Diarrhoea and struggling to keep water down

[WatermelonForBreakfast]

Mid forties female. Ate watermelon and didn't cut it which I think has caused diarrheoa. Water not staying down at all - time from drinking to going is like a minute. I'm edging towards dehydration. How do I manage this?

Didn't wash it. Fucking hell if I didn't cut it that would be ludicrous 😂

How much water are you drinking at a time? You need to be just sipping a tiny mouthful, let it absorb, then repeat. How long have you had the diarrhoea for and how often are you going?

Can you get some electrolytes into the little water that you're sipping? And I realise that I don't think I usually wash watermelon! Are you sure your symptoms are really due to that and not something else?

Tiny, tiny amounts of water (or ideally rehydration solution - google a recipie if you can make, and have salt and sugar in the house).
Like a teaspoon at a time. Every 10 mins. When thst feels ok, a tablespoon. Keep going.
Hope you can keep something down soon.

You poor thing
Normally I'd say try not sipping any water for a few hours and let your body rest properly, and then try boiled cooled water. I'm not sure though how the heat would change this, because normally for a well adult, going a few hours without a drink would be well, normal! Not sure given the heat though - maybe ring 111 for advice.

Get some 7Up. Knock the bubbles out of it and sip it. Open a bag of ready salted crisps. Eat a tiny one. It will make you feel better and tastes much better than those awful drinks / electrolytes

I have never heard of washing watermelon. You mean when it's been cut up?

Are you vomiting or having diarrhoea or both?

If vomiting then 10mls every 5 mins of fluid preferably rehydration solution but alternatives are coconut water, dilute juice or squash with sugar in and add a pinch of salt, or dissolve sugar in water and add a pinch of salt.

If diarrhoea only then use fluids as above but do not limit the volume per time, just drink more than you normally would to replace your losses. Even if this means you have to spend all your time sat in the loo. It will pass.

I have never washed watermelon

Thanks all. It could also have been grapes. There's a product recall on various small packs of fruits from supermarkets.. This was a big box of grapes and a whole small watermelon so who knows.

I'm awake and it's quite cool weather so I'm going to take the opportunity now to try and hydrate a lot before the heat ramps up!

Still going to the loo every half hour or so. Eating bread slows it down. We'll see, it'll probably pass in the next day or so.

I’d always wash an any whole melons before cutting if it’s going to be eaten wedges with skin on.

it’s invariably quite dirty and who knows who’s handled it at shop.

You say the water “isn’t staying down”, but your OP implies that you’re having diarrhoea every time you drink, rather than actually vomiting it back up? If that’s the case then it’s not the water that you’ve just drunk that’s coming out the other end - nothing can pass through the bowel that fast. Drinking is triggering the gastrocolic reflex, when your stomach stretching from taking in new food or drink triggers a bowel motion. So just keep drinking as much as you can manage of an appropriate electrolyte solution. It will pass soon.

Drink full fat Coke, it contains electrolytes and I find it helps with nausea too.

It wouldn't help nausea for me and it definitely doesn't contain electrolytes.

Try

+4

Dioralyte

Heat can cause D&V, though I'm sure you're already doing everything you can to keep cool if you're currently in a heatwave.

Make a rehydration solution: half a teaspoon of salt, two tablespoons of sugar in a litre of water. Sip steadily. If you are able to, eat small amounts of unexciting, bland food.

If your D&V doesn't abate, ring 111 for advice, which might include getting to a hospital for intravenous fluids.

Do you have anyone with you?

I was also told that warm lemonade was really good for a bad stomach 🤷‍♀️ Please don’t take this as medical advice though as maybe someone was just trying to wind me up (I never tried it).

Otherwise, 5mls of water every 10 minutes

A pinch of salt and a larger pinch of sugar in any drink will slow down your bowel motion. It won’t stop it altogether (which if you have food poisoning you want it out of your system) but it should slow it down sufficiently to allow time for greater absorption. If it’s constant vomiting after a few sips of fluid, then it’s sensible to ring 111 and see what advice they give. It goes without saying if you start to feel faint or ‘properly’ ill, or your bowel movements resemble a constant nonstop waterfall / become bloody, get yourself to A + E. Norovirus / viral gastroenteritis is doing the rounds at the moment, so it may not be the fruit.
Hope you are feeling better soon op.

It's not a constant waterfall but it's definitely a waterfall when I drink.

I actually had this exact thing a month ago after drinking a hot chocolate sachet made with long life milk.

I've been sleeping a lot but can't sleep all day so I'm going to try and go about normal business and see how it goes.

I've not vomited or felt too sick, I had some stomach pain mostly if I tried to sleep on my front, but seems okay now.

Thanks for the advice and for listening to my woes!

When I was doing my food hygiene training I asked the tutor what he’s most careful with. He said melons (often contaminated with bacteria on the surface which can be transferred inside when cutting), and bean sprouts.

Thank you for this

I made a mistake of thinking it was getting better and eating some food. My stomach is killing me now.

Fucking hell it's like I'm brewing cider in my stomach and my arsehole is now on fire.

😂

I also look like I've just crawled out of a coffin.

The salt and sugar dissolved in water i learnt from a gp. A teaspoon of the solution every ten minutes. No more. I lost a stone when I had this after a meal in a restaurant. It happens.

Get yourself some dioralyte and some imodium.

Take the imodium first. Wait an hour and then drink the dioralyte.

I'll have to wait until tomorrow for Imodium.

I'm in the luminous yellow era. I hope this phase passes soon. I've started keeping timings and it's four times an hour currently.