Looking for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) friends!

MissCatLady

Hello

Would be great to connect with other people who have IBS for support & understanding.

Lots of love x

mbaker566

i haven't been officially diagnosed but it's been bandied about by my doctors. i do have digestive issues

singingflutelady

I have severe Crohn's (IBD) and ibs

Kristin2626

moyer566 wrote: »

i haven't been officially diagnosed but it's been bandied about by my doctors. i do have digestive issues

Me too.

Numer1ca

That's my official diagnosis when I failed the celiac test. Mine is controlled with diet and trying to keep low stress. Of course, anxiety and OCD doesn't help with that.

RespectTheKitty

Hi there. I've been dealing with IBS for 30 years now, and while I've pretty much learned to live with it, it still baffles me to this day. I swear I could eat the exact same thing every day of my life, and feel fine one day and miserable the next. So it's a lot more than just food that affects my symptoms.

mountiesgirl

I had IBS since I was 18 years old feel free to add me

TheKrysiaJean

IBS-D here. Diagnosed. Coupled with a Panic/Anxiety Disorder. I can talk about my strange bowels all day long. Let's do this.

emmac454

Hey I have the other kind of IBS but feel free to add me

GaleHawkins

@MissCatLady I struggled with life defining IBS for 40 years and 18 months ago I cut out sugars and grains and the IBS was totally gone after six months but I have no idea if it is worth a try in your case. As a guess I was feeding a candida overgrowth that is known to be possible when living mainly on carbs as I was for many years. Some say probiotics can be helpful. I do take them now but the IBS had cleared up well before I added probiotic supplements.

Best of success.

lexykassan

I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis a few years ago. My doctor told me I would be on medications for the rest of my life. Instead, I slowly reintroduced foods in order to find what triggered my inflammation and then cut those things out. I have been in remission ever since I cut out artificial sweeteners. The only flare-ups I've had is when I've been accidentally "spiked" with them (like when ordering lemonade at a restaurant). This is not a cure-all for everyone, but try gradual changes in your diet and listen to your body.

Probiotics can definitely help. They helped me tip the balance of my microbiota after having been put on Flagyl. Just be prepared that they can cause "flushing" for a time, which felt to me like it was contributing to other symptoms. It is a fairly normal occurrence but is rather disconcerting if you don't know what to expect.

MissCatLady

Thanks for your responses everyone!
Took me years to realise dairy triggered mine. As I get older, it seems I'm becoming more and more intolerant to different foods, it sucks! Sometimes it seems like my body is rejecting food for the sake of it.
Anxiety is another big factor. I get gasitris often due to chronic anxiety. It's getting so bad that I'm waiting to get physio because anxiety has messed up my shoulders from always being so tense. Any way that's another story.
Feel free to add me .

dmiller612

IBSer checking in!! I actually had a doctor tell me that it was ok to go two weeks without releasing my bowels. Ummm really?!?! Anyone recommend a good cleanse once every 3-4 months??

ChristinaOrr65

After 30 yrs of this diagnosis, I did an elimination diet and now I am much better after finding what I was eating that was causing the problem. For me it is wheat and sugars.

MissCatLady

ChristinaOrr65 wrote: »

After 30 yrs of this diagnosis, I did an elimination diet and now I am much better after finding what I was eating that was causing the problem. For me it is wheat and sugars.

At this point I will only be able to eat lettuce, and I hate lettuce haha. Even fruit now I'm very sensitive to. Had 2 strawberries earlier and wasn't long before I had griping pain. Glad you found the problem

RespectTheKitty

Yes, I have found that my symptoms are reduced (not eliminated, but reduced) when I avoid gluten and too much sugar.

MissCatLady

dmiller612 wrote: »

IBSer checking in!! I actually had a doctor tell me that it was ok to go two weeks without releasing my bowels. Ummm really?!?! Anyone recommend a good cleanse once every 3-4 months??

2 weeks is not normal! You must've been in agony, you poor thing! When I couldn't go for 2 weeks I was given some laxedo. Have you seen a different doc instead?
I don't know any cleanses sorry.

MissCatLady

RespectTheKitty wrote: »

Yes, I have found that my symptoms are reduced (not eliminated, but reduced) when I avoid gluten and too much sugar.

RespectTheKitty wrote: »

Yes, I have found that my symptoms are reduced (not eliminated, but reduced) when I avoid gluten and too much sugar.

I had a gluten allergy/intolerance test but nothing came up.

In fact all my bloods always come up healthy yet my bowels tell a different story!

Fay84Vegan

MissCatLady wrote: »

Hello

Would be great to connect with other people who have IBS for support & understanding.

Lots of love x

Yep, I've got IBS

valkc1953

Have had IBS plus other types of problems related to it. Not fun....

Sutnak

I'll add something a friend told me- and it's really reduced my IBS.

Watch out for the ingredient 'carrageenan.' It's a vegan gelatin alternative made from seaweed , and it's wicked inflammatory. Every time I accidentally have some, I spend the next day doubled over in pain.

It's in LOTS of things, keep an eye out. Takes about 5-7 days to get out of the system, in my experience.

lunch meat, yogurts, cottage cheese, fake milks (almond, rice, soy), meal bars, supplement shakes- those are the worst offenders.

