Living with IBS - any tips?
Posted , 7 users are following.
I started with IBS 8 years ago around the same time my Mam had one of her legs amputated so I think mine's definitely stress-related and started because of that. When I first started with it, I wouldn't go anywhere apart from home, work and family members' houses. I thought I was going crazy at first and having some kind of mental breakdown but I wasn't. My main issue is the sudden and unpredicted urge to need the loo, which obviously I never know is going to happen and have no control over when it decides to do it. After seeing a specialist at the hospital and having various tests (colonoscopy, Gamma Ray scan, blood tests) I was discharged and told it was probably just IBS. I take more ownership of it these days but it does control and dictate me a lot still. I panic about being anywhere if there's no toilet nearby. If I go somewhere new I need to know where the toilet is. I love travelling and going to gigs so I block myself up with cheap Immodium so it takes away the worry and I can still do normal stuff. Then I get in another strange scenario when I don't know when the pills will wear off and result in that sudden urge again. It's not ideal as my bowels are all over the place and I go from having diarrhoea symptoms to having constipation. I have to pre-plan ahead with everything. I just wish there was a happy medium somewhere. I'd love to be able to empty my bowels at a predicted set time to take away any possible issues. I'm a very positive person the majority of the time but having IBS really does make me feel miserable sometimes. Does anyone else manage their IBS any differently? Any hints and tips?
0 likes, 12 replies
susand1408 moongazy
Posted
Yes it probably is stress related but there are things that can help.
1St you need to get your good bacteria at a good level again. There is a wheat based one you can buy online which is fantastic. It really made a huge difference. Look at taking buscopan. It can help the stomach cramping and making you want to go.
Start walking more. You will find whilst you are walking you won't have the urge as much. It also helps your stomach work correctly.
I wouldn't take the other medication as it could cause long term issues.
Also look to see if it's hormone related. I have the depo contraceptive injection which regulates my hormones and reduces the symptoms.
Also find something to reduce your stress yoga, pilates, crafting, crochet, knitting etc. It makes an amazing difference.
moongazy susand1408
Posted
Thank you so much for replying, I will definitely look into this more. I already do lots of things that reduce my stress already due to my job being stressful at times. Sometimes my thoughts don't help. I get into the habit of thinking I'll need the loo or might do so that doubt is always there. How did the wheat based good bacteria help? I've tried probiotics and stuff before that never really helped. I don't get pain or cramping either. You see, the more I exercise, the more I need the loo. Especially when I'm out and about. I have a treadmill and this often makes me go more. I was on the depo injection for 2 years and it didn't make any difference - better or worse.
jan48389 moongazy
Posted
Your experience is so similar to mine. Like you, I reached the stage of being afraid to go out in case I urgently needed the loo. I've been following the Low FODMAP diet for amost a year now, on my GP's recommendation and I have to say it has transformed my life. I do still have the odd flare up, but thankfully, so far, the flare ups are not especially severe nor do they last more than a couple of days. I genuinely do feel that I can now control and manage my IBS with only the very occasional need for Immodium - I've never had to take more than 2 by which time a flare up will have subsided. There's loads of stuff on the internet about Low FODMAP. I follow the diet advised by Dr Sue Shepherd ( she discovered the links between IBS and FODMAPS) and if you do have food triggers that will help you to identify and eliminate them from your diet. I would say, however, that you have to scrutinise the ingredient list on all foods. For example, onions and garlic will trigger my IBS even in the smallest quantities, but beware that some brands of tomato ketchup contain onions, others don't. I also discovered that I can tolerate only small amounts of gluten. I take probiotics too, but would be unable to tolerate the wheat based one. Apart from the very occassional Immodium I now don't need to take any medication.
Best of luck - the Low FODMAP diet is definitely worth giving a go and can give you postive results.
