IBS triggered binge relapse

chubby_gazelle
chubby_gazelle Posts: 5 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
During the last few months i've lost 20lbs (a big success for me!) I've been loving running, hiking and sport and consistently eating between 1200 and 1700 calories per day. However the last week I got ill -a couple of days of bad headaches, and severe IBS symptoms (sometimes so painful I'd want to cry). These stopped me doing sport and disrupted my eating pattern and since Friday everything has gone off the rails. I made an effort not to buy "trigger foods" but have been eating all sorts of rubbish in the house including weird mixes of foods, porridge, etc.

Is anyone else here willing to share what helps them stay on the rails during bad IBS flare ups? Also how do I get back on track, i've finally come to my senses after on Friday evening after thinking i'd do a weekend of fasting (setting myself up to fail!) but the pain and stomach discomfort is still hanging around my mind. (Basically i'm scared to eat lunch at work because of the pain in the afternoon but somehow there's a trigger that allows me to lie flat on my couch in the evening/weekend and binge!).

p.s I talked about my doctor about the stomach pain and headaches but he just gave me the likely IBS diagnosis and essentially told me to suck it up

Replies

  • LauraHasABabyJack
    LauraHasABabyJack Posts: 629 Member
    Do you have any specific food triggers? It might be helpful to figure it out. I know garlic triggers my IBS and once it does I try to eat very bland, limited foods because once it starts other foods cause it to continue.
    Sorry, no advice on getting back on track other than you know how because it sounds like you've been doing a great job.
  • MikePfirrman
    MikePfirrman Posts: 3,307 Member
    edited November 2021
    Eat less animal fat and protein. Latest studies on IBS demonstrate that if you eat "like rubbish", that eating less animal products will likely reduce your IBS.

    Those most likely to have IBS are those that eat a lot of animal products combined with tons of highly processed convenience foods.

    My wife (and my son) at one point in their lives suffered from debilitating IBS. Cleaning up their diets healed them. 100%. Eating more whole foods and fiber, gradually over time, will help you. Also look into Colostrum and eating a lot more polyphenols.

    Many times, folks with IBS also are gluten sensitive and or allergic to cow dairy. That was the case with my wife. After she eliminated those two things and we started eating more whole foods, it was pretty much gone.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,371 Member
    MikePfirrman wrote: »
    Eat less animal fat and protein. Latest studies on IBS demonstrate that if you eat "like rubbish", that eating less animal products will likely reduce your IBS.

    Those most likely to have IBS are those that eat a lot of animal products combined with tons of highly processed convenience foods.

    I'll second the recommendation to try eliminating animal protein. I was already gravitating in that direction simply due to my personal eating preferences but cutting out meat and poultry entirely (I still eat fish and seafood) made IBS a complete non-issue for me.

    I do avoid a lot of processed/prepared type food anyway to keep my sodium low.
  • chubby_gazelle
    chubby_gazelle Posts: 5 Member
    Thanks all for your comments. Luckily I already go for mostly veggie and eat gluten free but I will make more of an effort cut down on the dairy and see if it helps. Looking back on last week I think maybe overall I just was not careful enough with keeping my diet clean, letting processed foods sneak in, and maybe also stress played a part. Interestingly after an enforced weekend of rest on the sofa the severe issues have mostly gone but I'll for sure look into your suggestions - I didn't even know colostrum was a thing! At least on the bright side feeling better now and writing this post and reading your replies helped me concentrate my mind on getting back on track, even bashed out a 7 mile run on Monday! So thanks again :)

Categories