28 with IBS - will it get any better

Hey thank you for replying. I've tried the healthy route and that's how I found tomatoes were an issue.

It's scary the thought of trying them again and seeing what happens. I'm seeing my doctor today as last night was awful.

What fitness do you find helps?

That is very good and shows how we are all different and definitely not a one size fits all. I kept a diet diary on a spreadsheet for years and found out the only pattern is there was no pattern.

Doc thinks my everyday mode is anxious and this makes me ill. I just do not know. 

No no if every time you eat tomatoes you get ill then do not eat them. What Inam saying is for me there is no food which makes me ill because when I was at my worst lets say it was chicken with mash and a few peas the night before I was very ill. Three days later I would replicate the same meal and be fine so no idea why I get ill it just seems to happen.

My doc regularly said IBS. Exercise and drink plenty of water nothing else you can do. 

I walk up and down hills whereas 3 years ago I was more sedentary.

Me too. I've had problems for 10 years however in those ten years I think I must have had the worst GP's ever.

It's th trial and error that scares me as my pain and D is so extreme I get panic attacks and also vomit when I get it really bad.

It has not been that long for me but to be fair to GP I could not give them anything to go on. The diet diary did not work. Exercise is better but not fully cured me. I took foods out like bread and added back in with little impact so I just think I am an enigma to them. They ran tests but all clear. I stopped working.  I have been a mess for a long time but I am not as bad as I was.

I understand and only been here a few days so may not be the best for advice but I would wake with severe cramp, doubled over, visit the loo many times over a 3 to 4 hour period then vomit, collapse on the bed shaking and shivering and wake approx 4pm and wonder where the day went. That was part of my worst time. I am not as bad as that now but still fear going out as had bad experiences on motorways and buses. 

My gp's have done no test in ten years I've had one ultra sound!

To be fair to mine I had blood tests, colonoscopy, endoscopy, X rays but no ultra sound.

All were saying fine even when I was at my most ill.

It is weird and horrible and after 5 years I still do not understand it.  

Katrina - This lonely post is post of the week for me 

Lonely

1. Does it have to be Luke warm as I drink water but usually cold

2. Indeed and if I do go for meals I am often nagged for slow eating

3 I could not agree more and from disliking salad I either blend one daily or eat one daily

4. Lonely - Is this correct as I have had conflicting views on this as some say bananas bind you causing constipation. If I blend I use one anyway with spinach but have always been wary of bananas.

I think we need more discussion on bananas.

5. When I was stressed at work I was always worse if I skipped meals.

6. Easier said than done as for me being at work was stressful and in other ways not working is also stressful. 

Maybe I am just a stress bunny 

7. I found too much sleep made me ill so I try for 7 now but at the height of being ill I was sleeping 9 or 10 hours.

8. Since I have lost weight I have been better so definitely agree with that

9. Just back from mine and exercise has definitely helped me

10. I was worse if I had wine with my meal.

Lonely - I am the same better than I was but not better but the above has resolved my sickness.

I agree but how does one do that. I have been applying for lower level jobs but told I am too experienced for those roles but sure the stress in my old role made me worse.

That was a very good post 

 

I used to work as a recruitment specialist. If you want a lower level role, change the wording on your resume/Cv. Instead of highlighting your job titles, highlight what skills and tasks you have that are being asked for in the job. Afterall, if someone wants fried chicken, there's no point trying to sell them prime steak 😄. If you want the job they're advertising for, tell them how you meet their needs xxx

Hello Miss Josefina

They normally expect the job title to be included so would you remove that completely and just list the tasks under the company name?

It has been over 12 months and things have moved on in my area so to be honest I could not do my old job now I have been away too long. Also and I do not admit this to anyone but may as well here my condition has knocked my confidence and that seems to run through everything I do.

I am not sure I am prime steak but sirloin maybe

I will try and see if I can

thank you

Sirloin is still good meat 😄

My advice, make your Cv no more than 2 pages. The first page, get your name and contact details at the very top...1/10th of the page. Then list all your skills that are relevant to the job you're applying for in 6/10th of the page. With relevant education/qualifications only listed in the remaining 3/10ths.

Then, on the second page, list all the places you worked and job roles...with years of experience rather than actual dates. Finally, add hobbies and interests that are interesting yet somehow relevant to the role. e.g., now I'm a learning resource designer and I got the interview because I included creative hobbies on my application. End the Cv with 'References available on request'.

Most cvs are scanned, so put all the stuff they will be interested in on the first part of it in order to gain their interest.

You've got the abilities to climb up that ladder. Now use your talents to do a role you will enjoy doing xxx

Just read that back and realised I missed a bit.