Lovee_Dove7

Hello! I'm pretty free of symptoms now.
And YES to the carrageenan post above. It's an industrial extract of Irish moss, and not a natural product at all, should not be added to foods, and is actually a GI irritant. It's added to a multitude of our foods. Nasty stuff it is!!

GaleHawkins

MissCatLady wrote: »

ChristinaOrr65 wrote: »

After 30 yrs of this diagnosis, I did an elimination diet and now I am much better after finding what I was eating that was causing the problem. For me it is wheat and sugars.

At this point I will only be able to eat lettuce, and I hate lettuce haha. Even fruit now I'm very sensitive to. Had 2 strawberries earlier and wasn't long before I had griping pain. Glad you found the problem

@MissCatLady it was about six months before the IBS went away totally after cutting out most all sugar sources and all grain sources. I have learned how to eat and enjoy eating without sugar and grains. @ChristinaOrr65 point about doing an elimination diet is good.

My 40 years of serious IBS was not the reason I left sugars and grains cold turkey but to see if eliminating sugars and all grains would manage my joint and muscle pain. It did in just 30 days but it was six months in before I realized after 40 years I could control when I went to the bathroom.

What works for one may not be the magic bullet for another. If you can learn your trigger foods then you can regain full control. I expect I had a leaking gut and they do no heal overnight.

Ea17greenwald

I have IBS and celiac disease. Both are a struggle...

RunawayCurves

I have suffered decades with IBS , I agree cutting out grains and sugar helps me too. I feel much better when I stick to whole foods. It is frustrating because so many things upset my system and sometimes What I can eat changes. All grains seem to upset me even oats, most pulses cause problems too. Oranges cause me trouble but lemons are fine. Nuts and seeds have phases of causing me issues but then not always and seem to be better if eat them ground to a powder rather than chewed up whole. Dairy does not agree with me. I want to convert to being vegan. Finding things to eat that keep my mind and body happy is a challenge but I am trying to invest the effort as sick of being bloated and in pain all the time. Thankfully most veg is fine for me apart from rocket leaves which cause instant stomach cramps. Lettuce made me ill for while but thankfully got over that and it no longer makes me ill, probably something that was sprayed on crops for a season or something like that.

jennifer12202010

I have ibs i find dairy makes it really bad! Wheat lunch meat I can't do subway makes me sick

jennifer12202010

I recently bought ideal shake makes my stomach hurt so bad so I guess I can't do that either.

meritage4

I too have IBS (and now type 2 diabetes)
For the IBS symptoms-loose bowels - greatly improved after a month of pro-biotic capsuls-the type you keep in the fridge-from health food store.
I was able to give up Metamucil that I had been using for 5 years.
Now I can't have fresh salads-the fibre just shoots through me BUT I can microwave it and be fine. So even at restaurants I'll have them microwave my salad and then dressing on the side.
We are each different but this is what works for me.

lexykassan

jennifer12202010 wrote: »

I recently bought ideal shake makes my stomach hurt so bad so I guess I can't do that either.

Check the ingredients and monitor if other things give you similar symptoms. I've noticed that anything with too much stevia makes my stomach hurt, for instance. And LOTS of shake mixes use that or artificial sweeteners.

GaleHawkins

jennifer12202010 wrote: »

I recently bought ideal shake makes my stomach hurt so bad so I guess I can't do that either.

I found shakes, etc foods containing modified food starch would do me in. While I when off of sugar and all forms of grain for pain relief it stopping my IBS was not something I was thinking about.

After I stopped sugar and grains I got mad at myself for not doing it 40 years ago.

coalz

Ever heard of Leaky Gut Syndrome? Well it is commonly misdiagnosed as IBS or accompanied with & is actually treatable & makes symptoms way less severe. I know because I am living proof!! So let me share my journey with you.
I spent a lot of my childhood & early adulthood sick as a dog from IBS! I even ended up in the emergency room a few times & had to take a semester off of college because symptoms were so bad. I was poked & probed, colonoscopies & endoscopies, blood tests, stool samples even MRI's & Cat scans & guess what they found??? NOTHING! Not a damn thing! I was in perfect health which, of course, in western medicine, Drs declare welllll you must have IBS. So "here's an insanely large bill & a bunch of drugs to take to treat the SYMPTOMS. Best of luck kid." Needless to say I was livid and ready to take matters into my own hands.
I tossed the pharmaceuticals & began self medicating with marijuana. I no longer felt constant extreme nausea. Then I started going to yoga to help with stress & anxiety. There I learned about healthier living & alternative medicine. I booked an appointment with a naturopathic DR & this is where I learned about leaky gut. I had the money & the time & so I took a chance on fixing this "hypothetical condition"
A few weeks later & I am a completely different person! & have been ever since. I can eat cheese & ice cream again! Spicey green curry is my new favorite food. I have regular BM's everyday & I don't even smoke pot any more. The only time I feel my IBS is if stress anxiety gets super high, I still get a little queezy.
So go ahead & google it. Leaky Gut. You'll see a lot of sites wanting to discredit it. But I am telling you because I want you to have this option to take a chance on something that may alter the rest of your life. It worked for me and it could work for you too.