Special Follow-Up Report on Susie's C diff. Infection, Treatment, and Progress towards Eventual Recovery

A most thoughtful reader of Bob's blog, a well-known teacher of literature and writing in Northern New Jersey, correctly pointed out to me that I left the readers of Bob's blog hanging about the outcome of the medical treatment of Susie's C diff. infection.  In my last report on that topic, I discussed Dr. Schroth's mature struggle about whether Susie should or should not take antibiotics to fight the infection or wait and see if the infection began to abate on its own.  Although one might think it's always best to fight infection with outside antibiotic intervention, rather than letting the patient's body do the anti-bacterial work on its own, that is not the case.

Susie has already had some negative reactions to some of the antibiotics she's taken earlier in her recovery from the bicycle crash.  By analogy, should the United States and NATO have assumed total control of the war to remove the Libyan Bacterium, Moammar Gadhafi, from his country's innards, or was it better to let the Libyan Body Politic, the rebels, do most of the down-and-dirty, on-the-ground fighting?  Clearly it's better in the case of poltical revolutions for the people of the country to do the hard work themselves and begin to learn how to take control of their lives.

Dr. Schroth decided to recommend that Susie take the Flagyl, which is the antibiotic used to kill the C diff. bacteria.  The main reason was this.  The night after the last visit to Dr. Schroth, Susie began to do worse in her intestinal tract and she was not on the Flagyl.  So today, Dr. Schroth told her it'd be worth trying the Flagyl since Susie would know within three days if it seemed to be beginning to work.

Flagyl has to be taken three times a day for ten days.  If necessary, a second ten-day course is prescribed.  This regimen usually cures most people.

Once the bacterium is under control, the patient then is told to eat Yogurt to replenish her supply of natural intestinal bacteria.  We hope this is the course of Susie's illness and recovery.

One of my readers thought I was being flip by referring to C diff. as a "life-threatening illness," because that terminology frightened this reader. Susie just confirmed, in a telephone interview, that Dr. Scroth herself said that C diff. kills if not treated properly.

The same reader disliked my saying in the title to the earlier blog entry about Susie's C diff.,  "Being in a hospital is not for sissies."  I was surprised by that reaction, although I welcome and value all reactions to my work, because the root phrase "is not for sissies" is a commonly used expression to communicate about an activity that it's hard work to do it right.  The historical origin of the "is not for sissies," is Betty Davis, that Grand Dame of the old movies.  She once said, famously, "Getting old is not for sissies."  See this internet entry for more detail:  http://www.nicholascappello.com/getting-old-is-not-for-sissies/

So, Dear Readers, I enjoy the opportunity to discipline myself to become a writer, by daily writing.  Writing Bob's blog, to be exact.  I appreciate the chance you all have given me to motivate myself to write something new for the blog, every day.


Praise God from whom all blessings flow.