Jan
moongazy jan48389
Posted
Thank you so much for replying. I've not heard of low FODMAP before. Will definitely look into it. I have no known food triggers really, I could eat some food one day and get a trigger from it, other times I've ate it, no symptoms. This is one reason I get so frustrated. Stress/anxiousness always brings it on. I never used to be stressed or anxious but it's a vicious circle now. Stress/anxiety causes my IBS which in turn causes me stress/anxiety about not being near a loo of being able to find one. To be fair my GPs were useless. I went back numerous times and they prescribed beta blockers and allsorts! In the end I was asked what I wanted them to do so I asked to be referred to a specialist. I changed surgeries after that. He was better but never really gave me advice on what to try etc so I've kind of been managing myself for a good few years but don't seem any further on now 8 years later. Putting my bit on here today and reading the replies has made me all emotional.
jan48389 moongazy
Posted
Again I was much the same - I could eat sausages one day with no ill effect, then have sausages the following week and be rushing to the loo. I realised , once following Low FODMAP, that the first lot didn't contain any onion, the second lot did. So it really is worth always checking ingredients. The diet really does help isolate triggers that you didn't even know you had.
Some people say the FODMAP diet is bland but I probably have a more varied diet than ever. Dinner tonight is chicken breast stuffed with spinach and mozarella, new potatoes, carrots and green beans. Yummy and all low in FODMAPs. Hope it works for you too.
Jan
K.kgirl1223 jan48389
Posted
Just reading this has helped me... iv been told I need to gut out gluten dairy and fructose. So I did well I'm still having symptoms but it's not all the time... and somedays i can eat sausage with no fructose and somtimes I cant... I didn't understand. I'm just realy confused on my whole diagnoses of things because the test were negative so why am I reacting to them but the test be negative.. I am 22 years old and weigh 95 lbs my doctor is concerned about my weight because I do not have anything to lose if I do get extremely sick. I also have lupus
mark6651 moongazy
Posted
I'm constantly feeling on edge over IBS the first odd feeling in my stomach I thinking I'm going to be ill. I take paracetmol for stomach pains and hope things go ok.
TruthBringer777 moongazy
Posted
TruthBringer777
Posted
looloo43 moongazy
Posted
Hi moongazy. its hard when your ibs causes both diarrea & constipation. mine is ibs-d. to control (largely) : i take a daily liquid probiotic, & eat a low residue diet which is basically everything white - bread, pasta, rice all white. no fibre - such as cereal, oats, nearly all veg, even potato skin. I was told by my specialist gastro dietician that people with ibs so often can't break down fibre & it actually worsens symptoms if eaten. the only veg i can eat without it coming out of me looking the same as it went in is sauteed mushrooms, bizarelly jalapeno poppers (jalapenos filled with cream cheese & coated in breadcrumbs then baked), & iceberg or kos lettuce. anything else just goes through me. i also have fructose malabsorption so cannot eat any fruit or fructose products. to compensate i take a 500mg ester c vitamin c tablet daily(ester c is a gentle non acidic form of vit c that is digested & absorbed easily so particularly suited to people with bowel conditions). I tried the low fodmap diet a few years ago, but i found it useless in my case as most of the foods on the food lists i couldnt tolerate or digest, i found the low residue diet much better. other triggers for me are: onions, garlic in moderate amounts ( i can tolerate a couple of slices of garlic bread, or bit of garlic mayo, but not pieces of garlic in sauces etc), more than 6-8chunks of chocolate at a time, eating too big a meal or eating too quickly. if you get pain with your ibs, cocodomol can be good as they help the pain & also slow your bowels down, but not a good thing to take long term/regular only when you have pain too, without pain loperamide or imodium(same thing) are best to control diarrea. You are totally right about stress affecting ibs - so good you are a positive person & make an effort to avoid it where possible. hope this info helps you. xx
emily_92420 moongazy
Posted
If you suffer from anxiety then i would reccommend asking your doctor for some anti depressants. These will in time help ease the anxiety and paranoia you get which will in turn help. Also keep a food diary just incase you notice any triggers but please dont start one of the diets untill your absolutely certain food triggers your IBS. You can also get anti spasmostic drugs that help ease your symptoms. I use mebeverine when my symptoms flare and one dose lasts for days with me so they give me a great saftey blanket. However ask your doctor as i do believe you cant take them if you suffer with constipation as that can be a side affect. I would go and talk through your options with a doctor. Dont hide away from it.
astrozombie moongazy
Posted