Severe Bloating and Distention: How did you find relief?

Posted by htocco @htocco, Feb 18, 2019

Hello,
I have chronic bloating and distention of the abdomen and am very uncomfortable all of the time. I have had a colonoscopy and endoscopy (both negative), have tried a low FODMAP diet for several weeks, with no change. I do take probiotics as well a ginger root and peppermint. I rarely have cramping, except after a bowel movement. After a BM, the distention is more severe for the entire day. My GI doctor is at a lost as to what to do now. It seems much of the GI field is mysterious, and, unfortunately there are no answers for many conditions, including this. Is there anyone out there with similar symptoms? Does anyone have any suggestions for me?
Thank you!
Helen

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@jenniferhunter

@beanglow @htocco Severe bloating, diarhea, cramps and excessive gas are symptoms of gluten issues. You can do an experiment to see if removing all foods with gluten helps. I cannot tolerate any gluten or this will happen to me. I felt better right away when I took gluten out of my diet. I also developed other food allergies because having inflammation from the gluten caused a leaky gut, and I did an elimination diet to figure that out, so I have to be careful now with food. There are blood tests for celiac disease which should still work if done soon. If you avoid gluten for a long period and then get tested for celiac disease, you might not be making the antibodies any more that the test is looking for.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/celiac-disease/doctors-departments/ddc-20352229

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I have only been drinking Boost for the past month. I am still having gas, bloating and distention. My meds are keeping diarrhea in check except for numerous semi-formed BMs. I will check out the link you sent me. Thank you so much for your help. May God bless you for your kindness and concern. Elaine

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@beanglow

I have only been drinking Boost for the past month. I am still having gas, bloating and distention. My meds are keeping diarrhea in check except for numerous semi-formed BMs. I will check out the link you sent me. Thank you so much for your help. May God bless you for your kindness and concern. Elaine

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Hi Elaine, the first thing that I can think of is that Boost has lots of other artificial ingredients in it that could be irritating to your system. I recently found an app to put on my phone that is very comprehensive about foods and food additives to avoid. I've been off of dairy and gluten and yet I learned that there were numerous additives to some of the "approved" foods that I was still eating. You might want to have a look at it, it's called "Gluten Free Diet." I hope this helps.

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@harmonyln

Hi Elaine, the first thing that I can think of is that Boost has lots of other artificial ingredients in it that could be irritating to your system. I recently found an app to put on my phone that is very comprehensive about foods and food additives to avoid. I've been off of dairy and gluten and yet I learned that there were numerous additives to some of the "approved" foods that I was still eating. You might want to have a look at it, it's called "Gluten Free Diet." I hope this helps.

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Harmonyin has a good point. Boost would be especially bad if you have fructose malabsorption, because it has sugar(s) in it. So does Ensure. Have you tried plain chicken broth made from scratch? Best, Lelia

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@beanglow

I have only been drinking Boost for the past month. I am still having gas, bloating and distention. My meds are keeping diarrhea in check except for numerous semi-formed BMs. I will check out the link you sent me. Thank you so much for your help. May God bless you for your kindness and concern. Elaine

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Hi Beanglow, manufacturers are putting stuff in our food we know nothing about. They hire large expensive lobby groups for protection and put crap in our food that is killing us.We have no idea that they are doing this. READ THE INGREDIENTS! If it's something you don't know - Skip it and move on to pure and simple ingredients. It's important. We are slowly being killed by our diet. They put all kinds of stuff in our food like the pink crap they fill ground beef at Wal-Mart. A worker at Wal-Mart told me that one. We can't trust most manufacturers. Everybody wants us sick. That way the Pharma Companies make more money . Don't even get me started. Our government is corrupt and we are suffering because of it.

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Beanglow, CROSS CONTAMINATION! Happens all the time. Have you been tested? I eat no gluten, milk, or soy. My test came back and that's all I was allergic to and I was pleasantly surprised. My pecans and almonds have to be soaked overnight for a smoothie in the morning. I have to eat mushy veggies because my gut is wounded like a bullet-riddled Marine Warrior. I bleed inside my gut. I have to heal and healing takes place by eating the proper Caveman's Diet. I have a book on Celiac, the mother who started it., It's limited in what I can eat. But I also have Microscopic Colitis. I don't care, I can't live in the bathroom and wear Depends all the time. I am sick of this life I am healing but as an adult it takes time, longer than if you were a tot. If you want the name of the book, give me a note. You have to order it on Amazon. Dorothy

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@oakbourne - I had microscopic colitis too. Bad disease- couldn’t be more than 10 feet away from bathroom. However, when first diagnosed I was given immunosuppressive rx and it healed. I was warned it might come back, and it did in a different form, involving entire GI tract on and off for many years until I took immunosuppressive rx again for several months. It’s been 3 years now without recurrence.
My daughter has celiac and multiple food allergies, suddenly. Depressing.