At the top of page 2, put the heading 'Relevant Employment', then list only roles that are relevant to the one you're applying for. That way, you don't have to tell them about roles they think make you appear overqualified for. But, more importantly, by adding years of relevant experience rather than the dates you actually worked, they won't be able to a) tell how old you are and b) how long ago the relevant experience was.

Remember, your Cv is your attempt to get an interview. You wouldn't want an interview for a job you didn't think you could do. So, if you know you're capable of doing the job, you don't need to worry about confidence in the interview... Afterall, you have the skills they're looking for!

I'm off to bed. Night night xxx

In my head I still have some of my old skills

Looks like I need to change my CV completely as currently 3 pages. 

I will look into this tomorrow

i have some ability but I also have this condition which seriously interrupted my last job late mornings, intermittent sick days all due to being ill.

I do like the idea of going back to work but the idea also concerns me.

I will take it slow and steady and see how it goes. One step at a time.

Thank you

 

Good luck AZ xxx

If you feel ready to give it a go...then go for it!

There's no need to talk about your sickness record or illness at the interview. When they offer you the job, it's best to ring their HR department and tell them about your ill health.

Fortunately, chronic ill health (e.g IBS) is covered by the discrimination laws and an organisation are not able to reject a candidate because of it. The reality is that, if they know about it beforehand, they have a chance to reject your application for 'some other reason'.

I love the company I work for. It's retail and we've recently taken on a 72 year old woman and another woman with a neurological disorder. When it comes to ill health, the organisation has a duty to make reasonable adjustments to ensure an employee is still able to perform their role. So, I get to work from home...being close to the loo with a hot water bottle easing my pain whilst using the laptop to complete my day's tasks...when I'm having a bad bout of IBS.

It's just important that you apply for a job where instead of feeling like a burden, you know that you will be a real asset to them xxx

Miss J

I am ready in my head but not in my body. In fact I have just posted on my most recent hoping for more ideas on how I can rectify and someone may suggest something I had never thought of because as I am now it will be difficult.

I agree but if I start being ill regularly then it will be the beginning of the end.  This is what I am trying to avoid.

Yes definitely agree with that. Age is also covered but if someone has an entensive CV they can work out age and make their decision so always way around this for employers.  Personally I am the other way I like an extensive CV when I am employing.

That company sounds fantastic. 

Hmmmm in theory.  This is where things start getting complicated.  Not enough laptops in the pool etc.  If a company wants someone out they will find a way.

I agree wholeheartedly.  At the moment I have started looking again but my intermittent health issues do concern me.

We'll see but thank you for your good advice. 

 

Indeed but the problem for me is if I did that I would miss out about 10 years of my CV which may look a little suspicious as I was out one company for over 10 years.

 

We still call the resume the Cv...which means the course of my life in Latin. Only, employers arent in the least bit interested in what you've been doing all your life 😄

In fact, because each role receives so many applications, the employer only pays a cursory glance at each Cv received.

So, as long as your Cv only relates specifically to your skills and experience relevant to their vacancy, they can see you have made efforts to tailor your application specifically to their needs.

Makes your Cv stand out much better than a generic Cv that looks like it's been sent to them without any care to identify only what is specific for them.

Think about it, we're a generation where, even watching five minutes of adverts is a pain in the 'arris 😄. I always fast forward through the adverts and only stop when I see an advert that looks like something I'd be interested in.

Wouldn't it be better if your Cv was like an advert that they were interested in xxx

We do not use the term resume here so we still use the term Curriculum Vitae. At my school it was quid pro quo and illegitimi non carborundum.

I agree each role does receive a great many applications.  That is also a problem for me.  Consultants get on the phone and ask me for my qualifications and if I am going for a role lower and knocking 10 or 15k off salary they do not like it and they know something is wrong. 

In my field all applications have to get past the consultant and each time I have applied for a lower position I have heard absolutely nothing back. It is almost as if I have red flagged them even before they have seen my CV in some cases.  A cursory call and then nothing.

I will do

That is true 2 seconds in on iplayer where is the skip button How can I possibly wait for 5 seconds.  I record everything watch and 2 clicks of the button and adverts gone.  I never watch them.

Indeed it would but also I think I would be marketable if I was more confident and I would be more confident if I could fix my damn stomach.  That is just a general damn not aimed at you I just get so frustrated with it.  In fact I went for an interview a few months ago but the location was 2 miles up a hill with many other similar companies not signposted so I was late and got in bit of a panic so much so that despite being late I had to bomb into their loo so from 10 mins late I was 25 mins late.  I did apologise but needless to say I did not get the job.