I feel a little obtuse asking this question, but am wondering where the line is drawn, when starting probiotics...between tolerating die-off symptoms and just plain intolerance of the probiotic?

I have been on 1/4 t. of Life Start 2 for almost 2 weeks now...doing ok, in fact, pretty well for the most part, but have ramped up the last 2 nights with an additional 1/8 t. AND also Wild Oregano twice/day just yesterday. I am faintly nauseated, (very unusual for me) my calves are swollen (for me, often a sign of a food sensitivity) and my sinuses are really bad. I will drop the Wild Oregano for now, and perhaps do the additional 1/8 t. Life Start only every other night, but just wondering if anyone has thoughts about how to tell---die-off vs. intolerance.

Thanks so much!

Hi, Susan.

I think that's an excellent question and one that most of us face at some point, so please don't feel obtuse for asking it!

I wish there was a clear-cut answer I could give, but as with many things, it really ends up being something where we have to tap into our own intuition and body's feedback and a certain amount of trial and error to figure it out. What makes it puzzling is that we can experience many of the same symptoms with die-off and with food/supplement intolerance.

However, I can tell you the rough guidelines I use for myself to help figure this type of thing out in me.

First, die-off symptoms should get better in time; symptoms of "just plain" intolerance typically won't improve in the same way and may in fact intensify. So one of the factors you can consider is time. How MUCH time you want to give it is up to you.

Beyond that, it's logging your experiences as you switch one thing around while keeping other things pretty much the same. That's basically what you're already doing by taking the Wild Oregano Oil out of the equation and ramping up more gradually on the probiotics. If you desire to, wait for your symptoms to go back to their baseline and then try the Wild Oregano Oil again. If you get a similar reaction next time, then you can zero in your testing on the Wild Oregano Oil, factoring in your intuitive feelings of die-off versus intolerance, your knowledge of your body's typical reaction(s) to food intolerance and time, as mentioned above.

As I said, I wish there was a simpler, cut-and-dry answer I could give, but that's the best I can do.....

As a side note, if you find yourself getting frustrated (Why can't I figure this out?!), despairing (Is this EVER going to get better?) or in any other "negative" emotional state, definitely use whatever mind/body healing modality that appeals to you to address them. It's very hard to continue taking the actions which will ultimately help your body in the face of those emotions, if you aren't doing something to counter and/or reframe them. I like Dr. Patricia Carrington's EFT Choices Method for reframing stuff like this. (Believe me, I felt all those things at one time or another on my healing journey!)

I hope this helps and I'm glad to see you such an active member on the forum!

Nicole