I've been blessed with an iron gut most of my life, but Monday night I had some crab dip that had sat out too long at work and spent the next twelve hours the sickest I have ever been in my life.
Missed a complete shift at work but managed to rally and go to work yesterday, albeit weak and pretty much useless. Today I woke up, felt pretty good, had a bunch of coffee, then went for a walk downtown to a little cafe and had a chicken sandwich. Have not felt good since.
How long do the effects typically linger??
I'm sorry you're being afflicted by food poisoning. My family and I always used excessive caution to avoid it while traveling, only for me to become severely ill due to a salad from a nice restaurant near my grandparents in Cleveland. I was hospitalized for it, but that was primarily because of underlying health issues that made it far more severe. Most people can wade it out without needing medical intervention, and are fully recovered within a week.
If you've been through gastrointestinal grief, it's important to stay hydrated, but drinking too much plain water can actually be counterproductive and worsen your ordeal. You definitely do not want to guzzle liquids when your stomach is already volatile. Instead, suck on ice chips or take small sips of Gatorade or another sports drink, flat soft drink, mint tea, diluted apple or orange juice, watered down lemonade, water, or broth. Liquids that contain some sodium, potassium, and sugar can help to fend off hypoglycemia and help you to feel more functional when you haven't been able to eat properly in a while. You can get specially formulated electrolyte drinks from pharmacies (though most do not taste very appealing to me) but broth, Gatorade, or juice can help, too. I get sick relatively often, so we keep ice cube trays filled with fruit juices in the freezer, and I suck on them. When I've been throwing up I usually have the fruit chips, or one tablespoon of a clear liquid every fifteen minutes or thereabouts whenever I'm awake.
I live on coffee, but it can be rough on your stomach when it's trying to recuperate. I'd avoid, or at least greatly reduce how much of it you drink until you're better. Easing back into eating might be helpful, too. I rarely eat solids if I'm sick, because it just makes me sicker. Instead I have vegetable broths, popsicles made only from juice, lemonade that isn't too sour, and diluted juice.
If you continue to feel unwell you might want to call your doctor or go to a walk-in clinic to see about antibiotics or an antiemetic. I hope you get better soon.
