IBS

I've read many articles online about IBS and how it's often misdiagnosed. A lot of people claimed that they actually had stomach parasites and not IBS and they were completely fine after taking antibiotics (with medical supervision of course) 

A stool test would show whether you have parasites.  Doctors should always test your stool first to rule out parasites, h pylori and bowel inflammation.  I had stool tests for h pylori and fecal calprotectin which were negative.  My ultrasound, urine and celiac tests were also negative so IBS was diagnosed.  If doctors are thorough like this, it reduces the chance of a misdiagnosis.

When I read articles like this about IBS over diagnosis, it caused me intense anxiety so it is far better not to google your symptoms and to trust and believe your doctor instead.

Thank you for your answer, it's very confusing to me i have a hard time understanding how i can go from being super healthy with a high metabolism to being diagnosed with IBS after a hangover. . . My bowel movements aren't that bad, i don't have diarrhea and i'm rarely constipated. I have a constant dull ache in my stomach, it comes and goes away through the day.

My doctor didn't directly tell me that it's IBS he told me that my colon isn't working properly which causes me to have excess gas and the latter is what causes the pain. He also told me that if i work out my colon (exercise, drinking a lot of water, avoiding foods that cause a lot of gas...) it can go back to normal. But i've read online that it's IBS so i'm overall very confused, i don't know what to do anymore.

I don't really suffer from sharp pain and I rarely feel bloated. I have constant dull cramps sometimes even when i wake up in the morning and my stomach is empty. I heard that most people who suffer from IBS generally have flare ups but otherwise they're fine to which i can't really relate since my cramps are constant even when i eat super healthy foods. I also suffer from a huge loss of appetite since 4 days i feel full after eating 2 spoons, i have lost a lot of weight as well. I'm thinking about going back to my doctor and have him run more tests like a stool test for example just to make sure that it's not due to something else.

Are there things that you take/do that help you feel better? Aside from avoiding certain foods

Hi i am sorry to say i really do not think you have ibs and i should know i have suffered over 10 years , it does come and go and another word for it is trapped wind and that why it is painful and it gets so trapped that is why the stomach bloats out, cramps are totally different , are they like period cramps, are you having any trouble still going to toilet or not going, one thing i swear by, is apple cidar vinegar, 2 tea spoons in a glass with warm to hot water is great for the digestive system, , herbal teas, and charcoal capsules are fantastic, but keep up with your doctor, though it does seem you have had a lot of tests, let me know how you get on

You can get constant pain and cramps with IBS.  I started with constant pain and then after diagnosis it moved to on off flare ups.  There is no one size fits all with IBS.  Everyone experiences it differently.  Super healthy foods can be irritants for people with IBS. What it tells you online about IBS is very general and doesn’t take individual cases into account.  Ask your doctor for an anti spasmodic like Buscopan.  You may need to try several.  Try a food diary or the Low Fodmap diet with the help of a dietician. Try hobbies and light exercise like walking or swimming to keep calm and to distract you from your symptoms.  Keeping calm is the key to managing IBS.

There is no test for IBS.  The tests you have merely rule out other causes.  This is how IBS is diagnosed.  It is a diagnosis of exclusion.

Hi i really do not want to get you confused , but i do not like it when someone says something against what i said , i did have tests done thats how i was told i had ibs, i had a very painful test with blown up my back passage, and also a camera, and afterwards that is when he told me i have ibs

It seems like everyone experiences things differently, both of your stories seem accurate. I wish science and medecine would bring better understanding to this problem because it seems like even doctors don't truly know what is going on they just assume you have IBS when everything else seems fine. I'm sure there's a way to gain your health back if the science community tries to understand this better.

My mom used to suffer from IBS too, she used to have a very irritable colon she went through several series of intense pain but she didn't have any in years, she told me that since she started drinking warm lemon juice every morning she feels a lot better, gotta give it a try

It's weird how a few weeks ago, i had no idea what IBS was. I went out with friends and i had a big chocolate volcano with ice cream and a big cup of Nutella Frappuccino, my symptoms were gone for 2 days. I ate everything i wanted and felt completely fine afterwards, my symptoms came back after i ate too much pasta but it seems like i can tolerate pasta just fine as long as it's fresh and warm. Aren't coffee and chocolate the worst enemies of IBS sufferers?

For some people wirh IBS, chocolate and coffee are triggers.  However, everyone is different.  I have no IBS trigger foods; chocolate and coffee don’t affect me at all.  My only trigger is streas.

Your answer helped me a lot, i'm starting to thinking that my IBS is triggered mainly by stress as well since my bowel movements are fine now and i don't really have any food triggers, i eat like usual, carbonated drinks don't affect me that much, sometimes certain foods cause me to get bloated and have some light pain but it's bearable and it usually goes away after having a herbal infusion. One thing i have noticed though is that my period got much worse the pain is 3 times worse which really sucks.

Hormones tend to make IBS worse; it did with me..

Can you please tell me how to manage it? i've had my period since 3 days now and it's still pretty uncomfortable which never happened before.

Try antispasmodics and painkillers.