Fed up with IBS

[Rocklover]

How about anyone else. I have it fairly mildly, but my tummy gets very easily upset, especially by stress. Sometimes I will get an upset tummy without any warning and as you can imagine this has made me very wary of being out and about. I get paranoid about where loos are and I have too take Immodium if I am going to be out for a while. I know that part of this is physical, but the majority is caused by my worrying about it, it's a very vicious circle. Any advice from fellow sufferers?

[Gingerbear]

probiotics - tablets better than drinks - help my guts a lot.
Also, cut out bread, alcohol and sat fat.
Crap isn't it?

[olivo]

agree with probiotic tablets. i also cut down on bread and changed my breakfast to a rice based cereal instead of a wheat based one- this seemed to do the trick. my doctor advised me not to do proper food group exclusion diet though. it's kind of hit and miss but i know garlic and spicy things also gave me bad runs and cramps as well.
good luck!

[Hayls]

Rocklover, you have my sympathies. Apologies in advance for this really long post but this is the diet my dh has been following for a coupl eof months. His IBS flares up pretty badly and he's tried the probiotic tabs but they didn't really help much. Any comments would be much appreciated as tbh it's limiting him so much. Basicalluy he eats chicken, fish, pasta, ptoatoes, swede, carrot, bread, ham, mangoes and bananas.
(They say that IBS sufferers should only eat soluble fibre foods...)

Soluble fibre foods

Rice
Pasta and noodles
Oatmeal
Barley
Fresh white breads such as French or sourdough (NOT whole wheat or whole grain)*
Rice cereals
Flour tortillas
Soy
Quinoa
Corn meal
Potatoes
Carrots
Yams
Sweet potatoes
Turnips
Rutabagas
Parsnips
Beets
Squash and pumpkins
Mushrooms
Chestnuts
Avocados (though they do have some fat)
Bananas
Applesauce
Mangoes
Papayas (also digestive aids that relieve gas and indigestion)


Insoluble Fibre Foods

Wheat bran
Whole grains, whole grain breads, whole grain cereals
Granola
Meusli
Seeds
Nuts
Popcorn
Beans and lentils (mashed or pureed they're much safer)
Berries (blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, cranberries, etc.)
Grapes and raisins
Cherries
Pineapple
Peaches, nectarines, apricots, and pears with skins (peeled they're much safer)
Apples (peeled they're safe)
Rhubarb
Melons
Oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes
Dates and prunes
Greens (spinach, lettuce, kale, mesclun, collards, arugala, watercress, etc.)
Whole peas, snow peas, snap peas, pea pods
Green beans
Kernel corn
Bell peppers (roasted and peeled they're safer)
Eggplant (peeled and seeded it's much safer)
Celery
Onions, shallots, leeks, scallions, garlic
Cabbage, bok choy, Brussels sprouts
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Tomatoes (peeled and seeded, especially raw, they're much safer)
Cucumbers (again, peel and seed them and they're much safer)
Sprouts (alfalfa, sunflower, radish, etc.)
Fresh herbs



Trigger Foods

French fries
Onion rings
Fried chicken
Corn dogs
Anything battered and deep-fried
Anything skillet-fried in fat of any kind
Shortening
Margarine
All oils, fats, spreads, etc.
Mayonnaise
Salad dressings
Tartar sauce
Cool Whip
Coconut milk
Shredded coconut
Solid chocolate (baking cocoa powder is fine)
Solid carob (carob powder is fine)
Olives
Nuts and nut butters
Croissants, pastries, biscuits, scones, and doughnuts
Pie crust
Potato chips (unless they're baked)
Corn chips and nachos (unless they're baked)
Store-bought dried bananas (they're almost always deep fried)

[littlelamb]

have you tried peppermint tea? I had a terrible bout of IBS a few months ago, and read that this can help. I've been drinking a couple of cups a day, and have had no problems since, so it might be worth a try. You can also get IBS tablets which contain peppermint oil. And you have my utmost sympathies, my IBS came completely out of the blue and really got me down, the pain in my tummy was just unbelievable x

[Bubbaloo]