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@faithful55

Hi Helen,
I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing these issues. I do experience the same but mine is due to my Nissen Fundoplication (wrap) for Gerd. Because of my wrap, I do get a lot of bloating and distention. What I have done to alleviate some of the discomfort is to remove gaseous foods from my diet and high sugar content like in sweets. I had a food allergy test that did reveal some foods that were adding to my problem so I removed them. I did some research on the web for herbal remedies that remove gas. I found that DGL (Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice) helps to remove gas. I began taking it and it has reduced the gases in my colon and bloating in my stomach. For my situation, I don't believe that Gerd was my main issue, but at that time in the 90's it was the remedy for anything that looked like Gerd. I am getting my wrap reversed next week and pray that this is the end of the road for this problem. May the Lord bless you and give you guidance. Have a blessed day.

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Hello @faithful55
I’m sorry to hear your having these problems. I’ve slso started a chat “exhausted with digestive issues”. I’ve had many surgeries and issues. Lots of SBO due to scar tissue. This last one has myself and my doctors stumped. I have been severely bloated and my stomach is bruising (didn’t know that was a thing) nothing is working. I’ve started Physical Therapy for PFD and massage to get my insides moving to help with the bloating. I’ve had all the laxatives, I barely eat, constantly in pain and uncomfortable. Have you ever thought of acupuncture Or anything like that? I have tests the rest of this month and then I’m looking for “ alternative healing methods” I’m willing to try anything and it can’t hurt. I’ll let you know if the acupuncture helps at all. It’s one thing walking around with a big belly when I was pregnant, now it’s just wrong and painful.
Good luck to you 😊

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@bentley33

Hello @faithful55
I’m sorry to hear your having these problems. I’ve slso started a chat “exhausted with digestive issues”. I’ve had many surgeries and issues. Lots of SBO due to scar tissue. This last one has myself and my doctors stumped. I have been severely bloated and my stomach is bruising (didn’t know that was a thing) nothing is working. I’ve started Physical Therapy for PFD and massage to get my insides moving to help with the bloating. I’ve had all the laxatives, I barely eat, constantly in pain and uncomfortable. Have you ever thought of acupuncture Or anything like that? I have tests the rest of this month and then I’m looking for “ alternative healing methods” I’m willing to try anything and it can’t hurt. I’ll let you know if the acupuncture helps at all. It’s one thing walking around with a big belly when I was pregnant, now it’s just wrong and painful.
Good luck to you 😊

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@faithful55 You may want to look at myofascial release which can loosen restrictions that might be impinging on m your GI tract. I can also have an irritated colon if my pelvis is out of what because the hips bones (illeum) can move and squeeze inward. My physical therapist straightens me out and it is resolved. See this discussion for information on MFR https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/myofascial-release-therapy-mfr-for-treating-compression-and-pain/

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@astaingegerdm

@oakbourne - I had microscopic colitis too. Bad disease- couldn’t be more than 10 feet away from bathroom. However, when first diagnosed I was given immunosuppressive rx and it healed. I was warned it might come back, and it did in a different form, involving entire GI tract on and off for many years until I took immunosuppressive rx again for several months. It’s been 3 years now without recurrence.
My daughter has celiac and multiple food allergies, suddenly. Depressing.

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Hi astaingegerdm. I have decided against all drugs. They wanted to give me steroids for MC.No steroids. It eats your bones and causes cataracts. I took the Pepto Bismol route - 8-10 tabs per day and when I got up during the night, I was falling. I was losing my balance. I got off Pepto Bismol and the balance problem ceased. I know the researcher who stated Pepto was the way to go, but not for me. I think it's not recommended for MC, now. I am Diet all the way and it has helped. I am slowly healing. Microscopic Disease is a nasty monster. It makes your mind go off the rails. You can't think. You are fatigued, irritable and depressed. You live in the bathroom and wear Depends. Sometimes it's so bad with watery Diarrhea, the diaper leaks through. I went to ASPEN DENTAL for a toothache. They told me I had 15 cavities. They tried to sell me their electric tooth brush, mouthwash, floss and toothpaste. It's a Money Game and with Aspen Dental, I knew everything about them was a lie. They are a corporate dental chain run by rich men in NYC, who aren't dentists. I started crying and watery diarrhea was running down my leg. They marched me out of the building like a criminal. They are a money-grubbing chain and I was a mess. My car was filthy from the D. All they care about is your money. They should be shut down. I went to another dentist and he said you have three cavities and a filling coming out. I brush three times per day and floss twice! I hate anything corporate in the medical field. If you need a support group, check out MC and wonderful Wayne Persky runs the site and can help. He knows so much and the people on board tell their stories of what works and doesn't work. I love the site. Good luck with this monster.

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@oakbourne
I agree that drugs to heal you can also kill you. My first colitis treatment was methotrexate. Had taken that poison already when I was getting chemo for breast cancer.
Some years later I took Imuran for 7 months. Remission. However, had several bad infections.
Do you ever drink pedialyte or other hydration fluid with diarrhea? Helps electrolyte balance.

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