before my CFI checkride in 2005 under heavy stress I got some sort of infection, was given months of antibiotics for a UTI that never cultured out. Never recovered. I grounded myself, and never talked to an AME/FAA about my situation because I didn't know what it was. Been a lab rat for 3 years basically testing for everything (scopes, blood tests, ct scans mri's you name it). Had my gallbladder removed in 2007 due to low ejection rate of 12% and I thought that was the answer to my problems but it wasn't. Anxiety, nausea, sweaty palms, major IBS issues...I knew something was really wrong and now can't work. To stay in aviation I taught as an instructor using my AGI/IGI certificates trying to stay current.
Everytime i've been to the ER room over the years (5 or 6 times with abdominal pain and severe nausea) the Dr.'s would just shrug and say "you're dehydrated and you have low potassium blood levels..but we can't find anything wrong with you so.. must be classical IBS. Here take a potassium pill and follow up with your doctor."
After years and years of trial and error; me and my GI doctor put two and two together and noticed my potassium blood levels were all low over the years and suspected hypokalemia (1-5 in scale it was around 3) and he put me on potassium chloride pills for 30 days.
Happy to report my nausea levels have gone waaay down..to minor and i'm really excited and starting a food diary on offending foods with fiber supplements but my abdominal pains/IBS-C issues are still there. Been doing fiber and exercising trying to reduce stress and prepare for my AME (if I can ever get better) if I can just get the dumb IBS issues under control. Little bit of anxiety issues but if you didn't fly for 3 years you'd be the same I think. Starting fiber slowly and increasing is what i've heard i'm supposed to do. Drinking plenty of water now.
Anyway question:
I searched for IBS via this site/FAA AME guide... and I know many pilots just "deal with it" and fly with it, and the FAA is ok as long as symptoms are under control and not taking meds for it. But right now mines a little crazy to the point where i can't fly, but hopefully I can get my IBC-C muscle spasms/cramps under control..but I can't find any info on hypokelemia on the AME guide. I'm just guessing but i'll probably need a letter from the doctor about it? We're planning on retesting to make sure my blood levels are normal after the 30 days. I was probably dehydrated/hypokelmic for 3 years which resulted in major IBS levels left over i'm dealing with now. Any other suggestions I need to get back up? I figured i'd ask, wouldn't hurt.
Thanks! (i'm just excited to be *maybe* coming back again..hopefully I can...over the years I thought it was chron's to intersistal cystisis...thank goodness it's nothing more than that!)
This is really a sad story but i've been sick and nauseated for 3+ years. 2 weeks before my CFI checkride in 2005 under heavy stress I got some sort of infection, was given months of antibiotics for a UTI that never cultured out. Never recovered. I grounded myself, and never talked to an AME/FAA about my situation because I didn't know what it was. Been a lab rat for 3 years basically testing for everything (scopes, blood tests, ct scans mri's you name it). Had my gallbladder removed in 2007 due to low ejection rate of 12% and I thought that was the answer to my problems but it wasn't. Anxiety, nausea, sweaty palms, major IBS issues...I knew something was really wrong and now can't work. To stay in aviation I taught as an instructor using my AGI/IGI certificates trying to stay current.
Everytime i've been to the ER room over the years (5 or 6 times with abdominal pain and severe nausea) the Dr.'s would just shrug and say "you're dehydrated and you have low potassium blood levels..but we can't find anything wrong with you so.. must be classical IBS. Here take a potassium pill and follow up with your doctor."
After years and years of trial and error; me and my GI doctor put two and two together and noticed my potassium blood levels were all low over the years and suspected hypokalemia (1-5 in scale it was around 3) and he put me on potassium chloride pills for 30 days.
Happy to report my nausea levels have gone waaay down..to minor and i'm really excited and starting a food diary on offending foods with fiber supplements but my abdominal pains/IBS-C issues are still there. Been doing fiber and exercising trying to reduce stress and prepare for my AME (if I can ever get better) if I can just get the dumb IBS issues under control. Little bit of anxiety issues but if you didn't fly for 3 years you'd be the same I think. Starting fiber slowly and increasing is what i've heard i'm supposed to do. Drinking plenty of water now.
Anyway question:
I searched for IBS via this site/FAA AME guide... and I know many pilots just "deal with it" and fly with it, and the FAA is ok as long as symptoms are under control and not taking meds for it. But right now mines a little crazy to the point where i can't fly, but hopefully I can get my IBC-C muscle spasms/cramps under control..but I can't find any info on hypokelemia on the AME guide. I'm just guessing but i'll probably need a letter from the doctor about it? We're planning on retesting to make sure my blood levels are normal after the 30 days. I was probably dehydrated/hypokelmic for 3 years which resulted in major IBS levels left over i'm dealing with now. Any other suggestions I need to get back up? I figured i'd ask, wouldn't hurt.
Thanks! (i'm just excited to be *maybe* coming back again..hopefully I can...over the years I thought it was chron's to intersistal cystisis...thank goodness it's nothing more than that!)