Rocklover-I had this for years and even had immodium on prescription as I was getting through at least 4 every day!
It got so bad,that I was jumping off the tube on the way to work in the morning to use the loo's at nearly every station,and even ended up using the staff loo's at the stations where there were no public ones.I finally had a food intollerance test (done by post) from Yorktest and it was the best money I've ever spent.It turned out I had many intollerances including wheat,gluten,and yeast to name a few.After excluding these foods it really was amazing-I could go nearly the whole journey to work without stopping about 6 times.I then got pg with ds and started eating all the "trigger" foods again but was fine,as being pg made me very constipated,which actually made a nice change.
I have now given up work to be a SAHM,so I don't have the stress of the underground and I am also now eating most things and find i'm fine,in the toliet department.
I would definately recommend excluding maybe wheat/gluten foods and if you still don't see a difference I would also contact YorkTest.
HTH.x

[Katymac]

If I get a headache - I take paracetamol with codiene (as it has the side affect of sorting out my IBS for a bit)

Eating 5 a day is almost impossible
Homemade bread is better than bought (I find)

[mazzystar]

I suffered horribly for two or so years, then managed to get referred to a wonderful homeopath (on the NHS too). Saw her for about a year - she gave me various different remedies, and truly excellent dietary advice, and have been symptom free for more than 2 years. Ask your doc for a referral - IBS responds brilliantly to holistic therapy, in my experience.

[jennifersofia]

Yes, following on from the previous post re: IBS responding well to holistic treatment, I had a friend who was very bothered by IBS and (very skeptically) went on a hypnotherapy course for it and it sorted it out. Might be worth looking into.

[Katymac]

Reflexology has really helped my IBS

[Highlander]

ask your GP to refer you to a Clinical Psychologist for behavioural therapy. Very effective, I hear

[bluesky]

I cut out alcohol totally, fruit juices and milk. I still take Valerian tablets at night, that helps calm my insides, and that stopped me starting my day in the loo. Then in the mornings a probiotic tablet from Boots, not the Yakult types, as because they are milky they upset my tum.

I found I was getting in a viscious circle with imodium and once I came off of them, I was much better.

I have been OK for 2 years now, but was horrendous before, couldn't really leave the house til noon, then after noon was fine, really bizarre, my tum had settled by then. I too could write a book about where all the public loos are. Every journey, trip, holiday etc was affected by it.

Oh yes, and I drink nothing but water and peppermint tea, gallons of the stuff.

[Rocklover]

Thanks for all your replies, I wasn't expecting so many! I no longer drink alocohol at all (not even at my wedding lol!), I gave up wheat and milk for around six months and that was the best year of my life, I am seriously thinking of doing it again. Only prob is, my Mum is on a restricted diet and although it is helping, she still gets bad stomachs all the time. If you stay off the wheat forever, does it ever stop having a positive effect on the IBS? This is my worry, like you can become immune to the good effects (this is what my allergy tester told me).

I would love to just walk out the door and think, great, I am going out today, no worrying about my churning tummy, or feeling guilty about taking Immodium. I went to a gig on Sunday and had to go in the car for 90 mins, I was so nervous I had to take 4 Immodium, it always makes me feel so ashamed. Stress does make it worse and I am now pretty much stressed all the time because of the IBS.

[Bubbaloo]

Rocklover-You sound just like I was! I would also take 4 or 5 immodium every day and car journeys were a nightmare,especially when stuck in traffic and motorways.
I was told by yorktest that after avoiding wheat based produce or whatever you're excluding,you can slowly start to re-introduce them over a period of time,and be ok with it.I am currently on a meal replacement diet(The Cambridge Diet),which is making me very constipated.For the first time in my life I am actually taking Dulcolax,which is fine with me.After spending years planning my day around all the public loo's and doing "pit stops" everywhere,I am most definately not complaining.

[ThePrisoner]

I had two emergency hospital admissions a while back because of IBS (didn't know it could be so bad!) - doctors were brilliant and admitted that IBS just meant that they didn't know what someone actually had!

Eventually, I paid privately to see a dietitian. The end result (after trying other ideas) was going on an extremely severe exclusion diet (GP totally unimpressed but hospital consultant said "definitely go for it").

It identified very strongly some trigger foods (yeast, oats and strawberries, for instance) which I reacted very badly to when they were re-introduced. Many months down the line, I reluctantly re-tested those foods and, although some of them give me a hint of a reaction, these reactions are no way as bad as they were initially, and I don't really think of myself as an IBS sufferer any more.

The dietitian said that going without those trigger foods may have given my body a break, and it seems to have learnt how to tolerate them in small quantities. That may be a load of twaddle, but all I know is that I no longer have the immeasurable problems that I used to have (and I struggled with a "tummy problem" for 25 years!)