IBS - Are there any sufferer's on here?

[Nip]

I have been ill for quite some time and sypmtons are all pointing towards IBS.

I will be seeing GP next week, but i want to know how bad this is? Its already causing me issues as i cannot pick up DS or walk far because of the cramps.

I am taking peppermint capsules, but wondered if there are any other tips?

TIA

bump....

I have been given a no-fibre diet from an NHS dietician to try and settle my IBS down. usually am really gassy and bloated but 2 weeks of white bread and no fruit or veg seems to be helping. I was told this was possibly triggered by gastroenteritis 2 years ago and my poor tummy is still not settled as I usually try to eat really healthy but the residue and fibre is continually upsetting it.

oh poor thing, it sounds like you are really suffering. ibs can be really debilitating but its one of those things that isn't always necessarily taken terribly seriously by gps.

in my case it was definitely stress-related and diet-related. in the end i got an nhs referral to a brilliant homeopath who put me on a candida-eliminating diet and i haven't been trouble since. probably worth experimenting with wheat-free and caffeine-free diets at the very least. and sometimes too much fibre can aggravate it.

hth

oh and pro-biotics can help sometimes too

I was in hospital twice before the doctors decided I had IBS. They tested me for kidney stones, gall stones, pelvic infection first.

I now take aloe vera gel every day. It really, really helps to control my pain and bloating and I can honestly say that since I started taking it 2 years ago, I've only had about 4 days when my IBS has been really bad. Prior to that I used to be in pain every day, and often had to spend the day in bed.

I would thoroughly recommend it. The one I take is not cheap (£18.00 per bottle), but if you think about it as less than 50p a day to live a normal life, I think it's well worth it. I use the "Forever Living Aloe Vera". If you type it into google, you'll find some on-line suppliers, or you might be able to find one locally if you're interested.

Thanks so much, friends and family dont understand the pain i'm in.

I was ill on holiday when it first started and cleared up a few weeks ago, but yesterday it came back with avengance (sp?)

I'll ask the GP about some of the things you've bought up to get this under control ASAP.
many thanks for your help - i feel a lot better knowing that its not just me who wants to crawl into bed and not get up!

Stress, wheat and dairy all set my symptoms off.
I avoid the second two, but the first is rather more difficult.
Pilates helps with relaxation, I find.

Hi Nip... you have my sympathy. I also get IBS, I found that if I eat a lot of wheat produce I get really bad cramps. Can you keep a food diary and see if throws any light on your IBS.
I find that my family have no idea of the pain it causes...

I find artificals set mine off

Particularily Artifical sweetner - which I avoid like the plague

I also limit my fats/fruit & veg and that really helps

Mine is only bad now when I go out for a meal (as I can't check ingredients) or round my period

My diet has really changed over the last 6 yrs - & my IBS is really under control

That's really interesting Katymac. I've started to see a pattern with mine getting worse around my period. I'll pay closer attention to see if it's worse again this month.

TMI ALERT

I get a little bit constipated a few days before - they the day I come on, the world falls out my backside. It's dodgy for a day or two then back to normal

Much better btw since i got a mooncup

Snap! (but I don't use a mooncup). I just can't get my head around it).

surely being told to avoid fruit, veg and high fibre foods cannot be a good thing.

what did the dietician advise u eat instead?

I can take cooked F&V apart from green stuff - generally green stuff comes out undigested & causes significant amounts of pain

i agree katymac - i find the green stuff has the same effect.

what else did the dietician advise u could eat???

I have no brown bread - I don't eat rice & pasta (but that is a dislike rather than anything else)

I have only olive oil (very occasionally butter or veg oil)

Lots of chicken/fish little red meat

Lots of Baken beans

I eat too much sugar and virtually no milk stuff

I am trying to cut down the sugar - but not doing too well
My IBS is pretty much in balance

I developed IBS last year when my mum was getting treatment for cancer - was off work for 5 weeks and it was agony.

Green veg sets me off big time too. Stess is the biggie - I had a very upsetting and stressful thursday evening and friday A.M. I suffered.

Not aware of any patterns but as my symptoms are on and off to varying degrees, have never really studied triggers in details.

I take peppermint casules and charcoal capsules when I have a bout though which help.

katymac - do u worry with all the - eat five a day hype that your body isn't getting the right nutrients? i know the dietician probably advised u appropriately, but ....

Well I can either live in pain or worry about my health

I know which is easier

Mind you my dietician said if we could get eveyone in the UK on my diet - there would be so many lives saved 5aday would be irrelevant

I guess it's the peppers/tomatoes/olive oil etc

I got my cholesterol down from 7 to 6.3 so I can't be all wrong

Hello - another IBS sufferer here too - my symptoms set off by ... dairy, wheat, anything red or orange (or which would be commonly found on a pizza: tomatoes, pepper, white onion etc) oranges, oh and stress. As others have said a mixture of diet, drugs and exercise seems to help - I take buscopan for the pain (caused by bowel spasms - these would be whats causing the cramps if it is IBS), domperidone for the nausea and peppermint capsules for the constipation/ diaroeah (argh still cant spell it after 5 years!) I too went on a anti candida diet which seemed to hlp at first, but be warned when I ate somrthing I shouldnt afterards the symptoms were muh worse - apparently a common thing with this diet. Hope you are able to find something which helps you control your symptoms and helps you cope with this very variable condition - at first I said I dint want to become dependent on tablets, but a few things o try when your diet ect doesnt help are worth having and might help you get used to living with IBS - it certainly flares up when its unwanted, and you sound like your pain is faily bad when its affecting your walking/ pickinhg up dc's etc - hth - if you want more info/ help etc, shout! horses x

Oh God yes Oranges/OJ a killer

I suffer from IBS and if I don;t eliminate wheat, processed food and fat I the I get awful diahoreah. I am not very disciplined to be honest but when I am I really feel the difference.

If I eat any kind of take away such as pizza, chinese or indian I am in absolute agony.

Mine gets much worse with stress.

I ahve found busopan in the past to be a real help and it can be bought over the counter cheaper than on prescription.

I had not thought about my perios co inciding with IBS so I will look our for that.

I had a bad attack of IBS last year. It was awful - everytime I ate something I was in terrible pain about an hour later. I think mine was caused by stress and my GP prescribed colafac which got rid of it eventually.

yes when I am stressed any thing that is a meal sized portion will set it off and I end up sobbing in agony.