Am I normal?

[isitnormalorabnormal]

was talking to a friend and somehow ended up on this topic and she was horrified and said it wasn’t normal. Just thought I’d ask on her for perspective as if assumed it was!

I’ve had lots of infections recently. Since the start of 2021 I’ve had around 15-20 (maybe more, im too tired to count properly!) different antibiotic prescriptions. It’s for different things- tooth abscesses/infections, skin infections, ear infections, sinusitis, uti infections, BV. I’ve also had various fungal infections some of which required strong treatment with fungal tablets. I’m usually either coming down with an infection, actively infected with something or recovering from an infection. it’s very rare im totally fine tbh.

nobody has ever flagged the high amount of prescriptions but my friend was horrified and said it’s much more than she’s ever had in her lifetime. The GPS at my practice don’t hand out antibiotics like sweets either- they prefer to watch and wait where possible but each infection has become bad enough that it absolutely required antibiotics or fungal tablets.

is this normal or should I be slightly worried? My hygiene is good, I never rewear clothes or towels, im very fussy about my teeth and my dentist said he couldn’t understand how I ended up with infections as my teeth were completely fine hygiene wise. I’ve had multiple FBC and my immune system is normal , for some reason bugs just seem to love me🤢 Interestingly I rarely seem to come down with viral infections, I seem to be more prone to bacteria and fungal.

is this normal?! Also slightly concerned that the doctors will consider me a frequent flyer like my friend said they will!

Crazily unusual. You must be very unwell OP and/or have a terrible lifestyle. What's your diet like? Do you exercise? None of this is remotely normal and you need a plan to address it.

Whats your diet like? Are you eating plenty of fruit and veg?

I havent had antibiotics in about 2 decades!!! The cost of this must be shocking!! So not normal at all.

This happened to a friend of mine and it turned out she was missing an enzyme in her saliva that lowered her immunity. Her body just didn't produce it. I'd ask to get tested.

Hi OP,
I am immunosuppressed (and wouldn't say I've had nearly as many infections as you are saying) but I often find if I take antibiotics for an infection, it leads to a fungal infection... the two might be linked? I've had to point this out to my GP before, so I might be worth mentioning.

Not good. Definitely get your vitamin D levels checked and start looking up about gut health. Your immune system is worn out and I'd strongly advise you to eat very healthily for a couple of months at least. My body got run down with constant infections and I ended up with an autoimmune disease.

Some people are susceptible more than others. As a child I was on antibiotics regularly. As an adult I haven’t had any for 23 years ish. My best friend however is always ill with antibiotics at least 2/3 times as a year. I’ve had two illnesses since the pandemic started. One was covid and one was a nasty virus picked up on the ward I work on.

Id at least want comprehensive bloods done to see if I was low/deficient in anything that may have effected my immunity.

No, it's not "normal" if you mean average. But like everything else, there are those at both extremes as well as those in the "average" middle. There is nothing wrong with being a frequent flyer at your GP practice if you are in need of care. What are you worried about?

Not normal at all and I'd be getting blood Tests or similar. I haven't had antibiotics in 15+ years and if I were you I'd be worried about how many you'd had given the body builds resistance - you may struggle to get effective treatment at these rates.

You've focused on hygiene but i'd be looking very closely at diet and your vitamin balance which is much more likely to be impacting this.

Have you checked for diabetes ?

I would be eating your body weight of kimchi every day to reset your gut flora. it will be decimated by the amount of antibiotics you have been on recently. This might help strengthen your immune system.

If you have the NHS app, or you get it you'll get a list of all past prescriptions and when they were given. You can have an accurate timeline and exact number. Then ring the GP, make an appointment, explain your concerns and show them proof and ask for a blood test, including sugar levels.

It's not normal by any means, and it sounds like a recent change.

It sounds like you’ve got very run down or possibly there is another underlying issue.

Have you had a really bad COVID period? Just wondering if this is all over the sudden.

So basically your immune system is clearly not great. Has this always been the case or suddenly from a time you remember?

There are a lot of factors that causes low immunity. Stress is alway one people overlook and of course it could also be inherited autoimmune disease.

You shouldn’t overlook as this is unusual to have that many infections. Please do a blood test and check if there’s deeper issue.

Depends on your history. I'm very prone to all sorts but always have been - born premature, allergies, asthma, rubbish immune system in general.
If I need antibiotics I always need anti funglals to chase.
BUT: these things are worse for me if my diet is bad, I'm lacking sleep and not taking vitamins and probiotics. Are you doing everything you can to boost your immunity?

The only people I've seen this happen to it was part of long covid or where they had an underlying health condition or lifestyle factors. For me it was all three, but I still had it flagged by my GP practice when I was given antibiotics for the fourth time in a year, and they did some blood tests to make sure everything was ok which thankfully exposed some vitamin and mineral deficiencies that I have now been able to resolve through dietary change and supplementation. That was 6 months ago and I have not needed antibiotics in that time, which has surprised me. I do also take probiotic supplements, eat prebiotic and probiotic foods, and am trying to make lifestyle changes like sleeping more, managing stress better and eating a bit more fruit and veg.

That's an extremely high number in a short space of time. Maybe it's because antibiotics kill the good bugs as well as bad and you have to build them back up. I have certainly had random infections before after finishing a set of antibiotics for something else.

I'd take a lot of pre and pro biotics and eat a lot of veg and fermented food (raw apple cider vinegar, raw kimchi and sauerkraut etc)

Blimey. Not normal at all, I'd say. Sounds like there could be something underlying it all - you need to talk to the doctor about this. In the meantime I'd be starting to take a good quality probiotic.

Your gut will be a mess after all those antibs, which makes you more susceptible to illness. Get some pro biotics and gut healing foods in you ASAP!

Definitely not normal, and people on here have suggested a few possible underlying reasons, from nutrient deficiencies to diabetes or long Covid. I think you should go to the GP and get some checks done.

After catching covid I had three chest infections and two urine infections within 9 months. Prior to this I had rarely been unwell. Feeling good now after getting probiotics and multi vitamins and minerals and a course of acupuncture.

Definitely not normal. Ask for an HbA1C test to see if you have diabetes, and also see if you can get your Vitamin D and B vitamins checked.

Take good quality pro-biotics too and take a close look at your diet and sleep. Antibiotics are great when needed but can really mess with your gut. Obviously a UTI and abscess would need them, but I’d try to minimise them as much as possible.

I agree with your friend, this warrants checking. That is an incredibly high rate.

I can completely see why people are asking about my lifestyle but weirdly it’s good. My BMI is 21 and viral infections never seem to bother me. I only had Covid recently for the first time and was absolutely fine. I exercise very regularly on and go to the gym and play sports. My dentist couldn’t understand why I was having tooth infections and root canals as he said my teeth were fine. I had no fillings or dental work for 20 years and in the last 2 years have had 8 fillings and several root canals. My dentist is an old been there done it type and he said he has never seen this type of thing before.

Also I don’t drink unless it’s at very very special occasions eg a wedding and even then I’ll only have one glass of wine or champagne to be polite. I don’t smoke or take any drugs. I also don’t really eat junk food, i maybe have a takeaway once a month