I’m so sorry that you are going through this. I am pancreatic sufficient and struggled with severe pancreatitis about 15 years ago. I’ve been through a lot with CF, but I can say without a doubt that my bouts of pancreatitis were the most challenging for me both mentally and physically. The pain is indescribable and, to this day, has psychologically scarred me. But don’t lose hope. 15 years ago I thought there was no end in sight. For six months, I had recurrent bouts of severe pancreatitis. I would have to be hospitalized multiple times, on IV narcotics and hydration without anything to eat or drink for days, sometimes weeks at a time. I had several ERCPs and scans of the gall bladder during these attacks and no blockage was ever found. I eventually had to start IV nutrition (TPN) because every time I would start to advance my diet, I would have another attack. But then after the last attack, I was NPO for about a week, I slowly added clears and then, bland, non-fat foods and the pain never returned. There was no explanation, no magic pill or procedure. It just stopped. Today, I am still pancreatic sufficient and don’t require enzymes. I eat a normal diet without any restrictions. It did take me awhile to get to this point. I was on a low fat diet for over a year before I slowly started adding more fat. For a couple of years I was on Viokase (pancreatic enzymes) prior to meals. The enzymes weren’t prescribed because I wasn’t absorbing fats but the thought was that they may help take some of the workload off of my pancreas and in the process prevent an attack. With the passage of time, I was given the OK to stop these as well. The best piece of advice I can give you is to be patient and don’t start advancing your diet too soon. I used pain as my guide. I did not start to eat anything beyond clears if I was having any pain at all-even if it was just tenderness with palpation. Of course I’m not a doctor, so this may not be the best treatment for you. I can only speak to my own experience. I do want to mention that I have had 3 bouts of very mild pancreatitis over the past 10 years. They were all when I was on the antibiotics minocycline or doxycycline. It is a very rare side effect of this class of drugs. Needless to say, I no longer take these. But the pancreatitis I experienced as the side effect of these drugs was extremely mild compared to what I went through 15 years ago. Hang in there and try to stay positive. Feel free to PM me if I can be of any further assistance.
