Question: I'm having mild to moderate intermittent nausea with loose stools. Yesterday I notice long string-like objects in my stool. Sunday I was in Cabo San XXXXXXX Mexico and I had abdominal cramping. By Monday I had abdominal pain and nausea and dizziness. Background: I had 2 alcoholic drinks 4 days prior and I had eaten meat (after being a vegetarian/vegan for the last year). A doctor was sent to my hotel room and she prescribed protonix and meclizine. Today I am still having nausea and loose stools with lower abdominal tenderness. I went to urgent care today (my doctor was not available to see me). The urgent care doctor told me to wait a week to see if I start to feel better. But I was concerned about possible parasites. I insisted on a lab test to check my stool for parasites. I will go tomorrow when the lab opens. But even if I feel better in a couple days, does that mean I don't need to worry about a parasitic infection? Also, I found what appeared to be large chunks of undigested pieces of meat in my stool. Is it normal to see meat from 4 days ago?

Dr Kini,

Thank you for your reply.

If my tests come back negative, what do you suppose were the long, XXXXXXX colored string-like objects in my stool specimen as shown in the photos?

Is it okay to use that specimen for my test today? (The specimen will be approximately 24 hours old by the time I have my lab appointment)